Cyclists trapped by Avalanche on Sun Road near Triple Arches

Three bicyclists from Bigfork were trapped by an avalanche on the Going-to-the-Sun Road Thursday night, Glacier National Park officials reported.

They were not injured.

The group, traveling up the road near Triple Arches,  encountered an avalanche across the road, turned around and started back down. Soon after, they encountered a second avalanche in progress.  The wife, who was ahead of her husband and friend and heard the avalanche. She warned her husband and friend to stop. The avalanche came down between them, trapping the woman’s husband and friend on the uphill side. 

 The wife biked down to call for help. A ranger arrived at the site of the avalanche around 7:30 p.m.  

Park officials determined that they would wait until the sun was off the slope above, decreasing the chances for further slides, before starting rescue attempts. 

Rescue began around 9:30 p.m. Rangers belayed across the avalanche chute and belayed the bikers individually back across the chute.

"The sudden onset of sunny and warm weather on Thursday afternoon, combined with recent new snow from the previous weekend, created unstable surface snow conditions," said U.S.Geological Survey scientist Erich Peitzsch. "These conditions resulted in a wet, loose avalanche originating above the road in Triple Arches that deposited debris on the road."

This is not the first time cyclists have been trapped by avalanches on the road. In 2019, thirteen cyclists were also trapped when an avalanche swept over the road at Triple Arches. No one was hurt, but in that case, road crews took several hours to clear the road of snow and debris, so the bikers could get back down.  

Going-to-the-Sun Road is currently closed to vehicles at Avalanche Creek until the road opens to Logan Pass for the season. Due to continued avalanche conditions, hiker/biker access is currently not permitted past the Loop.

Check the park website for updates. 

Park officials remind visitors that snow can avalanche above Going-to-the-Sun Road in active avalanche terrain that often cannot be seen from the road. Avalanches are more likely to occur before or after sunny/warm weather, rainstorms, or snowstorms. Visitors are encouraged to start and finish their trip before the warmest part of the day. Do not stop under gullies or snowfields and turn around if there is a rapid increase in temperature.