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Sun Road · USA

Going-to-the-Sun Road

The only road across Glacier National Park in Montana, crossing the Continental Divide at Logan Pass, 6,646 ft (2,026 m).

StartFinishHairpin
34.2 kmLength
134Pace-note calls
1Hairpin
22Tight corners (1–2)
↑1,040 ↓0Climb and drop, m
≈2,030 mHighest point

Counts are from Turini’s pace-note engine on this route. Heights come from terrain data and can differ from signposted figures by a few tens of metres.

Where is the Going-to-the-Sun Road?

The Going-to-the-Sun Road is in the USA. Also known as Sun Road. The route on this page: Lake McDonald Lodge to Logan Pass, 34.2 km.

Why the Going-to-the-Sun Road is famous

Completed in 1933, it is about 50 miles long, narrow and winding, with hairpin turns west of Logan Pass, and is a National Historic Landmark.

Going-to-the-Sun Road corners

Over 34.2 km Turini calls 1 hairpins, 1 square corner and 128 corners graded 1 to 6, plus 1 dip. That is 134 calls in all, one every 255 metres on average. Grade 1 is the tightest, 6 is nearly straight (how to read pace notes).

HP1
12
220
320
433
529
624

Going-to-the-Sun Road elevation profile

From 973 m at the start to 2,026 m at the finish, with a highest point of about 2,030 m. Red marks are the hairpins.

2,100 m900 m
0 km17.1 km34.2 km

Going-to-the-Sun Road pace notes, first few km

The first 25 calls, exactly as Turini reads them, with the distance from the start.

140 mLeft 1
1.62 kmLeft 4 long
1.83 kmRight 4 long
2.06 kmLeft 4 very long opens
2.92 kmRight 4 very long
3.52 kmLeft 5
3.67 kmRight 5
4.02 kmLeft 4 long
4.36 kmRight 5 long
4.60 kmDip
6.36 kmLeft 6
8.23 kmRight 6
8.48 kmLeft 6
9.01 kmRight 5
9.04 kmLeft 5
9.10 kmBridge
9.12 kmLeft 6
9.44 kmRight 5 long tightens
9.99 kmRight 5
10.13 kmLeft 3 long tightens
10.65 kmLeft 4
10.82 kmRight 3 long
10.96 kmLeft 5 opens
11.13 kmRight 4
11.55 kmLeft 6

That takes you to 11.55 km. 109 more calls follow over the remaining 22.6 km.

Before you drive the Going-to-the-Sun Road

Usually open over its full length from early June to mid-October; snow clearing has delayed the opening into July. Glacier National Park has used vehicle reservations in recent summers, so check the park website.

Vehicles longer than 21 ft or wider than 8 ft are not allowed between Avalanche Creek and Rising Sun. The speed limit on the alpine section is 25 mph.

How to drive the Going-to-the-Sun Road with Turini

Set the route before you leave and Turini saves its notes on the phone, so it works with the screen off and no signal. On the road it reads each call about 4.5 seconds before the corner, timed to your speed, and you never touch the phone. It also works through Android Auto. If pace notes are new to you, start in Simple mode (Easy, Medium, Hard) and switch to the 1–6 scale once it feels natural.

Always drive within the law, the conditions and what you can see. Turini tells you what the map says; the road is what counts.

More roads like the Going-to-the-Sun Road

Beartooth HighwayUSA49.4 km · 127 calls · 11 hairpins
Million Dollar HighwayUSA37.8 km · 149 calls · 12 hairpins
Pacific Coast Highway, Big SurUSA37.9 km · 85 calls

Best driving roads in the USA · All famous roads · How to read pace notes

Sources: Wikipedia: Going-to-the-Sun Road, nps.gov.

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