Memorial Day in Glacier National Park, 2025
There are certain places in this world that speak directly to our souls. It’s a feeling that goes straight to the core and makes a place something more than special. For my wife, that place is her grandparents’ old house tucked into the mountains south of Spokane—or Disneyland. For you, it might be somewhere entirely different, a place that wouldn’t make much sense to anyone else. For me, one of those places is Glacier National Park. I can’t say how much of that passion comes from nostalgia and how much comes from the innate power and wonder of its landscape.
Being there feels like stepping into a fantasy story. The giant cedars become the mallorn trees of Lothlórien, and the raging waters of the upper McDonald Creek transform into the Anduin, complete with waterfalls worthy of carrying Boromir to his final rest. It’s a place so epic and imposing that you can’t help but feel as though you’ve wandered into the pages of a fairy tale.
I can never get enough of Glacier National Park. There’s still so much of it I haven’t seen that I’m certain I’ll be returning for many years to come. On last year’s visit, I learned and experienced a few things that I’d like to share—especially if you’re considering a Memorial Day weekend trip.
The Good
Getting a campsite in Glacier can be difficult and usually requires planning months in advance. Even then, landing a spot in one of the more popular campgrounds often comes down to luck. Last year, however, I was able to get on Recreation.gov just a week before my trip and secure campsites on both sides of the park without any trouble. This was likely due to one of the downsides of visiting Glacier so early in the season—but more on that later.
Just as the campsites were uncrowded, the trails were also refreshingly free of the teeming masses that arrive in summer. I firmly believe that fewer people make for a more enjoyable mountain experience.
If it isn’t obvious by now, one of my favorite things to photograph is waterfalls. In early spring, snowmelt helps them put on an especially impressive show. The weather was cool but not cold, which had two major benefits: hiking was comfortable, and there were virtually no bugs.
The Bad
The biggest drawback of visiting Glacier over Memorial Day weekend is that large portions of the park remain closed due to snow. You’ll need to wait at least another month for the remaining sections to open and become accessible.
Nighttime temperatures can also be quite cold. I slept in the back of my vehicle and stayed warm without issue, but if you’re tent camping without proper gear, it could make for a rough night.
Highlights of My Trip
On the first night, I watched the sunset from the shore of Lake McDonald and stayed until darkness fully settled in. It was serene and beautiful—the perfect reward after a long day of driving.
Before dawn the next morning, I returned to the lake’s main visitor area to photograph sunrise. The sky never produced spectacular colors, but having plenty of time allowed me to look around and experiment. Some of my favorite photos from the entire trip came from a simple row of boats stacked along the dock. That was never what I went there to photograph, but when what I hoped for never materialized, I chose to look for something unique—and those boats proved to be a worthy substitute.
On my second day, I moved to the east side of the park and arrived at Two Medicine Lake before dawn. Once again, the sky failed to deliver dramatic clouds or color, but this time my quiet moment was interrupted by a moose making its way along the shoreline. I felt incredibly lucky to capture that massive creature in my photos—a moment I won’t soon forget.
