For what seems like the first time in months, local bars are finally seeing business pick up.

On Friday, Jan. 15, Gov. Greg Gianforte gave the OK for Montana bars to stay open until their usual closing time of 2 a.m. Before that, bars were required to close at 10 p.m. in a statewide mandate aimed at reducing the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

For many members of the local nightlife scene, the effect has been immediate.

“It’s been awesome,” said Charlene Sapa at the Blue Moon Nite Club in Columbia Falls. “We’re back to normal, finally.”

Across the valley, bar owners, bartenders and patrons generally seemed to share Sapa’s enthusiasm. The quick influx of cash from extending their hours appeared to outweigh concerns about the spread of the coronavirus.

“People were enthusiastic,” said Sapa. “The phone rang off the hook for two days.”

She explained the Blue Moon’s status as a nightclub has put the bar in a particularly precarious position for the past few weeks due to the 10 p.m. mandatory closure.

“Especially for our business, we’re a night club. We do OK during the day, but we start our entertainment at 9:30 at night,” Sapa said. Closing down at 10 p.m. threw a major wrench in that schedule.

“It was tough,” she added.

She said staff members at The Blue Moon share her enthusiasm because they’ve been able to get back to their normal full schedules. So far, Sapa said, they’ve had enough workers to make the transition to staying open later.

And patrons, too, are generally excited about the change, even though the ever-evolving regulations have caused considerable uncertainty.

“Every county’s different,” Sapa pointed out. “That’s hard. People are really confused of what’s going on.”

But as far as she’s concerned, things are heading in the right direction.

“It can only get better,” she predicted.

That also seemed to be the outlook a few miles east of Columbia Falls at the Southfork Saloon in Martin City, where the rural tavern is still trying to make up for the cancellation of Cabin Fever Days.

“We can’t do Cabin Fever Days, but we’re getting closer to back to normal,” said Derrick Winders.

Winders said the change hasn’t been felt as strongly in Martin City as it has in the valley’s more urban areas, but he definitely noticed an uptick in business at the Southfork Saloon on the first weekend the bar was able to stay open past 10 p.m.

He said he and other bartenders at the saloon are “happy for the extended hours,” but they had expected the situation to change a little more gradually. Even though it’s been a boon for business, Winders explained, it’s also been a quick adjustment for the staff, who hasn’t been on its usual schedule since March of last year.

Kenzie Kinney, a bartender at The Silver Bullet Bar and Casino on Montana 206, agreed that employees have had to make a quick change over the past few days.

“It takes some getting used to,” Kinney said. But she insisted, “the workers were so excited.”

“It’s an extra four hours of income, which is huge, especially when you’re making the most money of your night between the hours of midnight and one,” she said.

Kinney said the money coming in the door of the Silver Bullet doubled on the first few nights they could stay open late.

“Our quality of living is going to go up,” she predicted. “Now we can actually not just be scraping by, but thrive.”

And Kinney stressed the financial impact isn’t the only improvement she’s seen on her shift lately. “The emotional aspect is huge as well,” she pointed out. She said it was a relief for workers and patrons alike to finally be through with the nightly debate over closing down early.

“It’s really nice not to have to listen to that anymore,” Kinney said. “Everyone’s just generally in a lot better mood…We’re thrilled.”

Reporter Bret Anne Serbin may be reached at (406)-758-4459 or bserbin@dailyinterlake.com.