When heading to Glacier National Park in northwestern Montana, you can only expect to see a few glaciers while there – it’s in the name, after all.
What would this national park be without its eponymous mountains of ice and snow? Well, thanks in large part to a warming planet, this park – and our world’s – ice glaciers are significantly shrinking in size.
While this may be concerning, this article aims to relate the many glaciers still found in this beautiful state park, their history within the park grounds, and – perhaps most importantly – how to support park rangers and scientists in ensuring these massive landmarks remain for future generations.
We’re going to share some of our favorite glaciers in Glacier National Park, from how to get there to specific stats. Let’s go!
Glaciers in Glacier National Park – A Complete Guide
Glacier Stats & Types
- Glacier National Park is home to over two dozen glaciers: 25 ice glaciers and around 13 rock glaciers
- 10% of the Earth is currently covered by glaciers
- 30% of the Earth’s land was covered by glaciers 18,000 years ago
- By the year 2030, there may be no more glaciers in Glacier National Park
- Doing your part to conserve water and energy may help prevent glaciers from more quickly melting
- Top glaciers include: Jackson Glacier, Salamander Glacier, Grinnell Glacier, and Sperry Glacier – some more accessible than others
History of Glaciers in Glacier National Park
Storytime: glaciers once covered much of the Earth, both during and after numerous Ice Ages our world has known. But glaciers have been present within current-day park grounds for nearly 6,500 years – wow! – and carved out due to weather patterns, glacial growth, and subsequent recession.
Even further back than the Little Ice Age glacier event – not a full-blown Ice Age, but definitely cause for a winter jacket – this national park was almost entirely covered in ice around 20,000 years ago. That number may be hard to grasp, but just imagine all but Glacier’s tallest peaks covered in ice and chilling snow. It truly would have been a sight!
The land that now encompasses this national park was ushered into the national conversation in the 1850s, when adventurers began charting and exploring the terrain, including its glaciers. But evidence of human use in the area dates back to around 10,000 years ago, inhabited long before European settlers arrived.
While the indigenous tribes of the area – Blackfeet, Kootenai, Salish, and their ancestors – have faced tremendous cultural loss by losing this land and its glaciers now claimed by the National Park Service, it is up to all of us to ensure their culture remains intact with the land. How does this relate to the park’s glaciers?
In order to understand the park’s glacial history, we have to contextualize the people who utilized this land for ceremonies, fishing, and more. They, too, provide insight into these great glacial masses.
What Kind of Glaciers Are in Glacier National Park? How Many?
