Top 10 Favorite Hikes in Glacier Park: Voted by our Facebook Fans

In May, we asked our Facebook followers "What's your favorite hike in Glacier National Park?"  Here’s the list of the top ten hikes our followers voted for:

10.  Gunsight Pass - This 20.6 mile hike begins at the Jackson Glacier overlook and ends at Lake McDonald Lodge.  This can either be a full day hike or it can also be split by camping along various campgrounds along the way or with a stay at Sperry Glacier Chalet and a side trip can be taken to view Sperry Glacier.  

Photo by ouachitamaps.com

 9.  Medicine Grizzly Lake – A scenic 6.2 mile hike that begins in Cut Bank and is settled in the basin below Triple Divide Peak.  George Bird Grinell coined the term “Crown of the Continent” from the streams that flow into the Atlantic, Pacific, and Arctic Oceans that are sourced from Triple Divide Peak. 

Photo by summitpost.org

8.  Dawson Pass – This hike is known to be strenuous, but is one of the most scenic in the park.  This hike begins at Two Medicine Lake and can begin by crossing the lake by boat to the other most western side of the lake.  After crossing the Continental Divide over Dawson Pass, one can continue to Pitamakan Pass, looping back to Two Medicine for a 14.8 mile loop or by retracing their steps back for a 9.4 mile round-trip.

Photo by hikinginglacier.com

7.  Ptarmigan Tunnel – This trailhead begins at the Swiftcurrent Motor Inn and is a 10.7 mile round-trip, passing Ptarmigan Falls and Ptarmigan Lake.  The 240-foot Ptarmigan Tunnel was originally built for horses and early park tours by the Civilian Conservation Corp in the 1930's.

Photo by hikinginglacier.com

6.  Avalanche Lake - This hike is one of the most traveled trails in the park, due to its location that is at the head of the Going-to-the-Sun road and opens before a majority of the other trails do in the park.  The hike passes through the Trail of the Cedars, and is rated as a moderate 4.5 mile round-trip hike. 

 

Photo by Flickr

5.  Siyeh Pass Trail – This strenuous, yet rewarding 8.4 mile trek begins about 2 miles east of Logan’s Pass and gives excellent views of Preston Park, which is a popular location for grizzlies.  The mountain and the pass were named by George Bird Grinnell for a Blackfoot Indian by the name of "Sai-yeh," which in the Blackfeet language means Crazy Dog, or Mad Wolf.

Photo by dennis-ernst-blogs.blogspot.com

4.  Cracker Lake - This 12.6 mile hike begins at Many Glacier Hotel and can be accessed by way of horse or by foot.  Glacial silt gives this lake its unique aqua hue and is surrounded by multi-colored mountain where you can still see an old mining site if you choose to take a side adventure.

www.artflakes.com

3.  Grinnell Glacier – This 7.6 mile trip is a great way for hikers to be up close to a glacier in the park.  The trailhead begins at Many Glacier Hotel, where you can reduce your hike by 3.4 miles by taking a shuttle boat across Swiftcurrent Lake and Lake Josephine before beginning your ascent to the glacier.

Photo by Glacier Park, Inc.

2.  Highline Loop -  The most popular route of this trail, is the 11.6 loop that begins at Logan’s Pass and follows along the bottom of the Garden Wall, through Granite Park, and finally descending to the “The Loop” where hikers can take a shuttle back to their vehicle at Logan’s Pass.

Photo by Glacier Park, Inc.

1.  Iceberg Lake -  This iconic and popular 9.7 mile hike begins at Swiftcurrent Motor Inn and follows the same path towards the Ptarmigan Tunnel.  This lake is surrounded by towering peaks, thus reducing sunlight to the lake allowing for the ice and snow to the edges of the lake shore and cliff walls, resembling icebergs. 

Photo by visitmt.com