Serious road work around the corner

Plows clear path to damaged areas of Glacier's Sun Road

Glacier National Park snow plows have finally reached storm damage below the East Side Tunnel on Going-to-the-Sun Road.

Weather permitting, contractors will soon have access to begin repairs that will make way for installation of a 125-foot temporary bridge across a chasm where both lanes were washed away in a torrential rainstorm last November.

Park and Federal Highway Administration engineers had only a few days to survey the damage before it was buried by snow last fall.

There are three damaged sections of road that must be repaired before the two-lane bridge can be installed. Once the bridge is in place, contractors will be able to reach damaged areas above the East Tunnel. That damage includes one section where roughly 400 feet of retaining wall must be rebuilt before the east side of Sun Road can be opened to Logan Pass for vehicle traffic.

Because of the repair work and the need to stockpile supplies and materials nearby in the Sun Point parking lot, the park is requiring all oversized vehicles to park at the Rising Sun boat launch while repairs are under way.

"Regardless of road repairs and rehabilitation, we want to reiterate that Glacier National Park is open and will be open for normal visitor services this season," Glacier Superintendent Mick Holm said. "Although visitors won't be able to drive across the entire Sun Road this June, they can still enjoy a host of recreational activities and enjoy the lower-elevation portions of the scenic Sun Road."

The bridge will remain in place throughout the summer while the road is rebuilt beneath the steel span.

"The goal will be for this storm repair work to continue throughout the summer and fall and remove the bridge before winter weather sets in," Holm said.

Sandry Construction of Bigfork is the contractor for initial repair work.

The Federal Highway Administration soon will accept bids for a second phase of repairs, including the bridge installation.

Glacier spokeswoman Amy Vanderbilt said the park is still aiming for Sun Road to be open for vehicle travel over Logan Pass "on or about" July 1.

"That is the ideal goal," she said.

Plows working west of the pass are now in the Weeping Wall area, just below Triple Arches, where a huge debris slide from the November storm crossed the road. Before crews could start removing the debris last fall, it was frozen in place and buried by snow.

On Thursday and Friday, Vanderbilt said, areas of Sun Road got as much as 10 inches of new snow. That kind of weather hampers plow work.

Nearly all other park roads are open at lower elevations. The Two Medicine, Many Glacier and Camas roads are open. The Inside North Fork Road is open north of Polebridge, and so are the roads into Kintla and Bowman Lakes.

The Inside North Fork Road between Polebridge and Fish Creek remains closed.

Vehicles can travel Sun Road as far as Avalanche Campground west of the pass and Rising Sun east of the pass. From those points, hikers and bikers can travel varying distances, depending on road repair activity.

Reporter Jim Mann may be reached at 758-4407 or by e-mail at jmann@dailyinterlake.com