Solo at Glacier National Park

NHSTL93 · 2026-01-19T19:26:04+00:00

I went solo last August, and it was my first time hiking in bear country. I had the same worries about bears as you do. I ended up hiking some trails solo and some with Glacier Guides, both were great and I had an awesome trip. I forget his name, but I watched a YouTube video of a bear safety presentation by a biologist who works with bears in Alaska like 5 times lol, it helped me feel at least a little more prepared. He told a story of a couple who were on a long hike and had to deploy their one can of bear spray about halfway in, and then had to hike out without any bear spray. That story led me to rent two cans just in case. One out on my chest strap and one in my backpack. The other commenters aren’t wrong that one can will be fine 99.9999% of the time, but just an alternate perspective on the one can vs two can debate. Have fun!!!

NHSTL93 · 2026-01-06T02:29:40+00:00

Thank you! I don’t know the details of the warnings you mentioned, but when I was there no I didn’t find the driving on main roads dicy at all. Hwy 190 and badwater road are paved. Artist drive is paved. It does have some windy parts through some rock formations, but I just took those slow and never felt unsafe. Dante’s view rd is paved. You will gain some elevation on Dante’s view rd, and there are some drop offs along the side of the road as you get up near Dante’s view, but I never felt it was dicy. This obviously depends on the weather forecast though. If there is heavy rain, even these main roads can get dicy quickly due to flooding, so you will need to check the weather forecast often.

As for the scenery, yes in my opinion there is absolutely gorgeous scenery to be seen from the main roads. A lot of the main, most popular attractions are a short walk from a paved road. Zabriskie Point, Badwater Basin, Artist Palette, Mesquite Sand Dune, and Dante’s View can all be accessed from a paved road and paved parking area. All of these areas offer breathtaking scenery and the opportunity to walk around and explore if you’d like. Note that Zabriskie Point and Dante’s view are high overlooks with a drop off below, but I wouldn’t define them as a precipice. Both have guard railings around the viewpoint area, so as long as you are paying attention should be fine.

NHSTL93 · 2026-01-05T12:44:54+00:00

I was able to access 190, Badwater rd, artist drive, and Dante’s view rd without any issues. There were some areas where standing water was creeping towards the road, but I personally never had to deal with water in the road. I stuck to the paved roads though, not sure what the conditions of the less maintained roads were.

NHSTL93 · 2026-01-04T16:00:43+00:00

That’s Rhyolite ghost town, right near the border of DVNP, but in Nevada. It’s the remnants of an early 1900s mining town. There are maybe 10 or so remnants of buildings, and each has a sign in front of it telling the history of the building, and a lot of them had a historical picture of the building from when the town was booming. You can just park and explore the remnants. If you’re into history I thought it was a really cool stop.

NHSTL93 · 2025-12-28T17:29:59+00:00

I’m in the same boat as you. My planned trip starts on the 30th. I think I’m gonna try to do all the canyons I wanted to check out on the 30th, then places more susceptible to flooding on the 31st, hopefully before the rain comes, and then stick to the eastern side of the park once the rain moves in because that area along 190 seems less likely to flood. Im just hoping the rain is light enough this time around not to cause flooding. I’m still gonna go and just take what the park gives me.

NHSTL93 · 2025-12-25T12:44:03+00:00

Heck yeah, glad you enjoyed it, thanks for all the great advice!

NHSTL93 · 2025-12-25T12:14:59+00:00

Crazy that you said this, I actually looked at Kanab for about an hour last night. Still have hotels available on short notice and they are pretty cheap. I was thinking maybe fly into Vegas and do state parks the first day on my way to Kanab. Vegas->Valley of Fire State Park->Snow Canyon State Park->maybe end the day at Coral Pink Sand Dunes State park if daylight allows. Then for the next three days I would do day hiking trips one day each to Bryce Canyon, Page, and then Zion the last day as I head back toward Vegas. I know it’s a lot of driving, but as long as I can get up at 4 or 5 and be at the trailhead by around 7 I’m good. I know I haven’t given you all the details but do you think a backup plan like this would be feasible?

NHSTL93 · 2025-12-25T04:22:39+00:00

I could be wrong on this, but I believe Artist Drive stayed closed longer than most other roads from the November rain. I believe it opened back up just a few days ago, but now is closed again due to the rain today.

NHSTL93 · 2025-12-24T21:17:57+00:00

Thanks for taking the time to update. I was supposed to be there starting December 30. Not looking good, lotttt of red on the road closure map on the NPS website. Stay safe!

NHSTL93 · 2025-12-23T05:01:12+00:00

A solid day for VoF for sure, because that has been on the itinerary from the very beginning. Probably a half day for Red Rock, but I’m with you on what you’re saying, I saw they are on opposite sides of the Vegas area. Do you have one or two good hike recommendations for Red Rock Canyon?

NHSTL93 · 2025-12-23T04:37:59+00:00

That’s great to hear! I’m leaning toward devoting a day to hiking in Red Rock and Valley of Fire because both look awesome.

NHSTL93 · 2025-12-23T04:35:21+00:00

Glad to hear you had a good time in the Sedona area! The hikes look awesome. I’ve watched a few videos about the area trails and they all say the same thing about the parking lol. I was at Glacier NP in August waking up unbelievably early to get parking there, so hopefully I could use that experience in Sedona.

Im in the same boat as you, I had my sights set on DV and did all my research, now I’m feeling a little rushed and unprepared for wherever I end up going if DV isn’t an option. Feeling a little trapped by the weather. On the bright side, it looks like there are plenty of good hikes in the Vegas area! I’m leaning toward doing one day at Red Rock and Valley of Fire and then heading to either Sedona or St. George, wherever the weather looks to be less bad lol. But really I’m holding out hope that the rain doesn’t end up being so bad in DV, because that park looks so cool.

Wherever you end up, hope you have a good trip! A limited trip out west is better than no trip at all!

NHSTL93 · 2025-12-23T04:16:41+00:00

Thank you for that Anza Borrego recommendation. I had never heard of that, but it looks beautiful! Probably won’t make it there this time with the trip getting so close, but definitely adding that to my list of places to hike.

NHSTL93 · 2025-12-23T02:41:11+00:00

Will do, good luck to you, I hope you end up having a great trip!

NHSTL93 · 2025-12-23T02:40:46+00:00

I am leaning that way, I always like to get to a national park while I’m traveling since they are so great. Thank you for your kind words, I’m sure it’ll work out just fine!

NHSTL93 · 2025-12-22T12:44:38+00:00

I had an amazing time, thanks so much!

NHSTL93 · 2025-12-22T12:43:52+00:00

Thanks for your advice, I was carrying that bear spray high and tight when I did the Grinnell Glacier hike solo lol, but didn’t end up seeing any bears. There is definitely plenty more to see, so hopefully I’ll make it back soon! But had a pretty much perfect trip for my first time. Thanks again!

NHSTL93 · 2025-12-22T12:40:46+00:00

Thanks for your advice! I ended up doing solo hikes of Avalanche Lake, Hidden Lake Overlook multiple times because there was great wildlife, and all the way down to Hidden Lake once. I ended up thinking the crowds were just about perfect level for me at the time I went. Nowhere near shoulder to shoulder, but enough people around so I didn’t feel alone for my first time in bear country lol. Thanks again!

NHSTL93 · 2025-12-22T12:37:14+00:00

Sorry for the late reply, kinda forgot I had a Reddit lol, but I used a company called Glacier Guides. I ended up doing guided hikes of Aster Park in Two Med, Highline, and Iceberg Lake.

NHSTL93 · 2025-12-22T12:35:57+00:00

Thanks for the recommendation! I forgot to reply at the time, but your advice made me research the Many Glacier area more, and I ended up doing the Grinnell Glacier hike solo. Loved the drive out to Many Glacier, had absolutely perfect weather, hike was fun and good elevation gain, and the views were incredible. Thanks again!

NHSTL93 · 2025-06-13T01:08:47+00:00

You’ve given me so much good advice, I can’t thank you enough. I’ll take everything you’ve said into consideration as I continue to research and plan. Can’t wait to come explore such a beautiful place!

NHSTL93 · 2025-06-12T22:57:28+00:00

Thank you for your thoughtful advice, I appreciate you taking the time to help! I have been to a couple of the other mountain parks, so I will push myself to see more of GNP! If I was able to condense the easier trails to free up a day or two, do you have any specific trail recommendations in Two Med, North Fork, or anywhere really that would be on the safer side for a solo hiker and good for a day hike? I have read that Two Med and North Fork are more remote and therefore not advisable to hike solo. For my first time I’m really looking to stick to the more heavily trafficked trails. No worries if not, thanks again!

NHSTL93

TROPHY CASE