Tag Archives: Glacier National Park

Oh, never mind – Sun Road opening delayed until middle of next week

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Glacier Park got too much new snow. The opening of Going-to-the-Sun Road through Logan Pass has been delayed until the middle of next week . . .

Glacier National Park officials are now expecting the Going-to-the-Sun Road to open to Logan Pass by the middle of next week, the park announced Tuesday.

Officials originally hoped Logan Pass would become accessible later this week, but the recent snow has hampered plow crews clearing the road. A storm last weekend dropped roughly 10 inches of snow, prompting additional slides on the road, according to the park. Since Memorial Day weekend, a minimum of 35 inches of snow has fallen at the higher elevations of the road.

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Glacier Park still shooting for Friday Sun Road opening

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Glacier National Park still thinks it can have Going-to-the-Sun Road open this Friday, June 15 . . .

Glacier National Park officials say they’re hoping to open Going-to-the-Sun Road on Friday but much depends on the weather.

Businesses that rely on the road, meanwhile, are hoping they don’t see a repeat of last year when the road didn’t open until July 13.

“It’s all up to Mother Nature,” Glacier spokeswoman Denise Germann told the Great Falls Tribune. “We need her help to help move forward.” She said crews are working to open the road despite spring storms that brought 16 new inches of snow since Memorial Day. She said snow slides have also slowed progress, with crews even having to plow their way back through avalanches that came in behind them. Some avalanches on the west side of Logan Pass were up to 15 feet deep.

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Despite delays, Sun Road opening still planned for June 15

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According to the Hungry Horse News, Glacier Park still hopes to have Going-to-the-Sun Road open by June 15, despite recent weather delays . . .

Just a few weeks ago, Glacier National Park officials were hoping they’d have plows at Logan Pass by now. Mother Nature, however, had other plans.

Last week was marked by heavy rain, snow and poor visibility. Plows on the west side one day had to clear several snow slides that crossed the highway behind them just to get off the Sun Road.

But now the plows are close to Logan Pass. On the east side, crews should be pioneering a route through the Big Drift this week, and west-side crews should be at Logan Pass — they were at Oberlin Bend late last week, less than half a mile below the pass. Snow depths were 12 to 24 feet.

The Park is hoping to have the entire length of the Run Road open by June 15, if weather cooperates.

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North Fork offers more remote experience at Montana’s Glacier National Park

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Susan Gallagher did a nice Associated Press piece about the North Fork that is getting national and world-wide distribution today. Just for fun, the “continue reading” link below sends you to New Zealand to read the rest of her article . . .

The Blackfeet Tribe named the greater Glacier National Park ecosystem “the backbone of the world.” Use the park’s remote, northwestern entrance and the bumpy access road will have you feeling like you drove over each vertebra. But you’ll be grateful you made the trip.

For an out-of-the-mainstream take on America’s 10th national park, go to its northwestern expanse, the North Fork. It invites “a more self-reliant visitor,” the National Park Service says in its Glacier literature.

The North Fork doesn’t have the grand old lodges like those near Glacier’s principal gateways, but this piece of paradise isn’t without comforts. Rustic, marvelously tasty and memorable, they are in Polebridge, a mile (1.6 kilometre) from the park’s northwestern entrance. This off-the-grid community increasingly reliant on solar power is the hub for an area where the summer population numbers maybe a few hundred, up from five to 10 in the winter.

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An ideal backdrop for relaxation and reflection

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The Missoulian has a flattering travel article about Polebridge and the surrounding area . . .

This is the perfect place to celebrate a birthday.

Tucked along the edge of Glacier National Park, this iconic town proved an ideal backdrop for relaxation and reflection as another year passes. Not that you need a reason to visit, however. Polebridge is good for the soul any time and on any occasion – and did just the trick on a recent visit with good friends and great food.

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Glacier Park still plans Going-to-the-Sun Road opening June 15

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Glacier National Park says they are still on schedule to open Going-to-the-Sun Road by June 15 . . .

If the weather holds, Glacier National Park plows crews are expected to be at Logan Pass by May 25, and the Going-to-the-Sun Road should open all the way over Logan Pass by June 15, Park assistant superintendent Kym Hall said last week.

“We’re on track for a June 15 opening,” Hall said.

Hall made the announcement at a public meeting in Columbia Falls on May 16. Once the snow is cleared, it still takes a few weeks to clear the road of rocks and debris and to install removable guardrails at several locations, Hall said. The guardrails need to be bolted into place.

According to the Park’s contract with HK Construction, June 15 is the earliest the road could open…

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Glacier Park upbeat about trail work

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It sounds like Glacier Park got the money they wanted and the weather they wanted and are making good progress on trail work . . .

Glacier National Park will have about a $1 million in their budget for trail clearing and trail work this coming season, Park officials said last week. The Park annually spends between $675,000 and $1 million on its 730-plus miles of trails.

Chief ranger Mark Foust said trail work so far this spring has fared much better than last year, when record snowpack remained on the mountains and an extended period of wet, cold weather lasted into early July.

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Improvements to Quartz Creek fish barrier on the way

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The battle to keep non-native lake trout out of the Quartz Creek drainage continues . . .

Following National Park Service approval and an environmental analysis, Glacier National Park officials will move forward with modifications and improvements to the existing Quartz Creek fish barrier to try and suppress lake trout and other non-native fish from getting into Quartz Lake, the park announced Monday.

Located in the North Fork of the Flathead River drainage and the park’s North Fork District, Quartz Lake is believed to be one of the last remaining strongholds for bull trout in park waters west of the Continental Divide. The lake was believed to be the largest on the west side of the park accessible to lake trout but not yet colonized by them. However, lake trout were detected in 2005, threatening the long-term persistence of the Quartz Lake bull trout fishery.

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Glacier Park community meetings held this week

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Glacier National Park held two meetings this week to share information about park activities and plans and get feedback from local communities. The Daily Inter Lake has a report on Tuesday’s meeting in Columbia Falls . . .

Glacier National Park is struggling with shuttle bus finances and over the next few years will craft a management plan to try to deal with congestion along Going-to-the-Sun Road.

The shuttle bus/road situation was one of the topics at a community meeting Tuesday in Columbia Falls featuring Glacier Park leaders.

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Aquatic invasive species watercraft inspection program gearing up for another summer

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Montana’s watercraft inspection program is already up and running this season. And for good reason . . .

Montana’s aquatic invasive species watercraft inspection program is gearing up for another summer, and the first question inspectors will ask is, “Where has your boat been in the past 30 days.” More than 45 newly trained Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks seasonal employees will man the check stations beginning in mid-May in key locations throughout the state.

The summer’s mission is to prevent the spread of aquatic invasive species, chief among them quagga and zebra mussels, New Zealand mudsnails and Eurasian watermilfoil, and to inform boaters how to prevent infesting Montana’s waters with these unwanted, costly-to-clean-up-after pests.

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