Are you planning to visit Glacier National Park and wondering what you need to pack? I did all of the research, read all of the reviews and can hopefully save you the time of having to do the same. Here is what to pack for your trip to Glacier National Park. Subscribe to my blog for a printable version of this packing list.
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1. Hiking Boots
A good pair of hiking boots is a must-have if you are going to be doing any of the amazing hikes in the park. My daughters and I bought the Columbia Women’s Newton Waterproof Hiking Boots. and my son and husband bought the Men’s Newton Ridge Plus II Waterproof Hiking Boots. I can’t say enough about how great these were. We did not have a chance to break them in prior to the trip, so they were worn by all of us brand new. There were no issues with rubbing or blisters, the shoes were very comfortable and they are absolutely waterproof. Even after wading through some deep puddles and a shallow stream the shoes were never wet.
2. Hiking Poles
We are not avid hikers and contemplated whether to buy hiking poles. I’m so glad we did. I can tell you that they are an absolute necessity for the hikes in Glacier. They saved our knees on every hike. We didn’t need expensive, expert poles so after reading all the reviews we settled on the Trail Buddy Trekking Poles. These poles worked great and we saw a lot of people using the same poles on the trails. One thing to note is that when they are fully collapsed they do not fit in a carry on suitcase, they will have to go in a checked bag.
3. Hiking Socks
Hiking socks are more padded and breathable than regular athletic socks. I actually bought two different brands of hiking socks for my daughters and I, and we liked the Feideer brand best. My husband and son really liked the Innotree hiking socks, they had good cushion and were comfortable.
4. Water bottle
The longest hike we did was 8 miles and we found the Hydro Flask 40 oz water bottle to be the perfect size. It fit in the side pocket of our backpacks and kept ice and water cold throughout the hot days. On our 8 mile hike, we put an extra disposable water bottle in our backpack to refill our Hydro Flask, but all the other hikes we were good with just 40 ounces. Be sure to get the Hydroflask with the flex straw lid. One of our Hydroflasks had the original lid that comes completely off to drink, which is not as convenient when hiking. If you have an old Hydroflask without the flex straw lid, you can purchase a replacement lid.
5. Water Sandals or Water Shoes
We actually bought these water resistant athletic sandals for our trip to Hawaii and have used them on all of our trips since. In Glacier we wore them white water rafting, cliff jumping, paddle boarding, and packed them in our backpacks for hikes to the lakes we wanted to go in. They are comfortable right out of the box, no breaking in required, and they are quick to dry when wet. My daughters and I have the Dream Pairs and my son and husband have the Camel Crown. If you prefer closed toe water shoes to sandals, I recommend these Sobaso water shoes. Whatever you get, just make sure they are athletic and sturdy,
6. Collapsible Travel Cooler
I bought this collapsible travel cooler for our trip to Hawaii and brought it with us to Glacier as well. Each day we packed the cooler with our lunches, and extra drinks then left it in the car while we hiked. After hiking, the drinks were still cold and no issues with leaking. It folds flat so you can pack it in your suitcase and is a really great cooler for any trip.
7. Backpacks
A backpack is obviously a must-have for any hike. We are not avid hikers and did not want to invest in expensive hiking backpacks. I was looking for a backpack that would be comfortable and lightweight but also functional. Something big enough to hold the layers of clothes we had to wear (cold mornings turn into hot afternoons) and all of our hiking necessities. I actually bought 2 of these Venture Pal backpacks for our Hawaii trip and then purchased 3 more for our trip to Glacier so that each of us had our own backpack to carry. (So glad the days of having to carry all the kids’ stuff in addition to our own are gone!)
We liked these backpacks because they fold up into a little zip up pouch that is easy to pack. Between the 5 of us, we had three 40L and two 35L backpacks. They are both wonderful. You can fit so much stuff in them and they are lightweight. Our 40 oz Hydro Flask water bottles fit in the side pockets of both size backpacks and there is an adjustable buckle for the top of the water bottle to keep it from coming out when you bend over. Personally, I liked the 35L best because I liked the small zipper compartment in the front. My husband and son liked the size of the 40L best not only for the bigger size, but because the 40L comes with a wet bag inside to separate your damp items. You can’t go wrong with either one!
8. A compact camera with a good zoom lens
I love taking pictures, and I do love my Nikon DSLR camera, but it’s not convenient or comfortable to carry all day, especially on a hike. A couple years ago, I bought the Canon SX740 HS. This small point and shoot camera has 40x optical zoom and also takes 4K video. This was a great camera to bring on our hikes in Glacier, especially for getting pictures of wildlife from a distance. Highly recommend!
9. Phone Lanyard
This was my favorite thing I purchased for our trip. I take a lot of pictures with my phone and when I am somewhere where the scenery just gets better and better as you walk, I don’t want to have to keep taking my phone out of my backpack to take pictures. This phone lanyard was absolutely perfect. I wore it cross-body and I never had to worry about dropping it. When I wanted to hand my phone to someone else to take a picture, I just easily unclipped it from the lanyard, I didn’t have to take it off over my head. This was a fabulous find!
10. Portable charger with built in cord
A good compact, lightweight portable phone charger with a built in cord is incredibly helpful, especially if you are using your phone as a camera. I have this ultra slim charger with a built in cord. I would attach it to my phone while my phone was on the lanyard and wear it like that once my phone battery got low. It worked really well.
11. Binoculars
Having binoculars is great for spotting wildlife from a distance throughout the park. We have these binoculars and used them in Glacier. I also used my point and shoot camera as binoculars because it had a great zoom lens.
12. Waterproof phone pouch with lanyard
We used these waterproof phone holders for our white water rafting trip in Glacier. I wore it cross body and the pictures were not cloudy from the plastic like I had found with other waterproof holders.
13. Backpack rain cover
We bought these backpack rain covers for our hikes, but never had to use them as, thankfully, we didn’t get any rain while we were there. I’m including the link even though we never used them. The reviews on these were good and they were lightweight and easy to pack in our backpacks just in case.
14. Hat & gloves
We went in August and even though it was in or near the 90s by afternoon, the mornings are cold in the upper 40s or low 50s. I actually wore this knit head wrap in the morning when we started our hike to Avalanche Lake. It was warm and lightweight.I also wore these touchscreen gloves.
15. Rain Coat
There is a chance of rain on any given day, so it’s good to have a rain coat. It’s also cold in the mornings, so a warm rain coat is even better. Although we didn’t get rain while we were in Glacier, we did wear our raincoats as a warm layer on some of the morning hikes. My daughter and I have the OTU Women’s Rain Jacket and my son has the Columbia Men’s Glennaker Rain Jacket.
16. Layers of Clothes
It is so important to pack lightweight layers of clothing as most of your layers will end up in your backpack by the end of the day. I typically would wear for tops: a tank top, then a long sleeve quarter zip, and then my rain coat for my warmest outer layer if needed. I would wear athletic shorts, with lightweight jogger pants over the shorts in the morning. By lunchtime I would start removing layers and I would be down to a tank top and shorts by afternoon. The BALEAF joggers were great for layering, there wasn’t any bulk where my shorts were underneath.
My husband and son would wear shorts even when it was cold in the mornings, a moisture wick t-shirt, a lightweight long sleeve quarter zip shirt or sweatshirt and then their rain coat if needed for warmth.
17. Blister Block Balm
I use this Foot Glide Anti Blister Balm at home for all of my cute heels and sandals that rub and can cause blisters. You just glide it over the spot that is rubbing before you put your shoes on and it prevents blisters. I carried this in my backpack at Glacier just in case. We didn’t end up needing to use it, but it’s good to have if you feel a blister coming on mid hike.
18. Dual USB chargers and extra phone cords for the car
The dual USB chargers are great because you can charge your portable charger and your phone, or your watch and your phone at the same time. Also pack extra phone cords for your rental car. Everyone will want to charge their phones when they get back to the car and most cars have 2 or 3 usb ports. Our rental car had 4. It’s easy to forget to bring your charger into the car each day, so just bring extras to leave in the car.
19. Apple Air Tags
Earlier this summer my luggage was lost on my flight home from Nashville. The airline didn’t find it for 6 weeks! I was thankful it happened on the way home and not the way to, but it was still painful. One of the first questions on the claim form I had to fill out for the airline was “Did your luggage have an Air Tag?” It did not. Lesson learned, we will never check a bag unless it has an Air Tag in it.
The Air Tag pairs to your phone via the “Find My Iphone” app. Your phone tracks the location of the Air Tag. You can buy the Air Tags individually or in a 4 pack for a discount. You will also want to get key chains to put them in. We use them for our car keys and spare keys when we aren’t traveling and I have seen people use them on their pet’s collar. From someone who didn’t have my luggage for 6 weeks, trust me, it’s worth it!
20. Bear spray, bug spray and sunscreen
Bear spray is a must -have. If you are flying to Glacier National Park, you will have to buy it when you get there and leave it there because bear spray is prohibited in both checked and carry-on bags on all commercial flights. We bought a can when we went to the grocery store the first day. When we checked into our vacation rental, we saw that there was a can of it that someone had left behind. I was actually glad to have 2 cans, we kept them in the side pocket of our backpacks all the time. We also carried bug spray and sunscreen in our backpacks every day.
21. Lightweight Towel
I bought these lightweight Bay Laurel sand towels for Hawaii and have used them a lot ever since. We packed them in our backpacks every day on our Glacier trip. They can be used as a towel to dry off after a dip in the water or as a blanket to sit on while you eat your lunch. The towels are lightweight and dry fast. I like to put them in my carry-on bag for those cold plane rides, too. Costco had similar towels this summer and I purchased a couple of those as well.
22. Selfie Stick
Sometimes people will volunteer to take your picture for you if you take one for them, but for those other times a selfie stick is great. I saw a TV show last year with a family taking their Christmas card picture by turning their phone on video and placing it on a table. Then they just did different group poses while the phone recorded video. They then paused the video at their favorite poses and screen shot them to make them into a picture. Genius! That is so much easier than trying to set the timer and hope for a good shot! We did this video trick for our family photos in Glacier, and the videos are actually funny to watch, too! This selfie stick turns itself into a tripod when needed.
23. Two Way Radio
We did not have these but wished we had. There is no cell service inside the park. We saw a lot of people with two way radios. This is great in case of emergency, but also in the instance where you want to split up and do two different things and still have a way to contact each other.
24. First Aid Kit
A First Aid Kit is an important thing to keep in your hiking backpack in case of any scrapes or cuts along the way. Thankfully, we didn’t need it but you never know!
25. Packing Cubes
These packing cubes are so great, especially if you are combining suitcases and switching accommodations along your stay. We bought different color sets for each person. When unpacking our combined suitcases, we could quickly and easily separate everyone’s clothing. The cubes can go directly into dresser drawers and keep your clothes sorted and organized. It also makes packing back up easy. These compression packing cubes are also really great for maximizing space in your suitcase.
26. Sturdy Luggage Tags
I bought this sturdy set of luggage tags after my lost luggage fiasco from Nashville. My suitcase was lost because my buckle-style luggage tag came off. This set makes it easy to identify your bags at baggage claim and they won’t come off easily.
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