East side of Sun Road could open soon

Glacier Park Superintendent Jeff Mow said Wednesday that he expects the east side of the Going-the-Sun Road will open soon to vehicle traffic.

“It should open easily within a week, unless something dramatic changes,” he said.

The road was closed from Logan Pass to St. Mary on July 21 due to the Reynolds Creek Fire. But firefighters now have the fire nearly 70 percent contained and firefighting efforts have centered on the road corridor itself, as crews continue to remove hundreds of hazard trees and hit hot spots along the highway.

The fire burned very hot along some sections of the highway. The fire, by western standards, isn’t very big — about 4,000 acres, but its influence was largely along an eight-mile stretch of the highway, from roughly Deadwood Falls to Two Dog Creek.

As such, the Park was forced to close the road down. It simply wasn’t safe.

Firefighters said last week they’ve been working to create a 100-foot buffer zone along the road that has no fire. But even when the road opens, people will likely see smoke and even an occasional tree torch in the higher terrain above the road.

Firefighters don’t expect the fire to go out until the snow flies or a major rain event happens and the weather forecast is for continued dry weather with only a slight chance of showers.