National Park Service Seeks Proposals For Two Unique Historic Lodges

The National Park Service is accepting proposals for operators for two historic chalets in Glacier National Park in Montana. 

The chalets are in the park’s backcountry and accessible via established trails by hiking or on horseback. The stone lodges are at elevations above 6,000 feet, resulting in short seasons of approximately two months. The trails often don’t open until early July. 

Each lodge is quite popular and enjoys a high occupancy rate. The contract is for 10 years, beginning January 1, 2026. Glacier is home to several well-known lodges, including Many Glacier Hotel and Lake McDonald Lodge that are operated under a separate contract.

Between 1910, the year Glacier became a national park, and 1913, James J. Hill’s Great Northern Railway constructed nine backcountry chalets in the Glacier area in an effort to stimulate rail passenger traffic to the Mountain West. The chalets were located approximately a day’s horse ride apart. The first of these was Belton Chalet that continues to welcome travelers near the train station just outside the western border of the park.

Among the other chalets, Sperry and Granite Park, the two historic units included in the current prospectus, are the only chalets that continue to offer public lodging within the park.

Granite Park Chalet, the smaller of the two units, has 12 rustic bunk rooms that accommodate two to six individuals, for a total capacity of 40 people.  Overnight guests are generally expected to haul in their own food and beverages since neither is available at the chalet other than backpacker meals and pre-packaged snacks. A common kitchen is available. A potable water source is a quarter-mile hike from the chalet. Guest rooms do not have heat, water or electricity. An external restroom with pit toilets is nearby.

Sperry Chalet has 17 private rooms that can accommodate two to five persons with a total capacity of 53 overnight guests. As is the case with Granite Park, Sperry guest rooms have no electricity, water, or heat and bathroom facilities are in a separate building.  Unlike Granite Park, overnight guests at Sperry are treated to breakfast, a sack lunch, and dinner. 

The current Sperry Chalet is actually a rebuilt version of the original. The original structure, viewed along with the Granite Park Chalet as the last vestiges of the "chalet era" at Glacier, was lost to the flames of the Sprague Fire in 2017. 

The chalet, located just southeast of Lake McDonald and to the west of Gunsight Mountain, closed for the rest of the 2017 season on August 15 because of the wildfire, which was sparked by lightning on August 10. While firefighters worked to protect the historic lodge, the conflagration was too huge.

A rebuilding plan was quickly developed with help from the Glacier Park Conservancy, with work commencing during the summer of 2018. It partially reopened the following year.

Mentioned previously was the issue that no roads lead to either chalet. Both are accessible only by hiking and on horseback. Each chalet sits at an elevation of approximately 6,600 feet.  A 6.7-mile trail with an elevation gain of 3,300 feet leads to Sperry. Three trails from 4.2 miles to 7.9 miles with elevation gains from 2,200 to 2,600 feet offer access to Granite Park. The concessionaire must transport all equipment, goods and furnishings by foot or animal.  This is no small matter.

Room rates approved for 2026, the initial year of the contract, range from $265 (2-person room) to $685 (6-person room) in Granite Park and $533 (2-person room) to $1,160 (5-person room) in Sperry. Overall revenue during the year is projected at approximately $1.15 million. A small portion of revenues originate from limited retail available in each of the chalets.  The concessionaire will be authorized to offer interpretive programs and transportation services to gain additional revenue.

Individuals interested in submitting a proposal are required to email Erica Harris, Acting Commercial Services Program Lead at [email protected] by 4 p.m. Mountain Time on August 5, 2025.  The formal proposal is due by 4 p.m. Mountain Time on August 12.  All proposals must be electronic.  Proposal instructions are available at https://www.nps.gov/subjects/concessions/upload/CC-GLAC004-26-Proposal-Instructions-Updated.pdf.

David and Kay Scott live in Valdosta, Georgia, and are authors of “Complete Guide to the National Park Lodges” (Globe Pequot).  Visit them at blog.valdosta.edu/dlscott