If you like the outdoors and scenery that's hard to beat anywhere on the planet, Glacier National Park may be the place for you. Located in beautiful Northwest Montana and extending into Canada, this National Park is one of the most beautiful in the entire United States. If you enjoy fishing, hiking, animal watching, camping, mountain biking, swimming, or most other outdoor activities, Glacier National Park is the place for you.

Glacier National Park is one of the largest and most intact ecosystems in North America. There are over fifty glaciers within the park, thus the name. There are also over 200 lakes and streams in Glacier National Park. The largest lake is Lake Macdonald, and the various streams and river hold nice populations of wild trout. There are also over 730 miles of trails for hikers to enjoy within Glacier National Park. Hiking is probably one of the most popular activities within the park. If you go hiking in this area of the country having bear spray with you is always a good idea. Glacier National Park is home to a decent population of wild grizzly bears.

The Park is divided from east to west by Going-to-the-Sun road. It's a spectacular drive, and if you go once you'll realize where the road got its name. Bisecting the heart of the park, this fifty mile long road hugs the shores of the parks two largest lakes and then goes right below the cliffs of the Continental Divide as it traverses Logan Pass. If you're looking for more information, there are visitor centers that have maps throughout the park to help you. Glacier Park Inc. operates a daily shuttle service along this road from July 1st to Labor Day weekend.

The glaciers that you find in Glacier National Park today are all geologically new, having formed in the last few thousand years. Presently, all of the glaciers within Glacier National Park are shrinking. In other words, more snow melts each year than accumulates each winter. As the climate has changed over the last two million years, glaciers have formed and melted away many times. So at the end of the day, this process is as it should be.

The Park itself is full of wildlife. Although there are to many species to list here, some of them would include: mountain goats, white tailed and mule deer, elk, moose, black bear, grizzly bear, mountain lions, and various rodents and birds. If you're interested in viewing wildlife, Glacier National Park won't disappoint. There are also many fish species located in the rivers and lakes throughout the Park. Most of the fish are in the trout family and would include: lake, rainbow, cutthroat, brook, and bull trout.

The bottom line is that if it's outdoor activities and scenery that interest you, Glacier National Park is the place for you. Whether your favorite activity is rafting, fishing, hiking, camping, driving, or biking you'll find it within the boundaries of Glacier National Park.