Going-to-the-Sun Road is a scenic mountain road in the Rocky Mountains of the western United States, in Glacier National Park in Montana. The Sun Road, as it is sometimes abbreviated in National Park Service documents, is the only road that traverses the park, crossing the Continental Divide through Logan Pass at an elevation of 6,646 feet (2,026 m), which is the highest point on the road. Construction began in 1921 and was completed in 1932 with formal dedication in the following summer on July 15, 1933. Prior to the construction of the road, visitors would need to spend several days traveling through the central part of the park, an area which can now be traversed within a few hours, excluding any stops for sightseeing or construction.
Weeping Wall is a geological formation found along Going-to-the-Sun Road in Glacier National Park, in the U.S. state of Montana. It is a natural waterfall that seeps out from the side of Haystack Butte and the Garden Wall, and is fed by runoff from snowmelt.
Logan Pass is located along the Continental Divide in Glacier National Park, in the U.S. state of Montana. It is the highest point on the Going-to-the-Sun Road. The pass is named after Major William R. Logan, the first superintendent of the park.
Going-to-the-Sun Mountain is a 9,647-foot (2,940 m) mountain peak located in Glacier National Park in the U.S. state of Montana. It rises dramatically above St. Mary Valley just north of the Going-to-the-Sun Road. The mountain was named by James Willard Schultz in 1888.
The Lewis Range is a mountain range located in the Rocky Mountains of northern Montana, United States and extreme southern Alberta, Canada. It was formed as a result of the Lewis Overthrust, a geologic thrust fault resulted in the overlying of younger Cretaceous rocks by older Proterozoic rocks. The range is located within Waterton Lakes National Park in Alberta, Canada and Glacier National Park and the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex in Montana, United States. The highest peak is Mount Cleveland at 10,479 ft (3,194 m).
Granite Park Chalet is located in the heart of Glacier National Park in the U.S. state of Montana at an elevation of 6,693 feet above sea level. The chalet was built in 1914 by the Great Northern Railway and is a National Historic Landmark contributing property, being one of five structures in the Great Northern Railway Buildings district. From Logan Pass along the Going-to-the-Sun Road, the chalet is a moderate 7.6 miles (12.2 km) hike along the famed Crown of the Continent Highline Trail, usually referred to simply as the Highline Trail. Much of the trail passes through the scenic Garden Wall section of the park, immediately west and parallel to the Continental Divide. The chalet is also accessible via the Loop Trail and the Swiftcurrent Trail. The trails are for hikers and horseback riders only; no vehicle access is provided. Granite Park Chalet is a limited services facility and those that spend the night make use of the full service kitchen to cook their own meals.
The Big Drift is in Glacier National Park, in the U.S. state of Montana and is an area along the Going-to-the-Sun Road where a large amount of winter snow can accumulate to depths of 80 feet (24 m). Located immediately east of Logan Pass, the westerly winds push snow over the crest of the Continental Divide onto the eastern flank of a long arête which extends south from Pollock Mountain. West of the divide, this arête is known as the Garden Wall.
The Highline Trail is a scenic hiking trail in Glacier National Park, Montana, United States. The trail stretches 7.6 miles (12.2 km) from Logan Pass to Granite Park Chalet, and continues another 11.9 miles (19.2 km) from there to Fifty Mountain Campground. The trail follows the Garden Wall ridge and the continental divide for most of its length. The trail offers scenic views of glaciated U-shaped valleys. A 1.2-mile (1.9 km) round trip side trail takes hikers up the side of the Garden Wall to an overlook to Grinnell Glacier.
Gem Glacier is the smallest named glacier in Glacier National Park (U.S.). Located on the east side of the Continental Divide arête known as the Garden Wall, the glacier is situated on the cliff face above the better known Grinnell Glacier. Gem Glacier is a hanging glacier, and drapes down from the north face of the steep arete to which it is attached. Gem Glacier is only 5 acres (0.020 km2) in area and is far below the 25 acres (0.10 km2) threshold often cited as qualifying as an active glacier. Between 1966 and 2005, Gem Glacier lost 30 percent of its acreage and Grinnell Glacier lost 40 percent.
The Logan Pass Visitor Center in Glacier National Park was constructed at the summit of the Going-to-the-Sun Road during the Mission 66 park facilities improvement program. The design concept was originated by architect Cecil J. Doty of the National Park Service Western Office of Design and Construction. Burt L. Gewalt of the Kalispell, Montana architectural firm Brinkman and Lenon was responsible for the construction documents, carried out between 1960 and 1962. Construction was completed in 1966. The visitor center uses common Mission 66 themes such as a broad, gently sloping roof, native stone, and glulam timber construction.
The Saint Mary Visitor Center in Glacier National Park, with the connected Saint Mary Checking Station and Entrance Station was constructed at the east entrance to the Going-to-the-Sun Road during the Mission 66 park facilities improvement program. It was designed by Burt L. Gewalt of the Kalispell, Montana architectural firm Brinkman and Lenon, and was completed in 1967. The complex uses common Mission 66 themes such as native stone, and glulam timber construction, combined with a dramatic roof structure that echoes the mountain peaks in the background. The stone in the walls came from the Going-to-the-Sun Road. The view of the "St. Mary" webcam on the Glacier National Park official website is broadcast from the center and shows the westward-facing view over St. Mary Lake, which includes a distant view of Logan's Pass. There is also an osprey nest about one hundred meters to the east of the building, which can be viewed from the visitor parking lot and from the park's osprey webcam.
The Glacier National Park Tourist Trails, including the Inside Trail, South Circle Trail and North Circle Trail, were established in Glacier National Park to connect a series of tourist camps and hotels established by the Great Northern Railway between 1910 and 1915. Prior to the construction of the Going-to-the-Sun Road, these trails were the primary form of circulation within the park. The trail system includes a number of bridges.
The following articles relate to the history, geography, geology, flora, fauna, structures and recreation in Glacier National Park (U.S.), the U.S. portion of the Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park.
Bishops Cap is located in the Lewis Range, Glacier National Park in the U.S. state of Montana. Located above the Garden Wall and straddling the Continental Divide, when viewed from the south at Logan Pass, the peak appears to resemble a Bishop's headwear. The name Bishops Cap is descriptive only, and there's no known origin.
Citadel Mountain is located in the Lewis Range, Glacier National Park in the U.S. state of Montana. The mountain is located at the western edge of Saint Mary Lake and is easily seen from the Going-to-the-Sun Road.
Fusillade Mountain is located in the Lewis Range, Glacier National Park in the U.S. state of Montana. Fusillade Mountain lies immediately north of Gunsight Lake at the western terminus of the St. Mary Valley and can be seen from the Going-to-the-Sun Road. The mountain was named by George Bird Grinnell in 1891, "as a satirical gesture at W. H. Seward and Henry L. Stimson for firing a futile volley at a group of goats on the side of this mountain".
Sexton Glacier is located in the U.S. state of Montana in Glacier National Park. The glacier is situated in a cirque north of Going-to-the-Sun Mountain and on the southeast slope of Matahpi Peak at an elevation between 8,000 feet (2,400 m) and 7,000 feet (2,100 m) above sea level. The glacier covers an area of approximately 68 acres (0.28 km2) and lost over 30 percent of its surface area between 1966 and 2005.
Dusty Star Mountain is located in the Lewis Range, Glacier National Park in the U.S. state of Montana. Connected by an arête to Citadel Mountain to the south, Dusty Star Mountain lies to the south and across the Saint Mary Valley from Going-to-the-Sun Mountain. Dusty Star Mountain is easily seen from the Going-to-the-Sun Road, and often photographed by tourists taking pictures of Wild Goose Island which lies in the western section of Saint Mary Lake. The Blackfoot name for Dusty Star is iszika-kakatosi meaning "meteor" or "smoking star".
Heavy Runner Mountain is located in the Lewis Range, Glacier National Park in the U.S. state of Montana. The summit is a little over a mile east-northeast of Reynolds Mountain and is easily seen from the Going-to-the-Sun Road as well as Logan Pass. The mountain is named for the Blackfeet Indian Chief, Heavy Runner, who was massacred along with most of his encampment by Col. Eugene M. Baker's detachment on the Marias River on January 23, 1870.
Haystack Butte is a 7,486-foot-elevation (2,282-meter) summit located in the Lewis Range, of Glacier National Park in the U.S. state of Montana. It is situated one mile west of the Continental Divide, in Flathead County, above the Weeping Wall on its south slope. Topographic relief is significant as the west aspect rises 3,900 feet above McDonald Creek in less than 1.5 mile. It can be seen from Logan Pass, and from Going-to-the-Sun Road which traverses the west and south slopes of the peak. The nearest higher neighbor is Mount Gould, 1.07 miles (1.72 km) to the northeast. Climbing access is via the Highline Trail. This geographical feature's descriptive name was on maps as early as 1904, and was officially adopted March 6, 1929, by the United States Board on Geographic Names
