Balmy weekend ahead for Glacier

With sunny, warm weather forecast for the weekend, more services and facilities will be open in Glacier National Park.

The Two Medicine Camp Store opened this week in the Two Medicine Valley.

The East Side Shuttle run by Glacier Park Inc. started operations on June 3 and boat rentals at Apgar will be available starting today. Fish Creek and Rising Sun campgrounds are open for the season. Camp sites at Fish Creek and St. Mary and half of the Apgar group sites are available for reservations from June 1 to Labor Day.

The opening of Many Glacier, Two Medicine and Cut Bank campgrounds will be delayed until at least June 17 due to lingering snow.

On the west side of Going-to-the-Sun Road, there will be a hiker-biker restriction at Packer’s Roost, six miles beyond Avalanche, Creek today only due to construction activity.

There are no planned hiker-biker restrictions on the west side on Sunday or on the east side all weekend.

Motorists can drive as far as Avalanche Campground on the west side and Jackson Glacier Overlook on the east side.

Plowing continues for the annual effort to clear Going-to-the-Sun Road.

On the west side, significant avalanche activity deposited snow and debris on Sun Road after the Memorial Day weekend storm. During the last week, more than 2 1/2 feet of snow fell in the starting zones of avalanche paths along Sun Road.

To reach their work site, crews re-plowed the slide paths, where they encountered debris piles up to 10 feet deep.

Crews have completed initial plowing through Haystack Creek and are continuing towards the Alps, 3 1/2 miles beyond the Loop. On the east side, crews have completed initial plowing through Siyeh Bend and are continuing to No Stump Point about one mile beyond Siyeh Bend.

Avalanche danger persists throughout the park.

Avalanches along Sun Road in the spring can occur during and after snowstorms, during and after rain events and especially during sunny, warm days. During high avalanche danger, park officials do not advise hiker-biker travel on Sun Road in avalanche-prone areas.

Park officials also anticipate higher water levels in creeks, streams and rivers throughout the park for a longer duration than usual, with some reaching flood stage in coming weeks. Visitors are reminded to use caution around water.