Chalet damage not severe

Sperry Chalet in Glacier National Park did not suffer any major structural damage when an avalanche struck the hotel earlier this winter, but several rooms will need repairs and cleaning, Park spokeswoman Ellen Blickhan said last week.

The avalanche shot through the shutters but did not break the windows, and debris piled up in three upstairs rooms and one downstairs room, Blickhan said. In addition, an interior wall was damaged, but it was not a load-bearing wall, she said.

"The debris sets up and is very challenging to deal with," Blickhan said.

Park crews made it up to the chalet two weeks ago to assess the damage. Tens of feet of snow remained at the site, as the Park has seen record snowpack this winter and little had yet melted.

Fortunately the avalanche did not enter a room where mattresses and other supplies are kept, Blickhan said. At this point, the Park didn't know if it would impact the opening of the chalet, she said.

The Park Service contracts out operation of the facility to Belton Chalets Inc. The chalet isn't set to open until July 8, so more than a month remains to make repairs.

The slide, which came off Gunsight Mountain, is thought to have occurred during a rain event in January, Blickhan said. The bulk of the avalanche missed the chalet. It was not a head-on impact.

The chalet was built in 1913 and is accessible only by trail from near the Lake McDonald Lodge. It's about 6.4 miles from the trailhead, about 3,300 feet above the Sun Road.