Glacier going to the sun is open

Yamaha FJR Motorcycle Forum

Help Support Yamaha FJR Motorcycle Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

JamesW

JamesW
Joined
Aug 11, 2009
Messages
1,135
Reaction score
173
Location
snohomish wa
Great timing. Mon. heading N. to Jasper Alberta, then down parkway to Lk Louise, East to Canmore via the bow valley parkway, than 40 (Kananaskis) around to 22 and S. to Pincher creek and Waterton lakes. Next comes Glacier east to west, followed by highway 2 to 56, S. to 200 and W. to Le Clerc Rd.,going N. to Ione, cross the river, S. on 31 to Tiger, W. on 20 to Kettle Falls and then home over the N. Cascades. It is not Alaska (I wish), nor is it Red Lodge but is all I have time for. All you lucky Red Lodge riders be safe.

 
Have a safe ride Jim.

Leaving tomorrow morning for Red Lodge...we're taking the long way!!
punk.gif


--G

 
Going to Red Lodge the long way. Going to the Sun Hwy is an option on the way home. Enjoy your ride James.

 
It's not all fun and games.....

Grizzly kills person near Glacier National Parkhttps://www.foxnews.com/us/2016/06/30/sheriff-grizzly-kills-person-near-glacier-national-park.html?intcmp=hplnws

KALISPELL, Mont. – A grizzly bear attacked and killed a 38-year-old mountain biker Wednesday as he was riding along a trail just outside Glacier National Park, Montana authorities said.

Brad Treat and another rider were in the Halfmoon Lakes area of the Flathead National Forest when they apparently surprised the bear, Flathead County Sheriff Chuck Curry said.

The bear knocked Treat off his bike, and the second rider left to look for help, Curry said.

Authorities found Treat's body at the scene, but not the bear. Wildlife and law-enforcement officials were searching for the grizzly Wednesday evening.

Treat was a law-enforcement officer with the U.S. Forest Service.

"Brad was an integral member of our area law enforcement team and a friend to us all," Curry said.

Treat grew up in nearby Kalispell, where was a standout distance runner in high school, his former coach, Paul Jorgenson, told the Flathead Beacon newspaper.

"He was a really good runner but he was also a kind-hearted person who cared about people," Jorgenson told the Beacon.

The second rider, who was not identified, was not injured. Authorities have closed the area, which is about 3 miles away from Glacier's west entrance, for public safety.

Grizzlies in the Lower 48 states have been designated a threatened species since the 1970s, but their numbers are increasing and so are conflicts between humans and bears.

The grizzlies in the Glacier area among about 1,000 bears in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem, which also includes the Bob Marshall Wilderness south of the park. At least 700 more grizzlies live in and around Yellowstone National Park, which is roughly 360 miles south of Glacier.

Six people have been fatally mauled by bears in the Northern Rockies since 2010, but those deaths were mainly in the Yellowstone area. Glacier officials say there are usually one or two non-lethal encounters between bears and humans each year inside the park.

Before Wednesday, there had been 10 bear-related human deaths in Glacier since the park was created in 1910. The last was in 1998, when three bears killed and partially ate a park vendor employee while he was hiking.

In the most well-known Glacier attacks, bears killed two people in different parts of the park in a single night in 1967. Those attacks became the subject of a 1969 book by Jack Olsen titled "Night of the Grizzlies," and later a documentary by the same name.

 
It's not all fun and games.....

Grizzly kills person near Glacier National Parkhttps://www.foxnews.com/us/2016/06/30/sheriff-grizzly-kills-person-near-glacier-national-park.html?intcmp=hplnws

KALISPELL, Mont. – A grizzly bear attacked and killed a 38-year-old mountain biker Wednesday as he was riding along a trail just outside Glacier National Park, Montana authorities said.

Brad Treat and another rider were in the Halfmoon Lakes area of the Flathead National Forest when they apparently surprised the bear, Flathead County Sheriff Chuck Curry said.

The bear knocked Treat off his bike, and the second rider left to look for help, Curry said.

Authorities found Treat's body at the scene, but not the bear. Wildlife and law-enforcement officials were searching for the grizzly Wednesday evening.

Treat was a law-enforcement officer with the U.S. Forest Service.

"Brad was an integral member of our area law enforcement team and a friend to us all," Curry said.

Treat grew up in nearby Kalispell, where was a standout distance runner in high school, his former coach, Paul Jorgenson, told the Flathead Beacon newspaper.

"He was a really good runner but he was also a kind-hearted person who cared about people," Jorgenson told the Beacon.

The second rider, who was not identified, was not injured. Authorities have closed the area, which is about 3 miles away from Glacier's west entrance, for public safety.

Grizzlies in the Lower 48 states have been designated a threatened species since the 1970s, but their numbers are increasing and so are conflicts between humans and bears.

The grizzlies in the Glacier area among about 1,000 bears in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem, which also includes the Bob Marshall Wilderness south of the park. At least 700 more grizzlies live in and around Yellowstone National Park, which is roughly 360 miles south of Glacier.

Six people have been fatally mauled by bears in the Northern Rockies since 2010, but those deaths were mainly in the Yellowstone area. Glacier officials say there are usually one or two non-lethal encounters between bears and humans each year inside the park.

Before Wednesday, there had been 10 bear-related human deaths in Glacier since the park was created in 1910. The last was in 1998, when three bears killed and partially ate a park vendor employee while he was hiking.

In the most well-known Glacier attacks, bears killed two people in different parts of the park in a single night in 1967. Those attacks became the subject of a 1969 book by Jack Olsen titled "Night of the Grizzlies," and later a documentary by the same name.

Thanks for the info on the Grizzle situation. A friend and I are planning a trip to Glacier Natl Park in late August. I was there five years ago in the late summer. The weather at that time was good. What is the typical weather in that area in late August? Thanks, Art

 
Well not quite yet for 2017..... but they're starting the process to get it open. They haven't started on the Going to the Sun Road yet, but they have an early start on getting to it.

Glacier Park plows start working

KALISPELL — The annual chore of digging out Glacier National Park roads from the winter snowpack has started.
Plowing has started on the east side of the park and will start on the west side the first week in April.

The Daily Inter Lake reports (https://bit.ly/2oeKXCX ) that crews have cleared the Many Glacier Road to the Many Glacier Hotel, though it is not open to vehicles. The road was plowed a bit earlier than usual to allow contractors to get to the hotel, which is undergoing a $13 million renovation.
The bulk of the construction work is slated to be done by June to accommodate guests at the hotel.

Normally plows don't hit the Many Glacier Road until mid-April.
___
Information from: Daily Inter Lake, https://www.dailyinterlake.com
 
Last edited by a moderator:
The heavy equipment is approaching the most challenging sections of road to plow. Logan Pass, situated about seven miles from The Loop, is the highest point on the Sun Road at 6,646 feet elevation. Snow depths can climb as high as 80 feet at certain spots, covering all but the roof of the visitor center. Just east of Logan Pass, the so-called Big Drift also presents a difficult task with ample snow, as well as hazardous places where water from snowmelt creates potholes and tunnels that can swallow equipment.

The plows officially began work on the Sun Road on April 1. The process of uncovering the 50-mile road from winter’s wrath typically takes 10 weeks, depending on snow depths and spring weather. Due to these conditions, the National Park Service does not establish a set date for when the iconic road fully opens, but it typically occurs in late June or early July.

 
I never realized the elevation was so low on that pass --- 6,646 feet. Interesting.... Beartooth is 10,947.

 
Top