Glacier National Park in April: Spring is the Best Time to Visit!

Glacier National Park is absolutely bonkers!! Spring is a beautiful time to visit this incredible National Park as the snow starts melting, lakes start thawing and birds start chirping. Specifically, visiting Glacier National Park in April or Glacier National Park in March are two of the best months to plan your trip!

Glacier National Park is located in the heartland of God’s County, USA. Entering the park is like falling down Alice’s rabbit hole. At the bottom you’ll roll into a world of stirring wildlife amidst snow-capped mountains, with the crystal clear waters as the cherry on top of this stunning sundae.

I know what you may be thinking, isn’t Summer the time to go? Summer is when the weather is hot and the sun is high in the sky. After all, isn’t that why so many people make the trip in Summer? That many people can’t be wrong!

Well my friend, Summer is beautiful, but let us tell you why it will always be playing second fiddle to Spring. The following are the 10 reasons why you should visit Glacier National Park in spring!

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1. The crowds have yet to come

One of our favorite parts about Montana was the chance to escape the noise and rush of the city for Big Sky Country. When you visit Glacier National Park in April, or really any month in Spring, you will get just that.

The rush starts in June, and peaks in July and August. On average, Glacier National Park receives over 25,000 visitors every day in July, yikes! For our money, heading out in March, April or May and having the trails to yourself is better than July when the trails will be full.

We did a lot of hiking on our trip to Glacier, and there is something to say about the difference between hiking on an empty trail versus a trail full of people. Hiking an empty trail makes you feel more in touch with nature, and gives a more authentic experience.

On top of that, sometimes a packed tourist destination brings negatives along with it. For instance, trash. Some people do litter the trail unfortunately. Don’t be those people. Hike it in, hike it out.

There are lots more reasons why visiting Glacier National Park in Spring (March, April or May) is better than June, July or August. Let’s move on to number 2.

2. Glacier is the very FIRST International Peace Park

Go USA and Canada! These two beautiful countries teamed up to create the very first ever International Peace Park! Glacier National Park, meet Waterton Lakes National Park. Way to preserve the ‘Crown of the Continent’.

I think I speak for all Americans saying that we have to beat Canada at everything. We at least have to try to. It is a pride thing.

We’re going to go ahead and say, then, that Glacier National Park beats out Waterton Lakes National Park. Both are beautiful, but Glacier is just at another level, especially in the Spring months. Just look at how beautiful Glacier National Park in April looks!!

3. The Lakes are Made of Glass

In the Summer, the lakes are full of kayaks and paddle boards. Now, we kayak and paddle board with the best of them, those are some damn fine activities.

However, even a slight ripple disrupts this view, and we just can’t have that. You can literally do a handstand and not know if you’re looking right-side up or upside-down. Well, until you crash back to the ground at least.

Check out this view of Lake McDonald in Glacier National Park in April! I imagine the views to be like this all around Glacier National Park in March and May as well! The lakes and mountains are so incredibly peaceful and still in Glacier National Park in Spring!

One of our favorite places on earth is alongside one of these beautiful still lakes in Glacier National Park. This is a great place to sit and stare in awe, drinking in the incredible surroundings that Mother Nature provides.

Do yourself a favor and visit a few reflective lakes in Glacier. Our favorite reflective lakes in the park were:

• Lake McDonald
• Avalanche Lake
• Saint Mary Lake

4. Spring is the Ideal Time for Biking in the Park

The Going-To-The-Sun-Road is the b-e-a-utiful path that takes you right through the heart of Glacier National Park. In Spring, parts of the road are closed to vehicles.

You’ll find that the Going-To-The-Sun-Road is closed to vehicles if you visit Glacier National Park in April. In fact it usually doesn’t fully open until late June or early July.

At first, that may give you a frowny-face, until you realize that the road is open to bikes! There is NOTHING as amazing as biking the Going-To-The-Sun-Road without being worried about tourists driving by. 

If you enter the park on the west side in Apgar Village, coming from Kalispell or Columbia Falls, you will pass Glacier Outfitters. This is the perfect place to rent your bike at a steal of a price ($30 buckaroos for 24 hours!). Once you have your bike you have 3 options:

• Start biking from Apgar Village
• Put your bike in your car/truck and drive until the road closure and bike from there
• Take a shuttle up to the road closure and begin biking from there.

This bike ride is pretty flat and easy for the first ~10 miles where you can take in the beautiful scenery without huffing and puffing. 

The ride gets tough, but as long as you take breaks (and who wouldn’t with all that scenery!) it is totally doable. 

This was the most without a doubt beautiful bike ride we have EVER done! Not to mention on the way back down you go flying down the mountain side like Wile-E-Coyote chasing the Road Runner. Meep Meep!

5. Hiking in Spring is Wild and Wide Open

While many hikes are said to be closed in the spring, most aren’t REALLY closed. Just be prepared for a few obstacles and snow-covered trails if you are hiking into higher altitudes.

On some of the less-popular trails the rangers and park workers don’t clear the trail of trees and branches until later in the season. Now, you can either treat that as a negative or a positive. In our opinion, trails with a few down trees (really only 2 or 3 on most trails) makes it feel like more of an outdoorsy experience!

Hiking Glacier National Park in the Spring months will give you this unique opportunity. 

There are over 700 miles of trails throughout the park, so there are plenty of trails to choose from. Our tip: research every trail before-hand to understand the current conditions. Talk to a ranger and usually they’ll be extremely helpful.

Our favorite spring hike was Avalanche Lake, mainly because of the drop-dead-gorgeous scenery at the top. The Avalanche Lake hike was just over 4 miles round-trip, so it wasn’t too difficult but not extremely easy.

We’ve done this hike in Glacier National Park in April and in July and there is no doubt this trail is so much better in the spring!

If flat trails are right up your alley, then our favorite was the Johns Lake Loop and trail. This was easy to get to, and a nice calm hike through the forest. We even spotted a few deer and even a black bear on our hike!

6. Wildlife is Out and About in Spring!

Glacier National Park is known for its wildlife. We saw a ton of animals: deer, goats, bald eagles, elk, and our favorite: a black bear!

The best time to see wildlife is early morning or late evening right before sunset or right after sunrise. If you want to see animals, then make sure you know the safety precautions beforehand. Bring along bear spray.

Bears typically come out of hibernation in Glacier National Park in Spring, so they will be very hungry and active in Glacier National Park in April or even as early as mid March!

Although bears are usually afraid of humans, it is better to be safe than sorry! You do not want to run into an angry grizzly without some protection. Kind of like you do not want to run into an angry Julie who doesn’t have coffee in the morning.

In both situations, make sure you are prepared. Better safe than sorry!

7. The East Side of Glacier National Park in Spring

Since the Going-To-The-Sun Road will be closed to cars in Spring, the only way to get to the east side is to drive around the park. The East Entrance of Glacier is located in St Mary, about a 2 hour drive around the park. The drive makes this part of the park positively tourist-free!

 

St Mary and Two Medicine (a set of lakes on the East side of Glacier), has a very different feel than the West side. 

The East side is higher in elevation, so it takes longer for this side to be completely open and accessible due to snow. In Glacier National Park in April, and all of Spring really, you’ll be able to see the snow capped peaks painted gorgeous colors that you won’t find in Summer.

Our favorite views were Two Medicine and St. Mary Lake. These lakes are enormous, almost as big as Lake McDonald, and they were so unique and wonderful. Also, we spotted a herd of elk in the distance when driving through St Mary!

8. Spring Lodging Options are Better

We stayed in the most amazing cabin in Columbia Falls when we visited Glacier National Park in April. The fact that it isn’t rush season meant that all of the stunning places to stay were open and ready for us!

Our amazing hosts even gave us a deal when we asked really nicely! We recommend checking out Airbnb or VRBO. Or you can use our favorite strategy, asking a local where they would stay if they were visiting.

Glacier National Park and the surrounding Montana cities have a ton of amazing lodging options. From beautiful lakeside hotels to back-country log cabins, and everything in between! If you go to Glacier National Park in Spring, you’ll have your pick of where to stay.

9. Sunsets in Spring Are Incredible

One local shared a secret with us: at sunset the mountains turn pink in Columbia Falls. You bet your butt we raced to the nearest farm field (which wasn’t far or hard to find) to watch the sun go down that night.

The sunset behind the mountains is truly special. We parked the van on the side of the road, climbed on top, threw on some Kygo and let the view wash over us.

If you take anything away from this blog post, please make it this: see at least one sunset during your time in Glacier National Park in Spring. You will not regret one second of it, guaranteed.

10. Springtime Activities in Glacier National Park

Glacier has an almost endless number of places to explore and things to do. During the busy months, these activities can be expensive or booked, or both!

However, if you go to Glacier National Park in March, April, or May, you will have your pick of activities to do! Do you like to kayak or stand up paddleboard? Maybe you just want to take a canoe on one of these incredible lakes? Do all of that in more during the Spring season!

Also, one thing we MUST mention is the Many Glacier area. This part of the park is further North from St Mary, and is perhaps the best part of the park.

Many Glacier is incredible because of its remote location and the fantastic scenery. If you want to truly explore the wild, you should head to Many Glacier. However, due to its remote location, check the National Park’s website first to check conditions before making the trek. And if you want to do some Springtime activities in Many Glacier, here are some great ideas.

Conclusion

Spring is the best time to visit Glacier National Park, without a doubt. Glacier National Park in April, or any spring season month, is truly a wonderland and an incredible adventure. To be honest it is the very best National Park to visit in Spring! Better than Yellowstone, and the Rocky Mountains even!

Glacier is an UNBELIEVABLE Springtime escape. We will absolutely be back in the future, and this time we’ll bring a few friends. We HIGHLY recommend you making the trip to Glacier National Park in March, April, or May!

Check out the below gallery for more pictures of our trip, and if there is anything you want to know about what we did please let us know!

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