Fire impacts business around the park

EAST GLACIER — As the Reynolds Creek Fire marched along on the far side of St. Mary Lake, the smoky haze over St. Mary progressively increased throughout Wednesday, matching the ever-cloudier moods of both visitors and employees in the town.

Many feared that the summer season may have just ended.

Jeff Palmer of Syracuse, N.Y., found himself stranded in St. Mary with his wife during a four-day bike ride to and from Whitefish.

“We spent the last night in Waterton, and were planning to stay here tonight,” Palmer said Wednesday afternoon, standing at the bridge over Divide Creek and watching the slow-moving plume. “But we could smell [the smoke] a ways up the road, and as we got closer we could see it.”

With the St. Mary access to the park out, and no available housing nearby, he and his wife were waiting for a taxi from Kalispell to pick them up and take them back to Whitefish, at a cost of $300.

Across the street, St. Mary Lodge and Resort sits by the entrance to Glacier National Park, the eastern terminus for the popular Going-to-the-Sun Road. The lodge is run by Glacier Park Inc., and vice president Ron Cadrette estimated Wednesday evening that the hotel had already seen a 40 percent drop in business since the east side of the road closed Tuesday.

“Since the closing of Going-to-the-Sun Road, we’ve seen a substantial dropoff in traffic,” Cadrette said. “That road is the lifeblood of the summer business.”

While he said the company had concerns about possible changes in the wind direction, he said they expected the hotel would remain outside the path of the fire.

Down the road at the KOA campsite, however, that wasn’t the case. A mandatory evacuation had been ordered, and fire personnel from the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation, Evergreen, Browning and Babb were stationed in the parking lot, determining which structures in the campground could be safely defended against the flames.

“They’ve been very professional, and I’m glad for that,” said Will Brooke, who owns the campground with his wife.

But, there was no denying the economic pain of the situation.

“We’re at the height of the season, and our income just went from the best season ever to zero in 15 minutes,” Brooke said. “It’s pretty depressing to see this now, but it is what it is. It’s Mother Nature.”

For now, however, St. Mary’s loss appears to be East Glacier’s gain.

Motels in the town were all booked up Tuesday and Wednesday, and employees at the Bear Tracks gas station noted that sales of gasoline and beer had been through the roof. Overhead, a smattering of clouds littered a clear, blue sky.

At Brownies, a hostel and bakery renowned for its huckleberry pies, owner Terry Chase paused from replenishing his pie supply to note the unusual surge in business.

“This morning was really busy — when we opened there was a line of people, maybe 30,” he said, noting that overall business had nearly doubled overnight and rooms were booked for the next couple days. “Every place I know right around here is at capacity.”

Just down the street, the story at Luna’s Restaurant was much the same. After a slow start to the season, owner Will Branch said he saw a massive spike in business as vacationers in St. Mary were forced to seek other accommodations on Tuesday and Wednesday.

“It’s been great for us,” said Branch. “Last night there were carloads of people that were supposed to be in Granite Chalet or Sperry Chalet and just trying to find somewhere to stay.”

But, Branch noted, a prolonged fire could hurt his business as well.

“If it gets too bad and too smoky, people won’t come anymore,” he said. “If the media starts saying, ‘Glacier Park is smoked out,’ no one will come, and that’s bad.”

The park is definitely open for business, but fire is the boss.

Reporter Samuel Wilson can be reached at 758-4407 or by email at swilson@dailyinterlake.com.