Avalanche occurrence records along the Going-to-the-Sun Road, Glacier National Park, Montana (ver. 5.0, March 2026)

Starting in 2003, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center in West Glacier, MT, in collaboration with the National Park Service, collected avalanche observations along the Going to the Sun Road during the spring road-clearing operations. The spring road-clearing along Going to the Sun Road utilized a team of avalanche specialists from the USGS and Glacier National Park to communicate the potential avalanche hazard to crews working to clear the road of snow in preparation for summer visitation. The operations typically begin around April 1st and continue through mid-June each year. The dataset includes all of the specific details collected for each avalanche occurrence and conforms to SWAG (American Avalanche Association, 2016. Snow, Weather and Avalanches: Observation Guidelines for Avalanche Programs in the United States (3rd ed). Victor, ID). The records should be viewed as estimates of avalanche characteristics due to the fact that many of the avalanches are too distant or are too dangerous to accurately assess.