The Montana Experience: The Polebridge Mercantile

Nestled in a remote mountain valley at the foot of Glacier National Park, the historic Polebridge Mercantile dutifully endures as one of the last outposts of its kind in the American West. The Mercantile, a short film by Brian Bolster, steps into the working lives of Flannery Coats and Stuart Reiswig, the young couple whose search for the ideal marriage location yielded them the most unforeseen and rewarding challenges of their lives - proprietorship and preservation of a century-old, unchanged business enterprise in a modern and ever-changing world.

Although most park visitors never make it up to Polebridge, located just outside of the northwest corner of the park, this film will give them a good idea of what they're missing when they visit the Glacier area. You have to admit, those pastries sure look awesome!



Maybe now Polebridge will be on your itinerary for your next visit! If you do plan to visit Glacier this summer, now's a good time to begin your planning. In addition to detailed hiking trail information for Glacier National Park, HikinginGlacier.com also offers a wide variety of accommodation listings and other things to do to help with all your vacation planning.





Jeff
HikinginGlacier.com
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Entire Inside North Fork Road Anticipated to Open This Weekend

All 28 miles of the Inside North Fork Road between Fish Creek Campground and Polebridge is anticipated to open this weekend. Glacier National Park road crews are currently completing temporary repairs, including utilization of existing gravel to fill holes in the road due to annual spring runoff flooding. The section of the road between Polebridge and Logging Creek opened in May of this year to vehicle travel.

Flooding and road washout has caused significant damage to the Inside North Fork Road, particularly near the Anaconda Creek and Logging Creek areas. Yearly spring floods cause recurring damage to these areas of the road. A third location on the road between Quartz Creek and Logging Creek converges with the North Fork of the Flathead River. The river is beginning to undercut this section of the road due to sloughing of the riverbank, posing safety concerns and potential road loss issues.

Planning is needed for long-term solutions to the continual damage occurring on the Inside North Fork Road. When planning efforts begin, public input will be sought for long-term solutions that would ensure visitor safety and best protect park resources. An announcement will be released once the planning effort begins. Future temporary repairs to the road will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

The Inside North Fork Road was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1996. It is a narrow, gravel road and use of recreational, towed, and low-clearance vehicles is strongly discouraged. In ideal conditions, at least two hours are needed to travel the entire length of the Inside North Fork Road. Visitors are advised to prepare for travelling this road by carrying plenty of water and food. Also be prepared to encounter possible downed trees.

For more information on the current status of roads within the park, please click here or call 406-888-7800.


Jeff
Hiking in Glacier National Park

Segment of Inside North Fork Road Anticipated to Open This Weekend

Approximately six miles of the Inside North Fork Road between Fish Creek Campground and Camas Creek Bridge is anticipated to open this weekend. Glacier National Park road crews are currently completing temporary repairs, including grading of the area and laying surface gravel to improve road conditions after continuous flooding. The section of the road between Polebridge and Logging Creek opened in May of this year to vehicle travel.

The road will remain closed between Camas Creek Bridge and Logging Creek due to flooding and road washout. Road crews will focus work near the Anaconda Creek and Logging Creek areas over the next few weeks. The entire length of the Inside North Fork Road may open later this season, dependent upon scope of damage found and resources needed to ensure vehicle travel can occur safely.

The Inside North Fork Road is a 28-mile narrow, gravel road between the Fish Creek Campground and Polebridge. Use of recreational, towed, and low-clearance vehicles is strongly discouraged on the road.

For more information on the current status of roads within the park, click here or call 406-888-7800.


Jeff
Hiking Glacier National Park

Cross-Country Skiers Rescued in Bowman Lake Area

This morning's NPS Digest is providing more details on the two cross-country skiers that were rescued after an unplanned, overnight bivouac near Bowman Lake this past weekend.

Glacier National Park, the Flathead County Search and Rescue Mountain Rescue Team, and the Kalispell Regional Medical Center’s A.L.E.R.T. air ambulance responded to and rescued two cross-country skiers who were lost and stranded overnight in the North Fork area of the park.

The married couple from Kalispell sent a 911 message using a SPOT messenger device, reporting that they were lost and stranded in the park. Flathead County dispatch received the message at approximately 8 p.m. on Saturday evening and determined that the message originated from a remote location approximately one mile north of the Akokala Creek Trail near Bowman Lake in the North Fork area of park (approximately six miles north of Polebridge). Park rangers were immediately notified and an incident team was organized.

Due to bad weather, downed trees, difficult trail conditions, darkness and overall unsafe conditions for ground or aerial searches, it was determined that a response would need to take place early Sunday morning. Operations resumed that day with rangers and members of the county’s rescue team snowshoeing and cross-country skiing toward their location. A helicopter joined them when weather conditions improved. The crew spotted tracks on the ground, landed briefly, and dropped off two crew members, who hiked a half mile to the couple’s location. They were treated at the scene and flown out. Rangers met them and transported them to the Polebridge Ranger Station. The couple then returned home.

It's a good thing the couple carried the SPOT messenger device with them. Moreover, based on local media reports, the couple was extremely conscientious about using the SOS device. In recent years, technology such as SPOT has been abused by people who aren't really in a search and rescue situation. There has been much controversy around people using the device out of convenience and putting SAR personnel in danger, not to mention the costs involved.


Jeff
Hiking in Glacier.com

Black Bear Captured and Euthanized

Glacier National Park Rangers and Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks biologists captured and euthanized a black bear in the Polebridge area on Wednesday, October 5, after numerous incidents in which the bear broke into vehicles, raided trash storage areas and caused damage trying to access a residence. The bear broke vehicle windows and pulled off car door handles to gain access into at least four cars and trucks, including a vehicle in the park. The bear obtained a food reward in most of these incidents.

The female bear was six years old and weighed 241 pounds, and had been previously captured in downtown Kalispell in June of 2008, after it was seen in the Woodland Park area. The bear was tagged and released in McGinnis Creek in the North Fork of the Flathead, and has not been involved in any other management situations since.

After the recent incidents in the Polebridge area, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks biologists and park rangers set traps and captured the suspect animal. After consultation between Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks biologists and Glacier National Park personnel and verification that the correct animal had been captured, the bear was euthanized. This action is consistent with state and federal bear management plans.

This bear was determined to be a conditioned bear and a potential threat to human safety. Conditioned bears are those that have sought and obtained non-natural foods, destroyed property or displayed aggressive non-defensive behavior towards humans, and are removed from the wild. Conditioned bears are not relocated.

Black bears are not good candidates for animal capture facilities such as zoos and animal parks due to the plentiful nature of the species and the large number of problem black bears throughout the United States.

Bears will go to great lengths to obtain foods, particularly in the fall during their pre-denning hyperphagia or hyper-eating period. In the fall, bears will consume 20,000-30,000 calories per day in order to gain the fat reserves needed for winter.

To keep bears wild, people need to remain vigilant about securing attractants such as birdfeeders, trash, and pet and livestock feeds. It is also important to pick fruits such as apples, pears and plums as soon as the fruit is ripe, and to remove any fruit on the ground.

Visitors to Glacier National Park are reminded that the park is home to black and grizzly bears. Hikers are highly encouraged to hike in groups, make noise when hiking, and have bear spray accessible and know how to use it. For more information about recreating in bear country, please visit http://www.nps.gov/glac/naturescience/bears.htm.


Jeff
Hiking in Glacier.com