With the ever-increasing popularity of National Parks (mostly thanks to Social Media), it's difficult to escape the crowds. We've had places we dreamt of visiting, turn out to be just another busy viewpoint with impossible parking! However, there are ways to experience the peace and quiet that you expect in beautiful places like this by simply adjusting the dates of your trip by a couple of weeks.

Glacier National Park was a perfect example of that for us. We arrived shortly after the end of the Summer season, and almost had the entire place to ourselves! Of course, not everything is perfect. The shops and visitor center were closed for the rest of the year and more than half of Going-to-the-Sun Road was cordoned off for repairs and renovation. It caught us by surprise, but we ended up finding a few beautiful spots to visit, even when everything else was shut down!

Here's a list of our favorite things to see during the off-season in Glacier National Park.

Lake McDonald

A few weeks earlier and Lake McDonald would have been a busy spot for boating, lounging out in the sun, or spending long afternoons swimming in its cool waters. However, with the temperatures approaching freezing, we stuck to lunch on the shoreline and an afternoon of skipping stones! With its vast reflections and incredibly colorful stones shimmering under the surface, it was a stunning way to spend an afternoon in the Park.

Trail of the Cedars

The Trail of the Cedars is a peaceful hike that loops through an ancient forest of, you guessed it, Cedars. Some of the trees tower over 80 feet tall and are estimated to be more than 500 years old. Take your time and slowly wander through hundreds of years of history.

It's one of the two wheelchair-accessible routes in Glacier National Park, with the entire trail paved, with a raised boardwalk on some sections.

Other than the Cedars, it's also become known for a beautiful waterfall, found at the halfway point, called Avalanche Gorge. Listen out for the rumbling of the fall as you approach, and look out for the vibrant blue waters that continue to carve their way through the rock.

Easy • 0.8 Mile Loop

Avalanche Lake

Once you pass the halfway point of Trail of the Cedars, take a left when you reach the fork in the path to head to Avalanche Lake. It's not a long hike, but what it lacks in distance it makes up for in elevation gain (748 feet). It's short but tough! The views at the end are most certainly worth the extra miles though. You begin by following the river, hiking past roaring rapids, before making the final climb through the trees to the often still waters of Avalanche Lake.

Moderate • 5 Mile Roundtrip

I hope this helps you plan your out-of-season trip to Glacier National Park. Enjoy!

THANK YOU FOR READING!

Glacier is our eighth National Park on The Big Trip. Follow us to see the rest of our journey as we spend 3 months exploring America’s most beautiful National Parks.

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