Logan Pass Bathrooms Close Early Amid Low Water Levels

Glacier National Park has closed all plumbed bathrooms at the Logan Pass Visitor Center due to water shortages, officials announced prior to the Labor Day weekend. 

The park shut down the plumbed bathrooms on the evening of Aug. 29, more than a week before the initial plan to close them on Sept. 7. There are currently 17 portable bathrooms and five vault toilets adjacent to the visitor center that will remain open until the upper section of the Going-to-the-Sun Road closes for the season in October. 

The early closure is due to low water levels that are insufficient to support the number of daily visitors at Logan Pass, park officials said. They explained that increased visitation and a high demand for water contributed to the visitor center’s shortage. 

In an effort to conserve the limited water, the park had already begun reducing the hours that the bathrooms were open, closing them from 5 p.m. to 8:30 a.m. However, officials said that there was still significant water usage despite the reduced hours, resulting in the early closure.

The water at Logan Pass is sourced from the Logan Creek Basin, which is fed by a melting ice field. Rain helps to refill the basin during the summer, but this year the park said the water is being used faster than it is replaced. This summer, Logan Pass has used an average of 8,000 gallons of water, an increase from previous averages of 5,000 to 6,000 gallons.  

“With the recent low water levels the water tank has not been able to refill, even with nightly closures of the plumbed bathrooms,” Glacier officials wrote in a news release announcing the closure. 

According to the park’s most recent visitation statistics, more than 765,000 people visited Glacier National Park in July, which is a nearly 3.4% dip in visitor traffic compared to the same period last year. But the park’s overall year-to-date visitation data could still be one for the record books.

The park is also in the process of renovating the water and wastewater systems at the Logan Pass Visitor Center and six other park sites. The project has already kicked off in St. Mary and Two Medicine, and updates to Many Glacier and Lake McDonald are scheduled to begin in fall of 2026. 

Logan Pass and Granite Park renovations are tentatively scheduled for fall of 2027. Officials say that plans for Logan Pass are still in the very early stages of design.  

The Park also reminded visitors to bring their own drinking water to Logan Pass, noting that the visitor center does not sell bottled water.  

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