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Old 04-02-2014, 10:59 AM   #1
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Glacier National Park U.S.

I'm thinking of making reservations at Glacier. Fish Creek, Apgar and St. Mary's take reservations. Any opinions?
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Old 04-02-2014, 12:07 PM   #2
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Hi Ruthe,


Here's wishing yall a safe and happy trip/adventure. I've passed by a few CGs in the park. Seems like they were pretty well packed each time I passed by em'. Most of the times that I visited GNP I overnighted somewhere outside of the park. Last time I stayed overnight within the park boundary was many years ago and that was in one of the cabins.

That GTTS road sure offers some spectacular scenery IMO.

A couple of links: are you familiar with them? I've never used reserveamerica but I've looked at it and the other site a time or two.

http://www.parkcamper.com/Glacier-National-Park/Glacier-National-Park-Camping.htm

http://www.reserveamerica.com/unifSearchResults.do



My last stay was at the KOA on the west side of the park. To me it is a large and busy KOA. However, there were many shaded sites for small rigs and tent campers. The shade ment a lot to me and I enjoyed my stay there.
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Old 04-02-2014, 12:07 PM   #3
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As I recall, Apgar reservations are for group sites. Other than location preference (westside vs eastside), Fish Creek has campground ambiance while St Mary's is more of an RV Park. Non-reserved sites such as Rising Sun and Many Glacier are scenic and often open daily until afternoon. Old memories though...
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Old 04-02-2014, 12:56 PM   #4
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BTW, are you familiar with the "West Glacier Restaurant"? It doesn't seem to be too far from apgar CG.
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Old 04-02-2014, 01:05 PM   #5
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From what I've been reading the past few hours, St. Mary's is not the campground of choice. So I'm thinking that we'll make reservations there for one night and then early the next morning go over to Many Glacier. I need to look on the map and see the distance between them.
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Old 04-02-2014, 04:03 PM   #6
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From what I've been reading the past few hours, St. Mary's is not the campground of choice. So I'm thinking that we'll make reservations there for one night and then early the next morning go over to Many Glacier. I need to look on the map and see the distance between them.
St Mary's and Many Glacier are very close together - 30 miles or so. You are aware you cannot pull your Escape over Logan Pass?
Going-to-the-Sun Road FAQs - Glacier National Park (U.S. National Park Service) (about half way down)
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Old 04-02-2014, 04:05 PM   #7
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Highly recommend Two Medicine campground. It can provide all of the activities you may be interested in. Many Glacier is heavily used, crowded, and the hiking trails are frequently closed due to bear activity.Hiked through and camped at all of the campgrounds at GNP and end up at Two Medicine.
http://www.nps.gov/glac/planyourvisit/twomedicine.htm
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Old 04-02-2014, 04:25 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ruthe View Post
I'm thinking of making reservations at Glacier. Fish Creek, Apgar and St. Mary's take reservations. Any opinions?
I've camped in Glacier at least a dozen times, Many Glacier is my favorite. The hiking is spectacular and the fact that it is a bit off the beaten path makes it less hectic. I've always had good luck finding a spot between 9-10am when folks are leaving.

As a second choice, I'd drive up to Waterton. It's a slightly different experience and you'll need to watch the hours for Customs.
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Old 04-02-2014, 04:28 PM   #9
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We camped at Fish about 4 years ago and loved it. It was quiet and very clean with plenty of hiking and lake viewing. It's also a great base to venture from.
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Old 04-02-2014, 05:52 PM   #10
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Glacier!

I have stayed at all of them except Many Glacier and the group site. I liked Rising Sun best because it is smaller and quieter. St Mary is more open and has some spectacular views. Two Medicine is also quiet, but it is quite a bit further from the rest of the park. We took all the hiking trails there and then moved.

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Old 04-02-2014, 06:55 PM   #11
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Unless I am missing something, I don't think we would need to go over Logan Pass to get from St. Mary's to Many Glacier.
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Old 04-02-2014, 07:02 PM   #12
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I had written down Two Medicine and then forgot about it. The campground map looks interesting and it seems like it would be easier to get a site there even on Fourth of July week, which is when we'd be there. It also seems to be near a store and hiking and even a boat tour. Are there any disadvantages?
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Old 04-02-2014, 08:12 PM   #13
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Unless I am missing something, I don't think we would need to go over Logan Pass to get from St. Mary's to Many Glacier.
True - but the other campgrounds in your first post (and much of the park) are on the other side of the pass from St Mary's. (And we think the west side of the park is prettier.)
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Old 04-03-2014, 09:38 AM   #14
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We also camped at Fish Creek a few years ago. Great campsites, not to far from from Apgar and the stores. Beautiful spot, as Tom said a great base camp! We took the jammer tour over Logan Pass and back (had lunch at Many Glaciers), that was really fun. We got to know the couple sitting next to us well since we were all leaning together (to keep the bus from going over the edge ).

If you want to get to the West side of the park, the drive around the south side is beautiful (No RV's on Going to the Sun).

Kathie
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Old 04-03-2014, 10:08 AM   #15
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We just made reservations for two nights at Fish Creek for late July. We are such planners that just showing up and getting a spot makes us a little anxious. Plus we only have a limited time to get back home after we pick up our Escape, so we have our places reserved ahead of time to make sure that we don't lollygag! The pictures of all the GNP campsites look really nice!

Good luck to you Ruthe!
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Old 04-03-2014, 11:04 AM   #16
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Last summer we arrived at Glacier Park in the morning, and in the middle of the week, hoping to get a spot. No luck! We ended up staying at a private campground in St. Mary's, which was ok, but sure not as nice as Many Glacier! We did walk through Many Glacier, where we met a fellow and his son with his new 5.0 Escape heading home after picking it up from the factory! My advise is to reserve, as Glacier is crazy busy. We had trouble even finding a place to park at trailheads. Waterton Park across the border had plenty of campsites.
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Old 04-03-2014, 12:24 PM   #17
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We camped at Waterton two years ago and hiked to the Goat Haunt Ranger station in Montana and then took the boat to Waterton village were we started. It was a very good experience. The hike was guided by two rangers from the USA & Canada. It celebrates the fact that Waterton/Glacier is the first International Peace Park.
Waterton Lakes National Park - Hiking Trails in Waterton
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Old 04-03-2014, 01:22 PM   #18
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The Crypt lake hike and the hike from Camernon falls down to the town site in Waterton are two of my favorites.
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Old 04-03-2014, 03:44 PM   #19
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Quote:
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get a site there even on Fourth of July week, which is when we'd be there.
Fourth of July!!! I kinda hate to say it but.....Ouch.
I'm curious about which direction you will initially be approaching the park from----east or west side?




Quote:
Originally Posted by Dave&Kathie View Post

If you want to get to the West side of the park, the drive around the south side is beautiful Kathie
Copy that. And I've even seen a grizzly on that south loop---off 49 I believe.
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Old 04-03-2014, 04:12 PM   #20
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The thing is when we take a long camping trip in the spring and summer we can't avoid holiday weekends -- we've got to be somewhere. We'll be coming from the north, so I guess we could approach it from the east or the west -- it wouldn't really matter.
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