glacier national park fires
 

I just called to confirm a reservation at St. Marys and was told there are fires in the area and a possible evacuation. Has anyone recently been there or is there now that can update me on this?? Thanks in advance. I'm planning on going next week.

See the Glacier website for news:
http://tinyurl.com/zsojk

Thank you for the site. I spoke with someone at St. Marys and it's not great news but they are working hard to keep the fire under control.I will check this site periodically and pray for rain. Thank You again.

St. Mary's was evacuated late yesterday. Temps in the 60s with low humidity AND high winds at 20 to 25 mph. Going to sun road open at west side to Rising Sun. Highway 89 closed.

Red Eagle fire still burning very strong and has destroyed approx. 20,000 acres to date. St. Mary still on mandatory evacuation and Sun road still closed on east side from St. Mary to Rising Sun and hiway 89 still partly closed. Cooler temps expected tonight and winds becoming calmer.
According to local news, no one to return to St. Mary's area for at least 3 days, however winds are blowing AWAY from St. Mary's and fire fighters are busy protecting structures in that area.

John - Thanks for the update. My neighbors are heading to to Glacier on Tueasday and have reservations on the east side of the park. They planned their trip after hearing about the trip we just took the first week of July. I've been giving them FYI updates as I learn more. Thanks.

Latest update on Red Eagle fire in the park. Nothing really has changed as the fire continues to burn out of control. Wind gust yesterday were clocked as high as 50 mph however good news today as winds were calm and much cooler temps. prevailed.
Fire is now approx. 10% contained but the St. Mary's area is still under evacuation notice.
More firefighters have been assigned to this fire and some airborne drops of retardant have been made. Burned area is still estimated at 22,000 acres with new estimates due out tommorow. To date, all St. Mary structures have been saved.

Thanks for all the updates. I had not read anything about a fire in GNP (we are in SW FL) We are headed to GNP in early September on a Grand Circle tour and GNP is our first stop. Hopefully they will have the fires contained very soon...for the sake of the people that live in the area.

Red Eagle fire has slowed considerably due to lower temps. and higher humidity. It has now consumed approx. 24,000 acres. Temps in the valley at noon today was 69 with humidity up to 33%.
St. Mary village and campground along with Cut Bank campground (not to be confused with the town of Cut Bank) are still under evacuation order.
Parts of Higway 89 still closed. Park still open from West Glacier to Rising Sun campground.

JOhn, Thanks for the updates. I've been checking the NPS website but your info is much better. I'm heading to GNP via train from Chciago on Saturday and am hoping things are better for all. Thanks Again.

Another web site is from the incident commandeer on the scene
www.inciweb.org/incident/374/

commandeer??

commander

St. Mary and GTSR evacuation will be lifted tonight (August 2) at 8 pm. Winds have died down considerably and temps are cool with higher humidity. Highway 89 is also open to traffic along with Going to sun.

Good job done by firefighters keeping ALL structures intact with no injuries or loss of life.

Greetings,
I just looked at all the relevent areas on the web regarding the curent fire in Glacier. It appears that it is somewhat contained at about 60% and that the Saint Mary area is no longer under evacuation orders. I'm planning on leaving for Glacier on 8/17 from Illinois so if anyone gets any new info, please post it. Thanks

Hi all,
Just returned from Glacier. The Red Eagle fire is controlled for the most part but you can see small puffs of smoke every now and then. Weather is still very dry but temps were great, 78 or 80 degrees in the daytime and mid 40s at night. The park is crowded for this time of year. Many Glacier campground filled every day we were there and there are a lot of cars parked at the trail heads. A smoking and fire ban is in effect anywhere in the back country but campfires are still ok in the auto campgrounds. If you like to watch bears, the Many Glacier Valley has a lot of activity right now. We saw both grizzleys and black bears every day, usually eating huckleberries.