advice on time to visit last week of aug or after labour day

[jasonwe]

Hi

As topic says looking for advice on best time to visit , am coming from Ireland it will 2019 that I am going , I am lucky that I have the option of going last week in august or after labour day .
Main itinerary is hiking , have Pm'd Pete about routes and he was very helpful . Main thing is the dates some people say last week in august is quite some say its extremely busy . I have no problem heading out early as jet lag will have me getting up early , found this was actually a great help with a visit in yosemite last september .
So if you had the choice which would it be , want to do hockey ref hike as main to do list , and it looks like the xantera bus is running from swiftcurrent until the 18th of sept this year so , it should not be a problem hopefully with less buses after labour day ? . I am not a fan of big crowds or traffic , then again who is .
Any advice or hints most welcome , hope this post is in correct form.

Thanks


Jason

[PeteE]

Hi Jason:

I'd come the first week in September, or even the second week. Sept 1, 2019 is a Sunday.
There will be somewhat fewer people and most places and services will still be functional.
September brings a small risk of cooler weather, but that might be a plus for someone from your part of the world.
Keeping in touch here on the chat this summer should help you make a decision.

pete

[jasonwe]

cheers thanks once again Pete

[al_in_al]

want to do hockey ref hike as main to do list , and it looks like the xantera bus is running from swiftcurrent until the 18th of sept this year so , it should not be a problem hopefully with less buses after labour day ?

The problem is the park’s Going-to-the-Sun Road shuttle; it traditionally stops running on Labor Day each year. Sounds like there may be some service after Labor Day this year, but they don’t specify if St. Mary -> Logan Pass will be running.

“Dates of Operation: July 1-September 3, 2018
Full service is offered during the summer months. There may be a modified shuttle service for a few weeks after Labor Day. We will update that information as needed.” (https://www.nps.gov/glac/planyourvisit/shuttlestops.htm)

End of August can be less busy, but that’s in years when there are wildfires and closures, which isn’t what you want.

[PeteE]

cheers thanks once again Pete

No Problem Jason.

Once you get to St Mary via the Xanterra shuttle, getting to Logan Pass is easy.
If the shuttle isn't available for whatever reason--hitch hike. LOTS of traffic going to Logan Pass all the time.

Personally, I can't imagine the big shuttle busses won't be running to Logan from St Mary the 1st week of September.
So I think you're good on doing the HockeyRef hike in September.
I did it last year and hitched back to Logan from Swiftcurrent--one ride took me all the way.

And I still lean towards the week after Labor Day. It'll be crowded, but a little less so in my experience.
The last couple years have been very busy well into September, so the choice of last week of August vs Week after Labor Day is kinda like:
Bettin' on "a pair vs big slick".
If you're a "Holdem" player.

pete

[jtdan1]

Week after Labor day would be best if there is not a lot of fire activity.
Less traffic on the roads and trails and decent temperatures.
Can still go everywhere and the fall colors can make great photography

[jasonwe]

cheers thanks for replies