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At Logan Pass, a dustup over a parking spot

| August 10, 2022 7:05 AM

By CHRIS PETERSON

Hungry Horse News

A dispute over a parking spot at Logan Pass in Glacier National Park resulted in a few tense moments late last month.

On July 29 two motorists got into a bit of a row when one person was standing in a parking spot with a gun on their hip “saving” the spot for another motorist.

Another motorist then tried to pull into the spot.

The person with the gun put their hands up as if to stop the motorist, but never brandished the weapon or threatened anyone, park spokeswoman Gina Kerzman said. The gun was being legally carried, she noted.

She said initial reports that the person with the gun was brandishing it were incorrect.

The person trying to hold the spot was, however, cited for obstructing traffic.

It’s illegal to stand in a spot and “hold” it for someone else.

The dustup was just part of a bigger problem in Glacier.

“It’s a symptom of more people than there is space,” Kerzman noted.

It’s also why Glacier has implemented a reservation system for the Going-to-the-Sun Road, she said.

While the system doesn’t guarantee a parking spot at Logan Pass, it has had a definite impact on crowding in Glacier, especially when it’s in place from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day.

The last day of the reservation system is Sunday, Sept. 11.

By then, however, it wouldn’t be unusual to see the first winter snows at Logan Pass.