What Is Swiftcurrent Falls And Where Is It?
Swiftcurrent Falls is in a remote section of Montana. It is inside the Many Glacier section of Glacier National Park. It is a roadside waterfall. Unless there are parking restrictions along the road that goes from Montana Highway 89 into the Many Glacier section of Glacier National Park, there is no real hike required to get to Swiftcurrent Falls. If there are parking restrictions in place, chances are you can park in the Many Glacier Hotel parking lot and hike over.
Swiftcurrent Falls is water running out of Swiftcurrent Lake in the Many Glacier section of Glacier National Park. Like most western waterfalls, the heaviest water flow tends to be in the spring as the snow melts. Heavy and sometimes torrential rains do hit Many Glacier from time to time and can cause the falls to run pretty heavy.
What Is It Like To Travel To Swiftcurrent Falls At Glacier National Park?
To get to Glacier National Park, you’ll either need to take a road trip to Montana and up near the Chief Mountain Border Crossing near the town of Babb, Montana and the entrance to Many Glacier. If a road trip is not practical then you’ll probably want to fly into the Glacier Park International Airport, pick up a rental car and go from there. The drive from the Glacier Park International Airport up to Many Glacier and Swiftcurrent Falls is about 150 miles and will take about 3 hours depending on construction and traffic.
When heading out to Many Glacier and Glacier National Park in general you’ll be heading to an increasingly crowded US National Park. Once you get your flight and rental car booked you’ll need to work on lodging. The Many Glacier Hotel is a nice old historic place to stay. The Swiftcurrent Lodge also in the Many Glacier section of the park is cool too, though the rooms are a bit more basic. Outside the park, Duck Lake Lodge is another option. I’ve been there for their excellent pizza but have never stayed in the lodge.
If you want to find something less expensive, there are a ton of campgrounds around the area. Lots of them now require reservations but some don’t. If you want to be safe then book everything early. If you’re more adventurous you can take your chances and scramble for lodging when you get there. The last minute scramble isn’t as easy as it used to be!
What Does It Take To Get A Wall Art Quality Photo Of Sunrise At Swiftcurrent Falls At Many Glacier?
Getting a wall art quality Swiftcurrent Falls sunrise photo is one of the easier sunrise photos to get in Many Glacier IF the weather cooperates. Where you spend the night will determine how early you have to get up to get there before sunrise. If you can stay in Many Glacier you can sleep till almost sunrise because all the lodging is pretty close to the falls. If you are staying at St. Mary or somewhere like that, you’ll need to get up much earlier.
Prior to the pandemic Swiftcurrent Falls at sunrise was never very crowded. There were usually a few people there but not a crowd by any means. There are TONS of great sunrise spots all across Glacier National Park and Swiftcurrent Falls never seemed to be that popular.
The weather can be quite unpredictable in the Many Glacier section of Glacier National Park. To maximize your chances of a great Swiftcurrent Falls sunrise photo you’ll want to look for partly cloudy skies forecast at sunrise. You’re not going for any reflections here so unless the wind is strong enough to blow over your tripod (and it can be), the wind doesn’t matter here. A bit of fog or mist rising up from the falls and the stream below can look pretty cool at sunrise. If you line things just right and snap the shot as the sun is on the edge of the rocks around the falls you can get a starburst in the photo.
Even if stormy clouds and precipitation are in the forecast an awesome scene could unfold. You just need a break in the clouds right along the horizon to get a chance at fiery morning skies. If you are staying in or very close to Many Glacier and just want to go somewhere for sunrise, this is a spot that doesn’t take a lot of work to get to.
What Is The Best Gear For Photographing Sunrise At Swiftcurrent Falls In Many Glacier?
When you want to get wall art quality photos of sunrise at Swiftcurrent Falls at Many Glacier, a standard camera will do. The scene lends itself to a standard photo aspect ratio of 4×6. That is what a typical DSLR, mirrorless or cal phone camera will shoot. Since you’ll be shooting at sunrise when the light is low, at least initially you’ll probably want to use a tripod and a cable release to keep the camera as stable as possible.
A zoom lens or lenses that range between 17mm and 105mm will give you the most flexibility to zoom in or out and frame up the shot that looks best to you. You may want to play around with a circular polarizer. If the light gets really bright in the morning you may want to use a neutral density filter. A neutral density filter blocks light and makes it possible to keep the shutter open longer to get the silky smooth water look.
The landscape here can lend itself to taking panoramic shots. If you have panoramic gear you may want to bring it with you. The distance from the parking area to the falls is not far. A bit of extra weight will not be much of a burden to carry to this spot if you want a panoramic wall art print.
For best results I’d suggest going to Swiftcurrent Falls the night before you plan to go for sunrise to scope out the area, where you might go if it is crowded and how you want to frame up the shot. When you get there the next morning you’ll know what you want to shoot, where you want to stand and have a backup plan if someone is already standing where you want to be.
What Is The Story Behind This Many Glacier Swiftcurrent Falls Sunrise Wall Art Photo?
This Swiftcurrent Falls sunrise photo was taken back in 2017. I’d been bouncing around to different parts of the park for a while and was staying in the Many Glacier campground for a while. At that point reservations were not required to get a campsite in Many Glacier. You just had to get there early to claim a site.
I was hiking all over the place and wanted to get some cool wall art quality photos at Swiftcurrent Falls. Since there is little to no cel service in the Many Glacier section of the park I had to rely on the weather forecasts printed out and posted on good old fashioned paper in the Swiftcurrent Lodge or the Many Glacier Hotel.
Anytime there was no rain in the forecast I’d get up for sunrise and sometimes even if rain was in the forecast. When in a spectacular spot like Many Glacier with potentially spectacular sunrise photo locations 10 minutes or less away, there is no reason to miss a sunrise opportunity unless it is absolutely pouring rain.
On this particular morning it was pretty chilly. There was some cloud cover right along the horizon that had the potential to wipe out any good sunrise photos. Fortunately the cloud cover along the horizon was pretty light. Rather than blocking the sun, the clouds caused the sunlight to diffuse and not shine directly into the camera. Anytime the sun shines directly into the camera sunspots can sometimes appear in the image. Any dirt or moisture on the lens will often shot up in the photo as well.
Since the skies we fairly clear and the sun warming up the landscape after a chilly night there was a bit of fog or mist rising from the stream below the falls. The sun rays shooting toward the falls lit up some of that mist and created a cool light beam across the falls.
This particular photo was snapped as the sun was on the edge of he cliffs along the edges of the creek below Switftcurrent Falls and resulted in a nice little sunburst along the cliffs. At sunrise, the sun is constantly rising. In order to try to get that sunburst in the photo, it is best to setup the tripod such that the center pole is extended. This can make things a little less stable but it make it much easier to adjust the height of the camera down as the sun rises to get the sunburst on the edge of the cliffs.
Once you trek all the way out to Many Glacier, getting wall art quality sunrise photos at Swiftcurrent Falls is fairly easy. Maximize your chances of getting a wall art quality photo by watching the weather, scoping out the area before you go there for sunrise. If you want to try to get a sunburst in your photos then setup your tripod to make it as easy as possible to lower the camera as the sun rises.
In What Formats Is This Many Glacier Swiftcurrent Falls Sunrise Wall Art Print Available?
This Many Glacier sunrise photo print comes in all sizes up to 40×60 inches. It is available as a plain paper print and can be framed with a variety of frames and mats. It is also available on metal, canvas, wood, and acrylic. If you’d like to hang this print in an area with bright lights and/or lots of natural light a matte finish on paper or canvas is probably your best bet. If you want to hang it in an area with more diffused lighting then a glossy or metallic type of print would be better. Choose an actual metal print, a metallic or glossy paper print or an acrylic prints.
For something more along the lines of home decor, shower curtains are really awesome as are the Sherpa fleece blankets. Smaller items like pillows and towels are also available.
If you need something to replace the plastic grocery shopping bags with a very durable and roomy canvas bag with this image on it, the canvas totes make a great choice. Cel phone cases are another great way to show your love for Glacier National Park to everyone who sees your phone.
If you’ll be spending time inside and need a brain teaser, why not try a 500 or 1,000 piece jigsaw puzzle? Buy one for yourself or for the Glacier National Park fan in your family or social circle!
Leave a Reply