Category Archives: News

Companies seek permit for heli-skiing in North Fork

News, ,

The Wednesday, October 1, 2008 online edition of the Hungry Horse News has a well-written article on the proposal for heli-skiing in the Coal Ridge and Stillwater State Forests . . .

Two local companies have brought proposals to the state for heli-skiing on state lands in the Whitefish Range.

Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation sent out a scoping notice on Sept. 11 to property owners near the proposed areas of operation and to some government agencies. The deadline for comment has been extended to Oct. 10.

Read the entire article . . .

Firms seek OK to offer helicopter ski services

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From the Wednesday, September 24, 2008 online edition of the Daily Inter Lake . . .

The Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation is considering a proposal that could bring helicopter skiing to state lands in the Whitefish Mountain Range.

The agency is taking public comment on the proposal for commercially guided helicopter skiing on portions of the Stillwater and Coal Creek state forests. The proposal comes from Valhalla Adventures and Triple-X Helicopter Inc., a new company in the Flathead.

Read the entire article . . .

DNA study doubles bear census

Environmental Issues, News, , , , ,

Here’s a better article on the recently completed grizzly bear DNA study. Yesterday’s AP write-up was a little thin.

From the Wednesday, September 17, 2008 online edition of the Daily Inter Lake . . .

The estimate is in: There were 765 grizzly bears roaming the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem during the summer of 2004.

That’s the official result of an ambitious and unprecedented genetic study of the largest grizzly bear population in the lower 48 states. The study will be published in the January edition of the Journal of Wildlife Management.

Read the entire article . . .

Federal Study Says Grizzlies Thriving in Montana

Environmental Issues, News, , , , ,

From the Tuesday, September 16, 2008 online edition of the Flathead Beacon . . .

The majestic grizzly bear, once king of the Western wilderness but threatened with extinction for a third of a century, has roared back in Montana…

Researchers with the U.S. Geological Survey announced Tuesday that there are approximately 765 bears in northwestern Montana. That’s the largest population of grizzly bears documented there in more than 30 years, and a sign that the species could be at long last rebounding.

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A Piece of Polebridge in Downtown Kalispell

News

From the Thursday, September 11, 2008 online edition of the Flathead Beacon . . .

Downtown Kalispell has a lot of things Polebridge doesn’t. If you’re the type of person who goes for such amenities, Kalispell offers paved roads, shopping, restaurants, schools and other trappings of modern life. But for a long time, Polebridge had one big advantage: the legendary baked goods at the Polebridge Mercantile. Now, with Ben Kaufman, the son of the baker at the Polebridge Mercantile, about to open his own place on First Avenue East, Kalispell may be evening the score on the bakery front as well.

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Flathead Basin Commission hears of new coal mine

Environmental Issues, News

From the Friday, August 29, 2008 online edition of the Hungry Horse News . . .

Potential mining projects in the Canadian Flathead seem slowed for now, but a new project just outside the Flathead is in its early stages.

A British Columbia representative last week told the Flathead Basin Commission that little has developed with proposed mining projects. At the same meeting in West Glacier, representatives from a third company explained plans for a mine near the Canadian Flathead.

Read the entire article . . .

Suspect arrested in Moose City break-ins

News

From the Tuesday, August 25, 2008 online edition of the Daily Inter Lake . . .

A man wanted in connection to a string of burglaries to cabins in Moose City was arrested Friday after apparently spending almost a week in the wilderness along the U.S.-Canadian border.

John Paul Lynn, 44, is accused of breaking into several cabins and shooting at the long-closed Trail Creek border station, north of Polebridge.

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County Weakens Neighborhood Plans

News

From the Tuesday, August 26, 2008 online edition of the Flathead Beacon . . .

Flathead County commissioners voted last week on two contentious policy issues stemming from a Montana Supreme Court ruling last January over a West Valley community group and a West Valley gravel pit.

The commission voted 2-1 to approve a zoning text amendment that states all neighborhood plans are non-regulatory.

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Glacier Park: The next century – Threats from all sides

Environmental Issues, News

Another in a series of articles about Glacier National Park by Michael Jamison, this one discusses threats to the park, including things like climate change, nearby resource extraction and even road paving. From the Wednesday, August 20, 2008 online edition of the Missoulian . . .

One hundred years ago, when Glacier National Park first became a park, grizzly bears roamed along the spine of the Rocky Mountains, north into Canada, south into Sun River country, west to the Cabinets and east onto lowland plains.

Wolves wandered, too, and wolverines and big bull elk.

They had no idea someone had drawn a new political boundary onto their landscape.

They still don’t.

Read the entire article . . .

Road dust solutions elusive

News

From the Tuesday, August 19, 2008 online edition of the Daily Inter Lake . . .

Flathead County commissioners will adopt next fiscal year’s budget in early September, and it’s a safe bet that there won’t be money earmarked for paving gravel roads.

“The commission hasn’t changed any direction,” Public Works Director David Prunty said. “No new paving.”

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