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Glacier National Park Backcountry Permits

Wilderness Permit

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Overview

Itinerary-based backcountry permit for Glacier National Park. You build a night-by-night campsite itinerary from 65 designated campgrounds across 7 areas (Goat Haunt, Lake McDonald, Many Glacier, North Fork, St. Mary, Two Medicine, Walton). Permit required year-round for all overnight backcountry trips. Popular camps include Fifty Mountain, Granite Park, Sperry, Gunsight Lake, Elizabeth Lake, and Cracker Lake. Max 16 miles/day enforced on advance reservations.

Bottom Line

The standard lottery draws ~3,000 winners from a much larger applicant pool -- odds depend on the year but expect well under 50%. Winning only grants early access to book; iconic routes (Northern Highline, Dawson-Pitamakan) still sell out fast even among lottery winners. After May 1 general on-sale, remaining inventory goes FCFS and moves quickly. Cancellations are your best bet after the initial rush -- refundable up to 7 days out, so sites trickle back steadily through summer. Less popular areas (North Fork, Walton, Goat Haunt) have significantly better availability. Midweek starts and September dates are the easiest pickups. Walk-up permits (~30% of all sites) are available in person the day before or morning of -- arrive early.

Lotteries and Reservations

Season: June 15 - September 30 (70% of sites reservable in advance, 30% held for walk-ups).

Large group lottery (9-12 campers):

  • Application: March 1 (24-hour window), $10 non-refundable fee
  • Results: ~March 3 via email
  • Only 5 large group reservations issued per year
  • Itineraries manually entered by park staff

Standard group lottery (1-8 campers):

  • Application: March 15 (24-hour window), $10 non-refundable fee
  • Results: ~March 17, winners assigned a booking timeslot
  • Booking window: March 21 - April 30
  • One reservation per winner during early access

General on-sale (FCFS):

  • Opens May 1 at 8:00 AM MT on recreation.gov
  • Available to standard groups (1-8 campers)
  • No limit on number of reservations per person

Off-season (Oct - mid-June): walk-up or winter permit process via NPS.

Fees

  • $10 non-refundable reservation/lottery fee per permit
  • $7/person/night camping fee
  • Cancellations 7+ days before start: camping fees refunded, $10 fee kept
  • Separate park entrance fee required

Rules

  • Max 4 people per tent site, up to 8 per standard group reservation
  • Must pick up permit in person by 4:30 PM day before or day of start -- or it gets cancelled
  • Food must be hung on provided poles or stored in bear boxes (bring 25ft cord)
  • Bear canisters not required at summer-status campgrounds but required at winter-status sites
  • 14-day annual backcountry limit per person

Availability