Data Collection Begins in Grand Teton’s Moose-Wilson Corridor

Visitors traveling through the Moose-Wilson corridor in Grand Teton National Park may encounter researchers along the road, at trailheads, on trails, and in parking areas through October, 2013. Data collection this summer will be led by researchers from Utah State University (USU) though a cooperative agreement with the National Park Service (NPS). These data will be used to inform a planning process that will address future management of the corridor.

Research this summer will help determine visitor use patterns; areas and levels of user-created impacts (such as user-created parking areas and associated trails); and adequacy and efficiency of existing formal parking facilities. A variety of data collection methods will be used, including providing some visitors with GPS units while they visit destinations in, and travel through, the Moose-Wilson corridor. Additionally, researches will install cameras at key intersections to capture vehicle movement and use data from traffic and trail counters to determine levels and patterns of use. No personally identifiable information of visitors will be maintained.

USU professors Chris Monz, Ph.D., and Kevin Heaslip, Ph.D., will lead the research team. Monz and Heaslip have extensive experience collecting these types of data, and Dr. Monz has performed research in other national parks including Yosemite and Rocky Mountain.

The National Park Service is initiating a National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) planning process to create a comprehensive management plan for the Moose-Wilson corridor in Grand Teton National Park. At this point, the NPS has initiated internal scoping for the project and assembled a planning team. Later this year, the Park Service will begin a formal public engagement process and seek public scoping comments.

The Moose-Wilson corridor, located in the southwest corner of Grand Teton National Park, is an exceptional area and favorite visitor destination within the park that has a remarkable diversity of wildlife and habitat. These unmatched natural communities are located within a geographical area that is about seven miles in length, five miles in width, and 15,000 acres in size. The corridor is delineated by the Teton Range to the west, the Snake River to the east, the community of Moose to the north, and the park's Granite Canyon entrance to the south.


Jeff
Hiking Glacier National Park

Moose battle near Grinnell Glacier

In 2011 Jake Bramante became the first person to hike all the trails in Glacier National Park in one year. To help document this accomplishment, Jake recorded many (if not all) of his hikes on video. One of the last hikes that season was to Grinnell Glacier. The video below contains some awesome footage of the trail, as well as some amazing wildlife shots. What makes this video stand out is the battle he caught between two bull moose (around the 3:30 mark):




For more information on the hike to Grinnell Glacier, please click here.


Jeff
Hiking in Glacier National Park

Off-trail hiking limits in Glacier National Park for Wildlife Protection

Glacier National Park officials are again reminding visitors that off-trail travel through critical winter range areas is prohibited through May 15 -in an effort to protect wildlife. Travel is limited to designated trails throughout specific areas of the park, including the North Fork, Lake McDonald and St. Mary areas.

Off-trail hiking is prohibited in certain areas between December 1st and May 15th each year. Signs are posted at public access points in these locations.

The following closures are listed in the Glacier National Park 2012 Compendium:

1) To protect seasonal habitat and congregation of grizzly bears, the following two off trail areas of the park may be temporarily closed to public travel based upon staff observations of grizzly bear concentrations as defined by the Bear Management Plan:

* Mt. Altyn/Mt. Henkel Bear Management Area which is defined as all areas above the Iceberg/Ptarmigan trail east of Ptarmigan Falls, above the Many Glacier Hotel access trail between the Iceberg/Ptarmigan trail and the Hotel T, and above the Many Glacier Road east of the Hotel T and Appekuny Creek to the Mt. Altyn/Mt. Henkel ridgeline.

* The Apgar Mountains; with the exception of the Apgar Lookout Trail and Flathead Ranger Station Road.

2) To protect rare mountain capshell limpet, all water entry into Lost Lake is prohibited. This includes, but not limited to, swimming, bathing, wading, fishing (except from shore), and boat launching.

3) To protect seasonal habitat for congregating bighorn sheep and mountain goats (important for post-winter survival and pre-birthing security), as well as the likelihood of grizzly bear presence, the following off-trail area of the park may be temporarily closed to public travel based upon staff observations:

* Mt. Altyn/Mt. Henkel Bear Management Area (see above for boundaries).

4) To protect ungulates (deer, elk, moose, sheep) from disturbance on winter ranges within Glacier National Park, the following areas are closed to off-trail travel from December 1 to May 15, and will be defined using recognizable landmarks and/ or GPS UTM waypoints using NAD83 Datum. Signs will be posted at public access points describing the affected area and dates of closure (see link below for boundary details):

* The North Fork area.

* Lake McDonald area (the South Boundary Trail will remain open during this closure, but no off-trail travel is permitted).

* The Apgar Mountains

* The St. Mary area

* The Two Dog Flats area

* The Rising Sun area; The Going-To-The-Sun Road, Rising Sun access roads (Picnic area, boat ramp, campground, and concession), and Otokomi Trail are not affected by this closure.

For more details and other closures impacting lake access due to nesting bald eagles, click onto the Glacier National Park 2012 Compendium (PDF).


Jeff
Hiking in Glacier.com

Montana's Mystical Moose

Montana's moose will take the stage at the next "Living with Wildlife" presentation on January 26th, 6:30-7:30 p.m., at the Montana Wild Outdoor Education Center west of Helena, 2668 Broadwater Ave., near Spring Meadow Lake State Park.

Lynne Dixon, an interpretive ranger at Glacier National Park, will help participants of all ages to learn more about this visually interesting, wetland loving species, its presence in Montana and its ability to survive in challenging conditions.

Dixon spent the past 15 years as an Interpretive Ranger in Glacier National Park. She has also worked with youth as a wilderness educator, presenting numerous programs on winter ecology, adaptation, weather, tracks, scat, botany, and wildlife biology.

For more information and to reserve a spot for the program, call 406-444-9944.


Jeff
Hiking in Glacier.com