Glacier Overlook Trail

The Glacier Overlook circuit starts and finishes at Exit Glacier Nature Center. It is about 2.2 miles, linking the accessible Glacier View Loop through cottonwoods with the rougher Overlook loop to the designated viewpoint. The saved distance covers the whole lower loop and the upper loop, including its return; the 0.6-mile figure in some directions describes the stretch toward the overlook. Plan about 1.5 hours if you want time at both views. If you need a shorter, easier walk, stay on the lower loop, about a mile. The upper route is a real climb, not just a little add-on to the paved path.

The lower loop is the gentler half. It follows maintained, accessible path through cottonwood forest before opening to a broad view of Exit Glacier descending from the Harding Icefield. A trail-side kiosk marks the turn for the upper loop. You can stop at the lower viewpoint and finish the easy loop there; that gives you the glacier panorama without the rockier climb. Restrooms and the nature center are back at the start, not along the trail.

Past the kiosk, the path climbs across exposed rock to the designated Glacier Overlook. The National Park Service describes this section as moderately strenuous. It's maintained, but the ground is rougher and the uneven steps slow the pace; this is the part to skip if you want an all-paved outing. At the top, Exit Glacier sits inside its carved valley. The view from the marked overlook is the payoff; the glacier toe and the creek canyon below are not part of this walk. Stay on the route and behind barriers. A photo with the creek and one of the dated markers in the foreground gives the ice a useful sense of scale.

Dated markers along the approach show where the glacier's edge reached in earlier years. A 1926 marker sits on the lower path, and a 2010 marker is visible at the overlook. The outwash is also a lesson in what happens after the ice moves: plants recolonize newly exposed ground. The park tracks the glacier's terminus each year, so the markers make a landscape change visible without turning the hike into a lecture. Give the lower panorama a second look on your way back; the broad view helps explain how the ice and creek shaped the valley.

Follow Herman Leirer Road to the nature-center lot; parking is limited, especially from late morning through mid-afternoon. The access road is usually snow-inaccessible to cars from late October to mid-May, so check its status before driving out. The nature center has area exhibits, a bookstore, picnic tables, seasonal toilets and summer drinking water; there are no restrooms on the trails. Pets aren't allowed on park trails, even on leash, though leashed pets may remain on the road and in the parking lot. There is no cell coverage in the Exit Glacier area. Sudden glacier outburst floods can send water, ice and rock through the creek corridor below, which is another reason to keep to the marked trail. If you want a much longer day hike, the Harding Icefield Trail is a separate eight-mile round trip.