National Park·Montana·1,007,843 acres
Glacier National Park
Forecast issued Nov 10, 7:57am ET
quaking aspen and Rocky Mountain maple
western larch, peak Oct 11
Peak color should arrive around Sep 27 for the quaking aspen and Rocky Mountain maple, and around Oct 11 for the western larch.
Higher ground turns first, so the slopes above the road lead the valley by a few days.
Weather Hard frost Monday night. Peak may come early and go fast.
No new reports from the ground here this week.
When is peak fall foliage at Glacier National Park in 2026?
Our forecast puts peak color at Glacier National Park around Sep 28, and the four days to aim for are Sep 27 to 30. western larch peak later, around Oct 11.
The park runs from about 3,753 to 7,606 feet, and the color comes downhill over about 27 days: the high stands around Sep 6, the low ground around Oct 3. That's 1 day later than our model alone would say, because this season's reports from the ground moved it.
| Week | In the park | Elevation at peak |
|---|---|---|
| Aug 17 to Aug 23 | Still green | |
| Aug 24 to Aug 30 | Still green | |
| Aug 31 to Sep 6 | Still green | 7,000 to 8,000 ft |
| Sep 7 to Sep 13 | Starting to turn | |
| Sep 14 to Sep 20 | Nearly peak | 6,000 to 7,000 ft |
| Sep 21 to Sep 27 | Peak color | 4,000 to 5,000 ft, 5,000 to 6,000 ft |
| Sep 28 to Oct 4 | Peak color | 3,000 to 4,000 ft |
| Oct 5 to Oct 11 | Just past peak | |
| Oct 12 to Oct 18 | Fading |
- 7,000–8,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 615%
- 6,000–7,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 1424%
- 5,000–6,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 2128%
- 4,000–5,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 2725%
- 3,000–4,000 ftLeaves downpeak Oct 38%
Height off 3DEP inside the park’s own boundary; each band carries the date our model gives that elevation, corrections and all. The percentage is how much of the park stands in it.
That’s 1 day later than our model alone would say. This season’s reports from the ground moved it, and they outrank us.
The place
They call it the Crown of the Continent, and for once the nickname undersells the place. Glacier National Park sits on 1,013,572 acres of northwestern Montana where the Northern Rockies make their last violent stand before the Great Plains flatten everything east to the horizon. The mountains here look unfinished. Aretes so sharp they could cut paper. Cirques scooped out like someone took an ice cream scoop to granite. Waterfalls pour off every hanging valley in July, fed by snowpack that can top 80 feet on Logan Pass in heavy years.
Established 1910. About 3.1 million/year visitors.
If you can only come on certain days
Set the days you can be here. Everything under them answers for those days, not for peak.
Sunday, September 27 to Monday, September 28
You’ll find it leaves down up high, peak color lower down.
Up at 7,000 feet the stands peak around Sep 6; down at 5,000 feet they hold on until about Sep 27. Pick your elevation for the day you come.
- 7,000–8,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 6
- 6,000–7,000 ftFadingpeak Sep 14
- 5,000–6,000 ftJust past peakpeak Sep 21
- 4,000–5,000 ftPeak colorpeak Sep 27
- Where to drive
- Going-to-the-Sun Road, about 3 miles · Seeley-Swan Highway (MT 83), about 89 miles
- What turns
- quaking aspen, Rocky Mountain maple, serviceberry, huckleberry, black cottonwood
- Entrance
- $35
What turns, and when
- quaking aspen43%
- Rocky Mountain maple10%
- serviceberry10%
- huckleberry10%
- black cottonwood9%
- western larch7%
Also named across Montana, outside what the canopy read measures here: Paper Birch.
Montana's fall is a two-act show: aspens and cottonwoods turn gold around Sep 27, then western larches steal the finale around Oct 11, turning entire mountain slopes amber before dropping their needles.
Questions people ask about Glacier National Park
- When is peak fall foliage at Glacier National Park?
Our forecast puts peak color at Glacier National Park around Sep 28, and the four days to aim for are Sep 27 to 30. western larch peak later, around Oct 11.
- Where is the best fall color at Glacier National Park right now?
On Nov 10 the park is leaves down. The last band to peak was 3,000 to 4,000 feet, around Oct 3.
- How long does peak last at Glacier National Park?
About four days at the top, Sep 27 to 30, with a week or so either side that's still worth the drive. Across the park's elevations the color moves over about 27 days, so there's peak color somewhere in it for roughly 31 days.
- Is Glacier National Park past peak?
Yes. Peak was around Sep 28, and on Nov 10 it's leaves down.
- What trees turn color at Glacier National Park?
Quaking Aspen, Western Larch, Black Cottonwood, Rocky Mountain Maple, Paper Birch. Montana's fall is a two-act show: aspens and cottonwoods turn gold around Sep 27, then western larches steal the finale around Oct 11, turning entire mountain slopes amber before dropping their needles.
- Is there an entrance fee at Glacier National Park?
Entrance fee $35.
This forecast is built from the species that stand here, their elevation and this September’s weather, and corrected in season by cameras, foresters and our own crew. Out here we score it against NASA's satellite record of when the canopy shuts down, read inside each unit’s own boundary: two dates in three land within 12 days of it. How this map is made
Nearby, and when they turn
Flathead and Bob Marshall Wilderness and Kootenai and Lolo are on the map above, with their own date.
- Peak Sep 26 best Sep 25 to 28
- Peak Sep 25 best Sep 24 to 27
Fall color roads near Glacier National Park
Nearest first. Distances are straight-line from the park, so allow more by road.
- Going-to-the-Sun Road
Glacier National Park. Larch trees turn gold in early October on the high passes while aspens color the valley bottoms. The road closes mid-October most years.
- Seeley-Swan Highway (MT 83)
Larch gold along the Swan Valley in mid-October, under the Mission and Swan ranges.