International Year of Glacier Preservation

Glacier National Park

Quick facts

Number of glaciers: 180 (as of 2011)

Number of icefields: 2 (i.e., the Illecillewaet Névé and the Deville Névé)

Major rivers fed by glaciers: 4 (i.e. the Beaver River, Illecillewaet River, Incommapleux River and Mountain Creek)

Total area covered by glaciers in GNP: 128.18 km² (as of 2011).

Largest glacier of GNP: Grand (14.58km² in 2011)

How much has the Illecillewaet Glacier receded since 1887? 1.5km horizontally and 600m vertically

In 2025, the United Nations is calling on everyone to recognize the vital role glaciers play in the health of our planet. This year is not only a celebration of the stunning beauty of glaciated landscapes, but also a powerful call to action in the face of the challenges posed by changing snow and ice.

Glaciers, snow, ice, and permafrost are essential parts of the cryosphere, or the frozen parts of the Earth, shaping ecosystems and cultures across Canada. Our connection to these frozen waters runs deep—from the Indigenous peoples who have lived alongside them for millennia, to the ways we rely on glaciers today for water and sustenance.

We invite you to explore, learn, and get involved. Discover how the shifting cryosphere affects our world and how we can work together to protect these critical natural resources. Join us in celebrating the wonder of glaciers and supporting efforts that make a real difference for the future.

Glacier Basics Experiences and Events Research Resources

Glacier basics

A glacier is a massive ice formation that moves because of its weight and gravity. It forms when snow builds up over time and compresses into ice, which can take many years. The appearance of a glacier depends on where it forms, the climate, and the surrounding landscape. As a result, glaciers can take on many different shapes and sizes depending where they form.

There are between 198,000 and 200,000 glaciers worldwide, covering about 700,000 square kilometers of land. Canada is the most glacier-rich country on Earth accounting for 20% of the world's total glacier volume. To put that into perspective, Canada has enough glacial ice to cover half of Newfoundland and Labrador on a map! However, glaciers in southern Canada are rapidly shrinking. For instance, Glacier National Park has seen dramatic changes. As of 2018, the park had 129 glaciers, down from 337 just 40 years earlier.

Snow and ice play a big role in the daily lives of Canadians. Our connection to glaciers, snow, and ice runs deep, shaping our culture and supporting tourism and local economies thanks to the stunning beauty of our mountain landscapes. However, the conditions that made this connection possible are changing. If we don’t understand these changes, we won’t be ready for the challenges ahead.

Wildfires, floods, droughts, and other natural hazards are closely linked to mountain water systems. As glaciers in Canada’s western mountains melt, they are projected to lose 70% to 95% of their 2005 ice volume by 2100, drastically altering water flow and impacting ecosystems. The loss of glaciers will affect not only water systems, but also biodiversity, cultural traditions, and livelihoods, highlighting our ongoing and profound connection to these frozen landscapes.

What's happening this year?

Discover a variety of events and activities where you can learn, explore, and connect with glaciers, both within the park, in the surrounding area, and virtually.

At Mount Revelstoke and Glacier National Parks

Glacier Festival - July 12 and 13, 2025

Stay tuned for exciting updates on programming and activities happening this weekend. Don’t miss out!

Hikes with glacial views

Some of these hikes require advanced expertise and skills. It’s crucial to recognize when to stop if conditions become unsafe. Additionally, glacial travel demands specific skills, knowledge, and tools. Please ensure you are adequately prepared before embarking on these adventures.

For the seasoned hikers:

Hermit trail - enjoy views into the Illecillewaet and Asulkan glaciers, plus views into the Bonney/Loop Brook.
Abbott Ridge trail - See the Rogers/Swiss peaks, the Illecillewaet, Asulkan and Bonney glaciers, with a spectacular view of the Illecillewaet Neve.
Perley Rock trail - get close to the edge of the Illecillewaet Glacier.
Glacier Crest trails - get jaw-dropping views of the Illecillewaet and Asulkan glaciers.
Balu Pass trail - observe the Bonney and Lily Glaciers at the summit of this trail.

For moderate hikers

Great Glacier trail - get a stunning view of the Vaux Glacier.

In the Revelstoke-Golden area

Art in the Park Exhibition - March 27 to April 27, 2025

Location: Revelstoke Visual Arts Centre
Cost: $5
Experience the majestic beauty of glaciers through art at the "Art in the Park" exhibition. This unique showcase features works by artists deeply inspired by their time in Glacier National Park. Each artist will present three pieces that highlight the glaciers, their powerful presence, and the surrounding landscapes.

Virtual

Stay Cool – virtual courses

Part 1: What is a Glacier?

Get ready to chill and learn all about glaciers in this cool virtual adventure, brought to you by Banff and Glacier National Parks! How do these large masses of ice form? Why are they important? Carve out their science with us in the first episode of this 2-part series.

Part 2: Secrets of the Ice

The study of glacier retreat in the Mountain National Parks was started by early national park visitors, the Vaux family over 125 years ago—North America’s first glaciologists! Their photography and research inspired others to care about and study glaciers. Learn how you too can change the world through citizen science in the final episode of this 2-part series.

Guardians of the Ice

Explore an ongoing interdisciplinary art project that explores the Columbia Icefield and its glaciers within Jasper National Park. Through film, photography, and writing, the project merges art with science to illuminate the urgent environmental concerns uncovered by researchers.

Studying glacier recession

Explore the rich history and ongoing research into glacial recession at Glacier National Park, home to the iconic Illecillewaet Glacier. Learn about the groundbreaking work of North America’s first glaciologists, the Vaux family, and how their pioneering contributions still shape today’s understanding of glaciology and climate change. Discover the cutting-edge techniques used to monitor glacial meltwater and its vital role in the ecosystem.

North America’s first glaciologists

The study of glacial recession in Glacier National Park was started by the Vaux family over 125 years ago—North America’s first glaciologists! Siblings Mary, George and William Vaux of Philadelphia first travelled here as tourists in 1887. They photographed the Illecillewaet Glacier on their first visit and again on their second visit in 1894. They were struck by how much the glacier had receded in those seven years. For another decade, the Vaux family returned each year to monitor and photograph the glacial recession from a number of fixed locations—the earliest known glacier research in North America. Their photographs and notes continue to be invaluable to the study of glaciology and climate change today.

The recession of the Illecillewaet Glacier, 1898 - 1931.
© Parks Canada / Dan McCarthy, Brock University

William Vaux photographing the Illecillewaet glacier in 1898.
© Parks Canada

Repeat photography

In 2011 and 2022, repeat photography was conducted in partnership with the Mountain Legacy Project to compare glacial changes over time. This repeat photography project compared photos taken in 2011 and again in 2022 to those taken in the past from the exact same location. In addition to photographs the Vaux family took, glass photo plates were also taken by early surveyors working for the railway in the late 1800s. By comparing new images to old ones, we can get a clear picture of glacial recession.

Views of the toe of the Illecillewaet Glacier in 2011

Views of the toe of the Illecillewaet Glacier in 1887 (left) and 2011 (right).
© McCord Museum (left) / Mountain Legacy Project (right)

In the above image, repeat photography compares a view of the toe of the Illecillewaet Glacier in 1887, at left, to the bare rock face after glacier retreat in 2011, at right. In the image below, taken below Abbott Ridge, significant glacier recession is observed.

Right image description, identifying differences

Left image description, identifying differences

Illecillewaet Glacier in 1902 (left) and 2011 (right).
© Detroit Photographic Co. (left) / Mountain Legacy Project (right)

Measuring glacial meltwater

Image of a river with a mountainous backdrop

In glaciated regions, the freshwater from glacial melt plays an integral role in the ecosystem. Melting glaciers influence water temperature in streams and rivers, and provide short-term water sources to maintain stream flow in the late summer. This is especially true during dry summers characterized by extended droughts.In 2009, Master’s student Jocelyn Hirose initiated a glacier mass balance research project with support from Parks Canada. This study looked at the annual net gain or loss of mass of the Illecillewaet glacier in Glacier national park. Part of this project consisted of measuring and modeling glacier runoff during the summer months to determine how much of it was from snow melt and glacier melt.

Illecillewaet River Basin discharge by sources between 2009 and 2011. Snow (red), ice (blue) and total (black).
© Parks Canada / Hirose and Marshall 2013

The study found that over the course of three years, glacier run-off during summers was on average 112,300,000 m³ of water—that’s approximately 44,920 Olympic sized swimming pools! Glacier melt-modelling and water chemistry showed that 34% of the melt water came from glacial ice and 66% from snow.

This indicates that if our glaciers disappeared, water volumes in the creeks and streams of this area could decrease by up to one third. It is likely that water volumes would actually decrease by more than this, because the loss of glaciers would also lead to a loss of snowpack, since glaciers act like refrigerators, helping to preserve the snowpack. The decrease in glacial melt will also result in both an increase in water temperature and lower oxygen levels in the area’s creeks, streams and rivers, affecting our fish, amphibians and invertebrates.

Measuring surface glacier mass balance

Parks Canada resource conservation staff and a mountain guide preparing to measure and weigh the previous winter’s leftover snow.
© Parks Canada / Ben Dorsey

Glacier Mass Balance measures the changes between annual gain through snow accumulation and loss through glacial melt. A negative mass balance means a glacier is losing mass, usually leading to its recession, while a positive mass balance means it is gaining mass, which typically leads to growth of the glacier. Winter and summer mass balances (gain and loss) have been measured annually on the Illecillewaet Glacier since 2009, in spring and fall. The results are regularly reported to Natural Resources Canada who shares them with the World Glacier Monitoring Service (WGMS). The WGMS, with its predecessor organizations, has been compiling and disseminating standardized data on worldwide glacier fluctuations for over a century.

The Illecillewaet glacier mass balance monitoring design in Glacier NP as of summer 2024. Yellow pins represent the locations at which the accumulation (gain) and the ablation (loss) are measured annually. Blue dots represent the approximate location of the Equilibrium Line Altitude (ELA) in 2019 (i.e. the elevation at which the glacier did not lose or gain any mass). Google Earth image from September 4, 2019.
© Parks Canada

Illecillewaet glacier cumulative specific mass balance between 2009 and 2019. Every year recorded a negative mass balance except for 2012 when a slight mass gain was observed.
© Parks Canada / Menounos et al. 2018

Measuring glacier volume

In 2018, ground penetrating radar was used to determine the thickness of the Illecillewaet Glacier. The results obtained could eventually be used in the development of a 3-D model of the glacier to help predict its future based on current and predicted climate.

Illecillewaet glacier thickness obtained from ground penetrating radar survey in 2018.
© Parks Canada / Pelto et al. 2020

Counting glaciers

An inventory of the alpine glaciers and icefields found in Mount Revelstoke and Glacier national parks was completed in 2011. Overall, the area covered by glaciers in Glacier National Park decreased by 74.28 km2 from 202.46km2 between 1978 and 2011. The annual rate of loss appears to be higher since 2006 for both parks, suggesting continuing warming may be offsetting expected weather trends A new glacier surface area survey is scheduled for both parks in 2023. Its results will be compared to the ones obtained by the 2011 survey.

Surface area changes of the Beaver Glacier in Glacier National Park between 1978 and 2011.
© Parks Canada / Wheate and Alexander 2013

References

Hirose J.M.R. and S.J. Marshall (2013). Glacier Meltwater Contributions and Glaciometeorological Regime of the Illecillewaet River Basin, British Columbia, Canada, Atmosphere-Ocean, 51:4, 416-435, DOI: 10.1080/07055900.2013.791614
Menounos B., A. Bevington, B. Pelto, C. Tennant and R. Wheate (2018). University of Northern British Columbia. Final Report for State of the Parks Report on Glaciers. Glacier and Jasper National Parks. Parks Canada Contract: RC17-3444.
Pelto B.M., F. Maussion, B. Menounos, V. Radic and M. Zeuner (2020). Bias corrected estimates of glacier thickness in the Columbia River Basin, Canada. Journal of Glaciology 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1017/jog.2020.75
Wheate R. and N. Alexander (2013). Glacier Inventory Update Project. Glacier and Mount Revelstoke national parks. Technical Report, May 2013. Revised Version: September 2013. Parks Canada Contract 13-0117.

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