Trail of the Cedars in Glacier National Park Hiking Guide
Explore the Trail of the Cedars for an easy hiking introduction to Glacier National Park!
In the hiking guide below, you’ll learn about everything you need to make your Trail of the Cedars experience a seamless part of your overall vacation.
Located near the West Glacier entrance to the park, this short trail takes visitors through towering trees and past one of the park’s most picturesque waterfalls.
Since it is flat and well marked, it’s also excellent for families or beginning hikers. The trail’s location near Apgar Village and West Glacier make it an easy add-on to other hiking and outdoor adventures you have planned in this area of the park.
Below, you’ll find everything you need to plan for your Trail of the Cedars hike including suggested visiting times, parking tips, items to pack, and points of interest.
A portion of the Trail of the Cedars boardwalk
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Hike Overview
Trailhead Location: Inside Glacier National Park, approximately 14.5 miles from the Apgar Visitors Center
Trail length: 1 mile loop
Trail difficulty: easy
Elevation gain: 60 feet
Starting the Hike: Parking and Trail Information
The Trail of the Cedars is located in the western section of the park near Apgar visitors center, Apgar Village, and West Glacier.
The West Glacier entrance is the closest to the trailhead, and you’ll need to drive 14.5 miles from West Glacier along Going-to-the-Sun Road to get here.
Getting to the Trailhead
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There are a few hurdles to overcome in order to get to this hike, the first of which is getting onto Going-to-the-Sun Road. If you’re visiting during the peak season (roughly May-September), you’re going to need a vehicle pass to access Going-to-the-Sun Road.
This pass is separate from the park entrance, and you only need a vehicle pass to drive on Going-to-the-Sun Road or in North Fork.
For more information, including how to obtain a pass and when precisely you’ll need one, read through my comprehensive guide to Going-to-the-Sun vehicle reservations here.
With the pass in hand, you’ll head east on Going-to-the-Sun Road towards the trailhead, passing Lake McDonald and several viewpoints along the way.
NOTE: Trail of the Cedars is just one of many hikes and overlooks along the incredible Going-to-the-Sun Road! You’ll want to plan at least a full day (if not more) exploring along this road.
For a complete list of overlooks, vehicle regulations, trailheads, and must-see stops, check out my Going-to-the-Sun road guide.
To learn how to fit Going-to-the-Sun Road into your Glacier vacation, read my 5 days in Glacier National Park itinerary and tips.
Don’t forget to download the GuideAlong audio tour for your time on Going-to-the-Sun Road! It’s inexpensive, but packed with hours of facts and stories about the park. Once downloaded, the audio tour starts and stops automatically as you approach points of interest.
Your second hurdle for this hike is the parking situation.
Parking at Trail of the Cedars
For an easy, fun, and quick hike, the parking for Trail of the Cedars is the absolute worst part of the experience.
Yet, because Trail of the Cedars shares a trailhead with the incredibly popular Avalanche Lake Trail, the parking area here stays packed throughout the day.
And, honestly, there just aren’t enough parking spaces for the number of people who want to do either of these trails.
Below, you’ll find my expertly drawn (ha) map of the Trail of the Cedars parking areas. Given that Trail of the Cedars and Avalanche Lake Trail are the two most popular trails in this part of the park, there is extremely limited parking available.
Parking areas available at Trail of the Cedars are highlighted in yellow.
While my map drawing skills aren’t going to win any awards, I hope that the diagram above does help you see the couple of areas that are available for parking.
Most people just circle the two loops on the left nearest to Avalanche Creek, not realizing that they can park on the road above the Trail of the Cedars trailhead or on that dead end road before you get to the campground.
Keep in mind that you shouldn’t park anywhere in the campground, even if the camping site appears to be empty.
NOTE: If you want to avoid the parking issue all together, you can also take the free shuttle that runs along the Going-to-the-Sun Road. This shuttle runs all day during peak season. You’ll want to take the full service shuttle, which has a regularly scheduled stop at Avalanche Creek, NOT the express shuttle, which doesn’t stop between Apgar Village and Logan Pass.
When to Visit Trail of the Cedars
If you absolutely wanted to ensure you are going to get a parking spot easily, you’ll want to be here early, like pre-7 AM early.
That being said, Trail of the Cedars is a fun little hike, not a multi-hour day hike, so the idea of getting up that early to do a quick trail might seem silly.
If you decide to pick up the trail when you have some extra time along Going-to-the-Sun Road rather than getting up early specifically for it, know that you’re going to have to circle for parking. And then circle again and again.
It might take a bit of time to find a parking spot, but if you’re patient enough, one will open up.
Since Trail of the Cedars isn’t a long hike, consider doing this trail either very early or mid-to-late afternoon. By 3 PM or so, most of the people who’ve set out on nearby Avalanche Lake Trail are done and returning to their cars, so the parking areas free up more after this time.
Plus, if you’re visiting in the summer, the sun doesn’t truly go down until between 10 and 11 PM, so you will still have plenty of light if you do Trail of the Cedars between mid afternoon and dinner time.
Do I need a reservation or permit for this trail?
No, you don’t need a reservation or permit to hike Trail of the Cedars.
Other than the Going-to-the-Sun vehicle pass which grants you entry to this section of the park, Trail of the Cedars simply requires you to turn up at a time that’s convenient for you.
Is Trail of the Cedars a good hike for kids in Glacier?
Yes, Trail of the Cedars is an excellent hike for kids on the western side of Glacier National Park.
There’s plenty to see here in the 500-year-old grove of cedar trees, including illustrated poetry passages at various points along the trail, to keep kids engaged.
The nearly flat boardwalks and packed dirt paths are easy enough for anyone to traverse, so it makes for a good place for very young hikers to get those trail legs started.
If you’re hiking with toddlers, this is, in general, as safe as trails go: the trail is clearly defined, there are no drop-offs, and out of bounds areas are clearly marked.
At just under 1 mile, the loop is a fun add-on to any family vacation here. For more suggestions on what to see, do, and eat with your family, check out these posts:
My son near the trailheads for Trail of the Cedars
Trail of the Cedars Guide
You’ll begin your hike from one of three access points. 2 of these access points are along Going-to-the-Sun Road, while the third is on Avalanche Campground Loop across the street from the blue phone booth.
No matter which of these you enter along, you’ll start your hike along the same stretch of wooden boardwalk. If you start from the trailhead on the campground loop, you’ll come to a bridge that crosses Avalanche Creek.
The pedestrian bridge over Avalanche Creek near the start of the hike
This creek flows from Avalanche Lake and neatly bisects the Trail of the Cedars Loop, so you’ll see it along a couple of other stretches of the trail.
Heading further into the forest
You’ll see towering cedar trees above you as you head deeper into the trail.
NOTE: While you can do this hike either clockwise or counterclockwise, I’d recommend going clockwise. Doing it this way means you’ll start on the quieter Trail of the Cedars loop and then return on the shared trail with Avalanche Lake. Since the latter is much busier, you’ll be going against the flow of those hikers heading up to Avalanche Lake and won’t feel as rushed.
Once you’re on the trail, you’ll follow the wooden boardwalk as it turns into a stone lined path, which will then return to boardwalks and, finally, a packed dirt trail back to the trailhead. You’ll pass by different examples of cedar, fir, and hemlock trees in the one mile loop.
In the first half mile (if you’re going the recommended clockwise direction), there are multiple placards with poems about each of the tree species and about the forest in general.
These placards are placed along the boardwalk and include a beautiful nature illustration and tree identification.
There are wooden benches along the way if you’d like to rest or simply enjoy the quiet surroundings.
These benches would be a great place to have your kids work on a nature journal, do sketches, or fill in a nature scavenger hunt!
Around the 0.4 mile marker, you’ll be able to clearly see Avalanche Creek to your right as the trails cuts closer to the tree line. You won’t be able to access the creek from this side of the trail, but you’ll be able to hear it for much of the rest of the hike.
At the halfway point in the hike, around the 0.5 mile mark, you’ll come to a small bridge that again crosses Avalanche Creek.
Avalanche Gorge
If you turn to the left, you’ll have an excellent view of Avalanche Gorge, where the creek runs through a narrow set of short, rocky cliffs.
After this bridge, the trail passes by the turn off for the Avalanche Lake Trail, which will be to your left and is clearly marked by a short wooden fence and small sign.
You’ll turn back to the right and follow the packed dirt trail on the other side of Avalanche Creek as you make your way back towards Going-to-the-Sun Road.
The second half of the hike is slightly less engaging than the first, as you won’t find those illustrated poetry placards.
As you turn at the top of the loop and pass the Avalanche Lake turn off, you’ll soon come to a single story building. This building houses bathrooms, which include flush toilets.
The bathrooms on Trail of the Cedars near Avalanche Gorge
Next to the trail near the restrooms is a water bottle refill area, where you can get potable water from a pump.
As you head towards the trailhead, you’ll see areas where people have walked a short way through the woods to the banks of the Avalanche River, which is much easier to access on this side than it was from the other half of the trail.
While the creek does look refreshing on a warm summer’s day, be cautious (especially with little ones) as the water can move quickly through here. The creek does rise and move quicker during the summer as the snow melts into Avalanche Lake and then flows down into McDonald Creek.
You’ll soon find yourself back at the start of the trail, where you can then return to your car to continue your adventures through Glacier National Park!
How to Extend This Hike
Avalanche Lake Trail is the best way to extend your time in this part of the park.
You’ve already fought to get a parking spot, so linger here if you want to add one a bit more hiking!
To access this hike, you’ll do the first half of the Trail of the Cedars (using either side of the loop), and then continuing onto the Avalanche Lake Trail once you reach the part of Trail of the Cedars near Avalanche Gorge.
The transition from Trail of the Cedars to Avalanche Trail is well marked, so you will know when you’ve left the easier trail behind. Avalanche Lake Trail begins with a climb immediately past the turn-off sign, so it’s immediately obvious that you’re no longer on the flat Trail of the Cedars.
The Avalanche Lake Trail is about 5 miles round trip, and the first half-mile overlaps with half of the Trail of the Cedars. Avalanche Lake Trail has about 730 feet of elevation gain, which is far more than what you’ll find on Trail of the Cedars, but still manageable over the entirety of the longer hike.
What to Bring to Trail of the Cedars
The trail might be short, but it will feel as if you’re far away from the hustle and bustle of the parking lot!
While this trail is too short to warrant bringing all of our usual hiking gear, we did want a few things for the 30-45 minutes we spent here.
Instead of bringing the usual water bladder and day packs we use for longer day hikes, we opted instead to bring a large, filled up water bottle.
A 40 oz water bottle with sling works perfectly for these short, nearly impossible to get lost on hikes. The trail is short, but we still find that we get thirsty before we get back to the car.
Having a sling for the water bottle is an easy way to make sure we don’t have to hand carry it the entire time, which can get annoying.
Comfortable shoes are always a must when hiking a trail of any length. There’s no real technical difficulty, so you don’t have to have special hiking shoes to do Trail of the Cedars. That being said, I’d only packed my Altra trail runners and my Keen Newport H2 hiking sandals for this trip, so I didn’t have many options!
Either would’ve worked, but I did wear the trail runners on this specific trail.
Beyond that, we didn’t carry anything specific with us since this trail was a quick stop along our many adventures on Going-to-the-Sun Road.
For more hiking gear guides, check out these posts:
Final Thoughts on This Trail
Trail of the Cedars is an excellent introductory hike for families with small kids, beginning hikers, and those park visitors who want to get out of the car without committing to a half-day hike.
While parking can be frustrating, this easy trail has centuries old trees, an idyllic surrounding, and beautiful gorge as the reward for your efforts.
Since it’s located directly off of Going-to-the-Sun Road near Lake McDonald Lodge, this trail is a quick add on to the rest of your Glacier National Park itinerary, and it’s a fun way to learn more about the ecosystem in this part of Montana.
