Going-to-the-Sun Road

Going-to-the-Sun Road is Glacier National Park’s only route across its interior, linking West Glacier and St. Mary over Logan Pass on the Continental Divide. Conceived in 1917 by superintendent George Goodwin and begun in 1921, it opened end to end in 1933 after evolving under National Park Service leaders Stephen Mather and Thomas Chalmers Vint, whose alignment reduced switchbacks and visual impact. Built for the automobile age, the narrow, winding road threads steep alpine terrain with tunnels, bridges, retaining walls, and overlooks. Its severe snow, avalanche, and rockslide conditions require constant maintenance, yet it remains one of Glacier’s defining experiences and a landmark of preservation and engineering history.

Saint Mary, Montana · United States