From today’s Daily Inter Lake . . .
An ongoing grizzly bear population trend study got off to a good start this year with three bears being captured and fitted with radio collars in the North Fork Flathead drainage.
But that’s just the start of trapping efforts that will carry on for the next few months throughout the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem, which stretches from the mountains of southern Alberta to the southern end of the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex.
This Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks press release, posted today on the Flathead Beacon web site, is a North Fork-specific follow-up on the grizzly bear monitoring effort announced three weeks ago:
Grizzly bear population capture efforts for monitoring in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem (NCDE) have concluded in the North Fork Drainage. Three bears were captured and fitted with radio transmitters during the effort. FWP Biologists will closely follow the bears’ movements.
FWP Biologist Rick Mace notes that the successful capture operation will enable FWP to monitor the survival and reproduction of grizzly bears in this important area of the NCDE. It was recently concluded that the grizzly bear population in the NCDE is growing at a rate of 3 percent per year, based on an analysis and publication by Mace and his colleagues in an upcoming edition of The Journal of Wildlife Management. Grizzly bear monitoring capture efforts now move to other areas of the NCDE. The project is primarily funded by FWP and the U. S. Forest Service.
In other grizzly bear news, an adult female grizzly and her yearling were captured in the Blankenship Bridge area of the North Fork of the Flathead Drainage on June 13. The two grizzlies were released today in the Coal Creek area. The bears were grazing on green grass at private residences. The move was a pre-emptive measure to avoid conflicts with residents.
In this week’s column for the Hungry Horse News, Larry Wilson discusses the condition of the North Fork Road (much improved) and recent activities at Sondreson Hall (very successful) . . .
The river continues to run high and muddy, but so far no real damage from flooding. In my view, every day that passes makes a major flood less likely. I would not say a flood is impossible, but I sure think the chances are a lot less likely than they were two weeks ago.
The road is also better. Flathead County crews worked last week to at least mitigate the problems. Wurtz Hill was smoothed out somewhat, and the lowest slumps were evened out so that all of the ledges are gone and the hill is passable for passenger cars, but it’s still rough and drivers need to go slowly.
Well, cripes. We should have seen this coming.
From today’s Missoulian . . .
Water – too much of it in too many places we wish it wasn’t – is the problem right now.
Guess what comes next?
Mosquitoes.
Like the water, there could be more than we’re accustomed to, for longer than we’re used to it.
The east side of Glacier Park is due for some improvements. From today’s Missoulian . . .
The Many Glacier Valley is as well known for its stunning wildlife viewing opportunities as the Statue of Liberty is for its green patina.
For that reason, Glacier National Park administrators were pleased with the outcome of a recent environmental analysis, which found that a project to improve wildlife viewing vantage points in the Many Glacier area will have no significant impact.
From the Glacier Park weekend update . . .
Park Officials announced the opening of more services and roads for the summer season. Currently, there are over 90 miles of road open within Glacier National Park which access all areas of the park, with more services opening every week. The road into Cutbank Creek opened on Thursday, June 9 and the campground is scheduled to open on June 17. Avalanche Campground and Rising Sun Motor Inn opened on June 10. Saint Mary boat tours also began operation on June 10.
With an unusually heavy snowpack, park officials are striving to set reasonable and safe goals for openings and have announced a few delays. Sperry Chalet will delay opening from July 8 to July 15, due to significant, lingering snowpack. Two Medicine boat trips will delay opening until conditions warrant. Many Glacier, Two Medicine, and Cutbank Campgrounds will open June 17, at the earliest. These dates are based on current conditions and may be adjusted as conditions warrant.
Plowing continues on the Going-to-the-Sun Road (Sun Road). Initial plowing has been complete to the Big Bend, five miles beyond the Loop, on the west side. Crews are encountering drifts between 10 and 20 feet. On the east side, crews are plowing the No Stump Point area, approximately one mile beyond Siyeh Bend. There is no date set for when the upper section of the Sun Road will be cleared for across park travel.
On the west side, there will be a hiker/biker restriction at Packer’s Roost, six miles beyond Avalanche Creek on Saturday, June 11 due to construction…
Related reading: Crews still plowing Going-to-the-Sun Road
Looks like area rivers will run full but more-or-less within their banks for the next few days.
Here’s an overview of the situation from the Missoulian . . .
The 2011 flood season will go on hold for a few days while Mother Nature decides what to do next.
Most western Montana rivers passed their peak rise on Friday and were forecast to hold steady within a few inches of their initial flood stage, National Weather Service meteorologist Bruce Bauck said.
Those hydrographs should stay flat through the middle of next week as a cool, wet weather system moves across the state.
Unfortunately, that means the remaining mountain snowpack will remain a while longer, leaving the potential for future runoff surges…
Online media publication New West ran a feature Wednesday on the North Fork Watershed Protection Act, including some nice local quotes from NFPA President John Frederick . . .
An ongoing effort to protect a shared river drainage on the Montana-Canada border from mining damage will not inhibit recreational users, hunters or logging activity, Montana’s senior senator promises.
According to a statement from Sen. Max Baucus, D-Montana, the North Fork Watershed Protection Act would solidify an agreement between Montana and British Columbia to prohibit new mining and energy exploration in the million-acre northern Flathead River basin, which extends across the Canadian line.
Continue reading “U.S.-Canadian ‘Gentleman’s Agreement’ To Protect Montana River” . . .
By and large, local rivers crested just below flood stage after the last bout of wet weather. However, higher flows and river levels are likely as the weather continues to warm.
Today’s Daily Inter Lake has a write-up . . .
Although most area river levels have dropped, the National Weather Service is maintaining a flood warning for the Whitefish and Stillwater rivers into Saturday and a meteorologist warns that there are more peak flows to come on Northwest Montana waterways…
Most Northwest Montana rivers, including the North Fork, Middle Fork and main stem Flathead rivers, rose close to flood stage on Wednesday but flows have declined since then. …these are not peak flows for the spring runoff. Because of the persistent water-loaded snowpack, there can be more and higher peak flows in the weeks to come.
From today’s Missoulian . . .
Rising water levels on the Flathead River have forced closures at several access sites in the Flathead National Forest, U.S. Forest Service officials announced Wednesday.
The closures went into effect at access sites at West Glacier and Blankenship Bridge, while some sites at Big Creek Campground near the North Fork of the Flathead River, north of Columbia Falls, were also closed.