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Glacier National Park, should we cancel our plans?

Glacier National Park, should we cancel our plans?

Old Jul 26th, 2015, 03:42 AM
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Glacier National Park, should we cancel our plans?

We have planned to go to Glacier National Park mid August. We have made our hotel, airplane, rental car reservations. Should we cancel this trip? Surely, the fire will be out by then but do you think the GTTS road will be open? If not it will mean backtracking for a day. Also, do you think there will be a smoky haze over most of the park? On the other hand, it will be a hassle to cancel reservations and we will lose some money. What would you do?
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Old Jul 26th, 2015, 06:03 AM
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It is a tough decision. We went to the Canadian Rockies and Glacier National Park (the U.S. one) at the beginning of September 2003. We too hoped that the fires would be out by then, but no such luck. They burned all summer, and it was so hazy we saw little in the Rockies and essentially nothing of Glacier. Lots of roads closed off, one scary escort out of a raging fire area, you name it.

We've been back to Banff numerous times since, but that was the only trip we made to Glacier NP. From what others post here, I imagine it is beautiful; but we only had smoke, flames, and then blessedly rain.

After giving you such a depressing story, in all fairness I have to say that 2003 was extreme. But mid August is right around the corner..
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Old Jul 26th, 2015, 07:28 AM
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You might want to check with local authorities like the Park Visitor's Center and the ranger stations of the national forest lands around the National Park as they will be easier to reach via phone during this fire. They should be able to tell you how much containment they have and exactly where it's burning, although those things can change quickly.

I've lived in the west all my life. I usually go early in the summer or even late spring to increase my chances of avoiding the fire season!

I went to Montana in mid-June this year for 2 weeks, expecting temps in the high 60's that early. It was in the 80's and Montana had had a mild, low snowfall year too. Everyone was predicting a bad year for wildfires this year.

If you need help finding the names of local ranger forest districts, just look on a map until you can see the names of the national forest areas, then google for their main ranger station.

If you feel you need to cancel, look around for areas you could visit still using the same flights. There are many!

Good luck!
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Old Jul 26th, 2015, 08:42 AM
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Here is the site for the Glacier National Park webcams:

http://www.nps.gov/glac/learn/photos...ia/webcams.htm

The cams aren't always up, but they should be helpful figuring out where the smoke is at its worst, but it is pretty early to know what it will be during your trip.

You might also look for long term forecasts for the Park on the various weather sites: Wunderground, Accuweather, and Weather.com. They all have virtues and faults.
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Old Jul 26th, 2015, 12:28 PM
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I'm sorry to say that the national parks are not very forthright when it comes to answering questions following a disaster. If they make negative statements, attendance declines and funding correspondingly.

As a result, in the early 1980s shortly after the erruption, told that Mt. Saint Helens was "open to all," we had a harrowing (but memorable) drive on logging roads, and a few years later we were horrified by the aftermath of the fire in Yellowstone where, we were told, "things are back to normal."

HTtY

PS The National Weather Service tell it as they see it.
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Old Jul 26th, 2015, 12:57 PM
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I guess we all have our ways of seeing things. We went to Yellowstone in the 1989 the year after the big fire because we knew attendance would be down and we were right. Yes, there was a lot of burned area, but there was also a lot of wild flowers and baby trees coming up. For us, this did not take away from the natural beauty of the park, the geyser areas and wild life.

If you have a Facebook account, there is a Glacier NP Facebook page that might help tell it like it is. https://www.facebook.com/GlacierNPS

Is your lodging on the west or east side of the park?

Utahtea
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Old Jul 26th, 2015, 01:31 PM
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Yes, I recommended calling the national forest service ranger stations because they will be more honest in reporting the conditions.
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Old Jul 26th, 2015, 01:42 PM
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As of today, the fire is 20% contained. GTTS road is open on the west side to Big Bend and is closed on the east side from St. Mary to Big Bend. Two Medicine area and Many Glacier area remain open and are not in any danger from this fire. FREE shuttle buses are still running on the west side as far as The Loop.
Evacuation levels have been downgraded today, weather here is cloudy and temps. have dropped. Weather should help again this evening as temps will drop even further with snow flurries predicted above 8000 feet. MAJORITY of the park is open and clear as smoke is blowing east and north.
Having spent the money already, I would definetly come out.
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Old Jul 26th, 2015, 06:51 PM
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What would I do? I would continue to monitor the situation and have a backup plan in case the fire spreads considerab

At this point that is all I would do. There's no point in cancelling based on speculation about what may or may not be happening in a couple weeks. The fire could be completely, it could turn into a massive out of control fire, or anything in between. Sit tight and keep an eye on the situation but there's no need to panic and cancel anything.

I don't know that I would bother calling the rangers in the national forest....this fire is completely within the national park boundaries and the national forest rangers probably won't have as much current info on a fire that is out of their immediate jurisdiction.

I'd check this website on a daily basis:
http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/4405/#
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Old Jul 27th, 2015, 05:41 AM
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St. Mary visitor center, on the east side, will re open this morning. Fire is now 30% contained. Cool rainy weather predicted for the next 2 days with FROST possible Tuesday and Wednesday mornings. This will help immensely to tame what's left of the fire.
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Old Jul 27th, 2015, 06:19 AM
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" If not it will mean backtracking for a day. "
That's not a big deal. I mean, where in the world can you be that's so beautiful?! Back-tracking is getting to see more of the park AND I love the Hwy 2 drive. I think it's beautiful too. Plus I love stopping to look at the goats. I choose to stay on Hwy 2 because I like the "backtracking". We were first to be allowed through to Logan Pass one June. It was exciting. But Glacier is gorgeous all the time.

" guess we all have our ways of seeing things. We went to Yellowstone in the 1989 the year after the big fire because we knew attendance would be down and we were right. Yes, there was a lot of burned area, but there was also a lot of wild flowers and baby trees coming up. For us, this did not take away from the natural beauty of the park, the geyser areas and wild life"

Totally agree. I loved seeing Yellowstone after the fire and I loved seeing it in following years to see the natural progression after fires. I wouldn't trade by post-fire trip to Yellowstone for anything.

Of course, I love controlled burns and watching them during and after. I'd love to be able to go to Glacier this summer. In fact, I wasn't planning to go in September during my WY/MT trip but I may change plans because of the fire.
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Old Jul 27th, 2015, 11:17 AM
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If the Many Glacier area is fee of fire and smoke I'd go.

In my opinion that's 80% of the spectacular park.

Iceberg Lake hike (spectacular scenery and potential for bears) and maybe Ginnell Glacier (though I'm not a big fan of this hike).

Fishercap Lake area for more wildlife and along the Many Glacier Road.

Yes, there are worthy sight along GTTS Rd, maybe. Hidden Lake Overlook hike and the start of Highline hike. And St Mary and Virginia Falls hikes.

I don't know where you're flying to but I always use Calgary for the parks in northern Mt and Southern Alberta.

From the Many Glacier Hotel to Banff National Park in Alberta it's only a 5 hour drive. There are a few very short hikes in that area and Banff & Jasper have more spectacular roadside scenery than I've seen anywhere else.

So there are options.
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Old Jul 27th, 2015, 02:06 PM
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St Mary campground will most likely open Wednesday. GTTS road SHOULD be opened from the west side to Logan Pass by Wednesday.
Only .03% of the park is impacted by the fire. Many Glacier and Two Medicine remain completely open. Apgar, Many Glacier and Two Medicine are completely smoke free as what little smoke is left is drifting northeast. Light rain today along with cool temps have slowed the fire down considerably.
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Old Jul 27th, 2015, 07:03 PM
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Good news John and thanks for giving people the local updates.

By the way, my visit to MT in June was very educational. I remember your comment about only 100 something days of sunshine per year and since then I have talked with many Park City people who have immediate family living in Kalispell or Bigfork. They do say the winters are very, very grey. Don't think I'll make any decisions about the future until I visit for a week in winter. I do like my UT sunshine in the winter!
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Old Jul 28th, 2015, 06:40 PM
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I would spend most of my time in Many Glacier anyway. That's where the best of the best is, IMOP. I do like GTSR from MG to the Logan Pass.
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Old Jul 29th, 2015, 10:26 AM
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St. Mary visitor center now open as is St. Mary campground. GTTS road opened on the west side to Logan Pass as is the Highline Trail and Hidden Lake. East side remains closed from St. Mary visitor center to Logan Pass. GTTS road on west side HEAVILY congested, no overnight parking at Logan Pass. Fire is 50% contained.
Check web site daily as MUCH warmer weather forecast for tomorrow and this weekend which could trigger spot fires in the burned area.
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Old Jul 29th, 2015, 11:31 AM
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Sounds like they're doing well with containing the fire.

I hope you go and enjoy your trip. Glacier is so beautiful!
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Old Jul 31st, 2015, 04:12 AM
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Thank you for the advice. I have been checking the webcam and the reports as suggested. We have decided to carry on. I really had my heart set on driving the GTTS road but if it is closed we will drive as far as possible and then go back through Highway one. Our first night's reservation in at Lake McDonald and the second night is Many Glacier. We will make this work! Thanks again for the information.
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Old Jul 31st, 2015, 07:00 AM
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I meant Highway 2!
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Old Jul 31st, 2015, 09:59 AM
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Fire is over 60% contained. We are now in a fire weather watch as temps are climbing into the high 90's and very low humidity. GTTS road still open to Logan Pass from the west side with MAJOR congestion. Road probably will not open fully for a few weeks as fire fighting equipment needs the road to stay clear.

MARLIB1951 Where is highway 21?
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