Glacier National Park in Montana

 What to do in Glacier National Park

     Travelers to Glacier National Park will be treated to all sorts of stunning views, from jagged peaks to mirror lakes to vast blue skies. This view can be enjoyed by car, by boat (glacierguides.com), on a hike, or while sitting on the terrace in one of the historic cottages in the garden. Glacier National Park maintains a convergence of different ecosystems, varies in humidity and altitude, the landscape is diverse and ever-changing.

Glacier National Park is an American national park located in northwest Montana, on the Canadian-United States border, bordering the Canadian provinces of Alberta and British Columbia. The park covers more than 1 million hectares (4,000 km) and includes parts of two mountain ranges (a sub-range of the Rocky Mountains), more than 130 named lakes, more than 1,000 different plant species, and hundreds of animal species.

This vast pristine ecosystem is at the core of what is known as the "Crown Ecosystem Continent", a protected area of land covering 16,000 square miles (41,000 km).

Glacier National Park is part of the Water ton - Glacier International Peace Park, which was designated a World Heritage Site in 1995. The World Heritage Site designation recognizes places considered natural or cultural treasures of the entire planet.

There are so many things to see and do in Glacier National Park that you will want to visit more than once. Your first visit will definitely leave you with a memory that will last a lifetime.

While you can see a lot of great views from the road with your car, chances are you want to get out and experience nature firsthand. A hike in Glacier National Park is a great idea. The hikes range from flat, easy and ranger-led levels, to strenuous hikes.

History of Glacier National Park

The area that became Glacier National Park was first settled by Native Americans. After the arrival of European explorers, it was dominated by Blackfeet to the east and Flatheads to the west. Under duress, Blackfeet ceded the mountainous portion of their promised land in 1895 to the federal government; and then became part of the garden.

Immediately after the park was founded on May 11, 1910, a number of hotels and chalets were built by the Great Northern Railway. This historic hotel and chalet is listed as a National Historical Landmark and a total of 350 locations are on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1932, work on the Going-to-the-Sun Road was completed, which was later designated a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark, providing easier accessibility for cars to the heart of the park.

The Mountains of Glacier National Park began to form 170 million years ago, when ancient rock was pushed upwards eastward and through much younger rock layers. Known as the Lewis Overthrust, this sedimentary rock is thought to have some of the best fossil examples of early life on Earth.

The current shape of the Lewis and Livingston mountains, as well as the position and size of the lakes, show evidence of massive glacial action, which carved a U-shaped valley and left moraines that consumed the water, creating the lake. Of the estimated 150 glaciers that existed in the park in the mid-19th century during the end of the Little Ice Age, only 25 were active in 2010. Scientists studying glaciers in the park have estimated that all active glaciers could disappear by 2030 if climate patterns currently exists.