Historic Marias Pass lodge and restaurant reopens

The new owners of the Summit Mountain Lodge and Steakhouse at Marias Pass faced a seemingly insurmountable task in getting the property ready for its grand opening on June 12.

Ted Chase, an internationally recognized wildlife photographer, and his wife Marabeth decided to purchase and renovate the Historic Summit Station and cabins in March 2013.

But when they purchased the 32-acre resort on U.S. 2 near the southeast corner of Glacier National Park, the property was in foreclosure and had been ransacked.

“They really gutted the place and destroyed it. All the doors had been kicked off the hinges, the copper wire was stolen, the water heaters and the bathroom fixtures were gone. Basically anything they could get their hands on they took,” Ted said.

Ted and Marabeth, however, came for the wildlife and the views and were prepared to take on the job.

“People saw the place and were astonished at how much work it was going to take to get back running,” he said. “We had estimates in the millions of dollars, but we never looked at it as a monetary thing. We looked at it as how much time it was going to take.”

The couple have seen eight moose since the lodge opened.

“During our soft opening, you could see a moose and her twin calves swimming from the deck,” he said.

A journeyman carpenter before joining the medical profession, Ted put his building skills to good use getting the property’s eight cabins ready for customers. Marabeth, who is from Guatemala, focused on the interior and designing the furniture.

With help from an additional carpenter, they were able to restore and open the cabins by the end of the 2013 summer season. The cabins were booked 80 percent of time, and Summit Mountain was named TripAdvisor’s No. 1 specialty lodging in the East Glacier area. Prices range from $148 to $294 per night.

The lodge and restaurant sit in a renovated Great Northern Railway train station built in 1906 and moved to its current location in 1986. It features a full-liquor saloon and an 800-square-foot deck with grand views of Glacier National Park.

The restaurant has an executive chef and a revolving menu, depending on the season and availability of local ingredients. It’s open from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. and closed on Tuesdays.

Ted said he and Marabeth never questioned their decision to purchase the property.

“It was our little piece of heaven, and we wanted to share it,” he said. “We always knew we could fix it up with time.”

For more information, visit online at www.summitmtnlodge.com.