More Glacier Park roads to reopen Monday

More of Glacier National Park will open to the public on Monday, including Camas Road and the North Fork area, according to a press release.

The North Fork will open as a day-use only area with the gate closing at 4:30 p.m. each day, but those inside the park after the gates close may remain. However, the gate may close during the day if parking areas become full and will reopen periodically as conditions allow. The Ranger Station at the entrance will be closed to the public, but visitors will be able to get information and publications from staff stationed outside.

According to the press release, all trails in the North Fork will be open, however, only the Bowman, Kintla, and Logging Lake trails are cleared; therefore visitors can expect to encounter downed trees on all other trails in the district. Both frontcountry and backcountry campgrounds remain closed.

Also starting Monday, the Going-to-the-Sun Road will open to Avalanche and the campground will be available for day-use parking and the restroom at the shuttle stop will be available.

This weekend, the west entrance to the park will continue to open by 8 a.m., as conditions permit, and close at 4:30 p.m. After that time, additional entries will not be allowed, including hikers and bikers. Visitors already in the park are not required to leave by 4:30 p.m. and are free to exit after finishing their recreational activities. No overnight use of the park is permitted at this time.

According to the press release, hikers and bikers “can go as far as Logan Pass on Going-to-the-Sun Road at their own risk.” However, visitors are discouraged from going past the Loop due to falling rock and avalanche danger. Bicycles are permitted between the foot of Lake McDonald and Sprague Creek Campground before 11 a.m. and after 4 p.m.

The Village Inn Hotel and Lake McDonald Lodge will open to overnight guests on Monday as well, but the lodge lobby and lobby restrooms will be closed to day-use visitors. Food service will be take-out only and orders can be placed on the lakeside exterior of the building. The bar and gift shop in the lodge will be closed, but the Lake McDonald Campstore will also open, as will restrooms across from the Campstore in the old post office building.

Lake McDonald is currently the only water body open to boating and the Apgar Aquatic Inspection Station opens at 9 a.m. All watercraft must be cleaned thoroughly before coming to the inspection station.

In addition, east entrances from the Blackfeet Reservation and the park east of the Continental Divide will remain closed. Sun Tours has suspended operations in Glacier National Park and Blackfeet Country for the month of June and the foreseeable future, but according to the press release, the park “continues to consult with the Blackfeet Tribal Business Council to establish reopening dates for entrances from the reservation.”

The press release also states the park is “tentatively planning to start issuing backcountry permits on June 26.” That statement is a correction to a previous press release that stated an incorrect date of June 20.

Glacier Guides day hikes will start on June 12 and Swan Mountain Outfitters horseback rides at the Apgar Corral will start on June 13.

Due to public safety concerns, congestion, and gridlock the Going-to-the-Sun Road may be closed temporarily on and off throughout the day. The park asks that visitors exercise patience.