Glacier National Park – Rising Sun Closed 2015

BAAAAAACK and forth we went…

After we all moved back to Rising Sun last week, we had word on 08/18/15 that the decision was made by the NPS to go ahead and close the Rising Sun Motor Inn down completely for the season due to the smoke, including the previously re-opened camp store. Information has been a little sparse and is difficult to find consistently online. If you had a lodging reservation with Rising Sun for 2015, please check:
http://www.glaciernationalparklodges.com/wild-fire-information
We staff members were pretty bummed.

How did Rising Sun look upon return?

Well, not as bad as I’d feared. You could see a burn scar behind the Camp Store, running jagged across the hill, but a ring of green was still intact around the buildings, although the fire did get extremely close. Unfortunately due to inversions, thick smoke would blanket the valley in the wee hours of the morning.

The ridge directly above the lodge just after the evacuation and just before the rest of us got out.

The Reynolds Creek Fire approaching Rising Sun on July 21, 2015.

Traversing the Going To The Sun Road just before returning to the lodge provided sights of the burnt, scarred trees. Some low-laying areas still had smoke rising. Continuing on towards St. Mary I was happy to spot Little John (little twerp) one of our resident small bears waddling around on the shoulder between Rising Sun and Two Dog Flats. He recently made the paper for chewing on a fire hose! He’s in the fifth paragraph from the bottom in the link below:

http://www.dailyinterlake.com/news/local_montana/reynolds-fire-alters-views-along-sun-road/article_1c90a16e-3716-11e5-88ad-e3c71bd9979d.html

The option was given that we could either switch to another lodge or end the season early. Several of us, who were specifically fond of little Rising Sun, chose to pack it in and start lining up our next endeavors. Pulling the A/C and hooking up Mr. Scamp, the decision was enacted upon by Wednesday night. Pulling a trucker stunt, I was in the Black Hills less than 24 hours later, my neighbors chose to head for UT.

Since arriving here, my daughter and I attended the fair to address a corn dog and mini-donut craving. And we have been out hiking twice, to both the Stratobowl and the Devil’s Bathtub. The latter was more like hacking through the Amazon underbrush as opposed to a ‘hike’ as I traditionally think of hikes. It gets my vote for most likely where the “Devil” part of the name came from. We had to pick our way across a creek 84 times! I thought on one of those occasions it would be efficient to remove my moccasins and wade across. It went well.

Until the current knocked my foot free on the mossy bottom and I fell in. I had visions of being flushed down the creek, but was able to regain my footing after flailing wildly and get up and out. I thought I shrieked and then thudded in, but my daughter says she just heard a thud and thought ‘oh no’! My shriek must have been mental. The icy water was very brisk. I learned that soggy socks are uncomfortable.

I was bitten by a tree once. I didn’t know they could bite! They look all innocent and branchy, but…watch out.

Annnnd now, just for the heck of it…