Sun Road section to close

Motorists can still reach Logan Pass from the west

The Daily Inter Lake

Open travel along the 50-mile length of Glacier National Park's Going-to-the-Sun Road will come to an end Monday, as heavy construction work begins near the East Tunnel.

The park will close the road into the Two Medicine Valley for a culvert replacement project starting Oct. 2.

Work has been under way all summer near the East Tunnel, but one lane has been kept open through the work area, requiring short delays for drivers. Starting on Monday, construction work below two avalanche slide zones will require the closure of a 2.5-mile stretch of both lanes.

Visitors still will be able to drive about 15 miles of Sun Road from St. Mary to Siyeh Bend, where the closure starts. Those traveling from the west will be able to reach Logan Pass.

The Logan Pass Visitor Center will remain open through Sept. 30, and interpretive programs at the pass will continue through Sunday, Sept. 17.

The project on the Two Medicine Road involves replacing a damaged concrete culvert. That contract recently was awarded to Willow Creek Construction of Browning.

Hikers and bikers still will be able to travel past the work site after the Oct. 2 closure at the park boundary.

The work will be finished by the end of October and is expected to cost about $350,000.