Season
The park is open every day of the year, but severe winter weather of the area causes many of its roads and facilities to shut down until the warmer months. Shutdown of the roads begins as early as September.
Hiking
Guided hikes into the backcountry are available as are self-guided nature hikes along paths such as the Trail of the Cedars, which features signs explaining the various natural sights. Hiking trails such as the North Fork Trail, which leads day hikers past Bowman Lake, Kintla Lake and along Quartz Creek, are well marked, and maps are available online and in the park itself.
Glaciers
With the Rocky Mountains in the park itself, the territory is home to frozen glaciers. In 1850 there were as many as 150 separate glaciers in the area, with that number now reduced to 26.
Geography
More than half of Glacier National Park (55 percent), is covered by forests, with 90 percent of those wooded areas being coniferous forests containing trees such as cedars, hemlocks and spruces.
Wildlife
As many as 300 grizzly bears live within the park's boundaries, making it one of the largest populations of this species in the U.S. Other large mammals with a presence in the park include elk, deer, black bears, lynx, gray wolves, cougars, bighorn sheep and mountain goats.
