Tag Archives: Glacier National Park

“Bear fair” to be held at the Polebridge Mercantile July 9th

June 20, 2011Environmental Issues, Newsbear attractants, black bears, Glacier National Park, grizzly bears, North Fork News, North Fork Preservation Association, U.S. Forest Servicenfpa

From the just-published North Fork Bear News . . .

The U.S. Forest Service in cooperation with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, Glacier National Park and others is sponsoring a community bear fair on July 9th from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Polebridge Mercantile. The event will feature educational talks, booths and displays (including a culvert trap to check out in case you’ve been curious…), great food (of course!) and an opportunity to learn more about bears and how to keep them safe. There will even be pots of flowers to give away to those who renounce their hummingbird feeders and a fushsia raffle for a couple of lucky winners. Come join the fun!

Plowing crews into the really deep stuff on Going-to-the-Sun Road

June 18, 2011NewsGlacier National Park, Going-to-the-Sun Road, snow plowingnfpa

Crews plowing Going-to-the-Sun Road in Glacier Park are getting close to the top, but are encountering the deepest snow. The Daily Inter Lake has the story . . .

Yellow bulldozers and rotary plows have been breaking trail on Glacier National Park’s Going to the Sun Road but an historic snowpack has delayed the road’s opening.

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation website the earliest the road could have opened was June 17, but as of late last week, plow crews still had four miles of road to plow up and over Logan Pass. Ellen Blickhan, acting public affairs specialist for the park, said that until they finish plowing no date will be set for the road’s opening.

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Glacier National Park participates in long-term grizzly monitoring study

June 18, 2011Environmental Issues, Newsbear study, Glacier National Park, grizzly bears, Northern Continental Divide Ecosystemnfpa

An interesting press release posted to Glacier Park’s web site yesterday . . .

Glacier National Park is participating in a long-term interagency program to monitor the trend of the grizzly bear population in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem. Bait stations, automated cameras, and traps will be used to capture and monitor grizzly bears within the park. The program attempts to maintain a sample of up to 10 radio-marked female grizzly bears out of an estimated population of 300 grizzly bears living in the park.

Bait stations and trap sites will be marked with brightly colored warning and closure signs. For safety reasons visitors are reminded to heed and comply with these signs and not enter areas closed for baiting or trapping. A man died last year seven miles east of Yellowstone National Park after he wandered into a capture site and was attacked by a grizzly bear. Trapping efforts will continue at various locations throughout Glacier National Park beginning June through October. For further information, please contact park bear biologist, John Waller, at (406) 888-7829.

More facilities open in Glacier Park; entrance fees waved June 21st

June 18, 2011Newscampgrounds, Glacier National Park, Going-to-the-Sun Road, trailsnfpa

From the Glacier Park weekend update . . .

Park officials invite visitors to Glacier National Park for a fee free day on the summer solstice, Tuesday, June 21. All entrance fees are waived for entry into Glacier National Park. There are more campgrounds and services open in Glacier National Park this week. In the Many Glacier valley, the Swiftcurrent Motor Inn, Many Glacier Hotel, Many Glacier boat tours and Swiftcurrent Campground opened for the season on Friday, June 17. In the Two Medicine valley, boat tours have begun operation. Ranger Led Activities have commenced and schedules can be found online or at entrance stations to the park.

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Glacier Park wildlife viewing improvements move forward

June 12, 2011NewsGlacier National Park, wildlife protection, wildlife viewingnfpa

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.

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More facilities open at Glacier Park; lots of plowing left to do

June 11, 2011Newscampgrounds, Glacier National Park, Going-to-the-Sun Road, snow plowing, trail maintenancenfpa

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…

Continue reading . . .

Related reading: Crews still plowing Going-to-the-Sun Road

Tragedy strikes Glacier Park’s webcam ospreys

June 7, 2011NewsGlacier National Park, ospreysnfpa

From the Hungry Horse News . . .

Tragedy struck a popular pair of ospreys in Glacier National Park when one of the birds was electrocuted after it touched power lines near its nest.

The osprey nest is located on the edge of the St. Mary Visitor Center parking lot. In 2009, the Park trained a webcam on the nest, and it soon became one of the most popular features in the summer months on the Park’s Web site, Park webmaster Bill Hayden said.

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Search and rescue of overdue hiker in Glacier National Park’s North Fork area

May 26, 2011NewsGlacier National Park, search and rescuenfpa

A tale of extreme hiking from a press release posted today on the Glacier Park web site . . .

Officials at Glacier National Park were contacted by the wife of an overdue hiker on Wednesday morning, May 25, 2011. Richard Layne, 59 years old and from Helena, was issued his backcountry permit on May 10 and according to his permit would be hiking in remote sections of Glacier’s North Fork and exiting on May 20. Layne and his wife had agreed that if he was not back by the 25th of May, she was to contact the park service.

Layne’s ambitious itinerary began at the Polebridge Ranger Station into Bowman Lake, from Bowman Lake to Brown’s Pass, through Hole-in-the-Wall and over Boulder Pass, exiting Kintla Lake and out the Inside North Fork Road to Big Prairie. Most of these areas are in winter conditions with extreme hazards.

Due to the impending change in weather expected on Thursday, rangers contracted Minute Man Aviation to fly Layne’s route. From the helicopter, rangers spotted tracks in the snow going over Boulder Pass that were consistent with human travel. In the afternoon, Layne was spotted near Upper Kintla Lake waving his red jacket at the helicopter. Rangers retrieved Layne and brought him out of the backcountry, uninjured but very tired.

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U.S. senators welcome plan to protect North Fork of Flathead during hearing

May 26, 2011Environmental Issues, NewsGlacier National Park, Jon Tester, Max Baucus, North Fork Watershed Protection Act of 2011, Waterton Lakes National Parknfpa

From today’s Missoulian . . .

A proposal to protect the North Fork of the Flathead River from mining got a friendly reception at a U.S. Senate hearing on Wednesday.

“You have convinced me Glacier (National Park) and the North Fork are true jewels of the West,” Senate Energy and Natural Resources acting chairman Ron Wyden, D-Ore., told Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont. “We’re going to get your bill out of this committee and onto the president’s desk.”

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Montana senators back North Fork Watershed Protection Act

May 26, 2011Environmental Issues, NewsGlacier National Park, Jon Tester, Max Baucus, North Fork Watershed Protection Act of 2011, Waterton Lakes National Parknfpa

From today’s Daily Inter Lake . . .

Montana Sens. Max Baucus and Jon Tester testified Wednesday in support of legislation that would permanently withdraw federal lands in the North Fork Flathead River drainage from future leases for energy development.

The two testified in support of their North Fork Watershed Protection Act before the Senate Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests in Washington, D.C.

It is the latest step in a cooperative agreement with British Columbia that bans mining in the North Fork river corridor on both sides of the border, including areas near Glacier and Waterton national parks.

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