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The Seeley Lake Sewer Board discussed a model of onsite waste management at a proposed RV park in Seeley Lake, which could serve as a model for the broader community. Quarterly monitoring well data was presented and the Sewer Board approved efforts by Missoula County to monitor nitrate levels monthly. Continued frustrations regarding the transparency of public process surfaced at a Missoula County Board of Health meeting regarding Seeley Lake’s septic system future on Feb. 15, the same day as the Sewer Board’s meeting. At the county mee...
On the first day of February, the 2022 UltraRunner of the year was walking along Highway 83 in Seeley Lake. Adam Peterman, who won the 100-miler Western States Endurance Run in California and the World Trail Championship in Thailand in 2022 and who is a member of Run Wild Missoula, had just finished test running the new course for the Snow Joke Half Marathon - a 13.1 mile race held on Feb. 24 in Seeley Lake. Trisha Drobeck, executive director of Run Wild Missoula - a nonprofit devoted to...
After seven years as its leader, Rebecca Ramsey is stepping down as the executive director of Swan Valley Connections, a nonprofit in the Swan Valley dedicated to conservation and education. The executive director position will be broken into thirds, welcoming Luke Lamar, Sara Lamar and Ty Tyler into leadership roles focused on different elements of the executive director position, like conservation, operations, education, board management and fundraising. The Pathfinder reached out to the...
Ovando School recently was awarded $1,500 via the Bright Future Grant from Missoula Electric Cooperative. The grant is being used for Consumer Science and Home Economic classes for grades four through eight. Funds will mainly be used for supplies. "We're excited to have this grant from Missoula Electric for Consumer Science classes," Patti Bartlett, fourth through eighth grade teacher, said. "Sometimes being away from the books is a great way to learn." This fall students practiced sewing...
Missoula County Commissioners approved funding on Feb. 8 for improvements to the Seeley Lake Lions Park, or the Clearwater Park. Missoula County will provide $4,103 — the amount requested by the Lions Club encompassing the cost of materials — which will be matched by the Lions Club using money, volunteer efforts and donations. The match does not have to be a complete cash match. The total project cost is $8,223. “The Seeley Lake community has consistently supported the Lions Club’s efforts to maintain the park by generously contributing to vari...
Matt Rosendale officially announced his candidacy for U. S. Senate on Feb. 9. The current Republican representative for Montana’s second congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives will be up against Republican Tim Sheehy — former Navy SEAL and founder of Bridger Aerospace, a firefighting company based in Belgrade — in the primaries. The winner of that race will be on the general election ballot against longtime Montana Democratic Senator Jon Tester. Montana’s Senate President Jason Ellsworth, R-Hamilton, and Speaker of the Hou...
From 1989 February 16 OSCR Nordic races set for March 18 The OSCR race has been rescheduled for March 18, 1989. Approximately 70 skiers were expected to participate in the 45 kilometer Nordic ski race on Feb. 4, but dangerously low temperatures forced OSCR officials to postpone the race. The mercury dipped to -35 degrees F the night before the race, and rose only slightly by the 9:00 a.m. starting time. The OSCR committee decided that the race would be postponed if the temperature was lower...
Missoula County is seeking input to help identify needs and gaps in services related to public infrastructure and facilities, economic development, community services and housing. The public is invited to fill out a brief and anonymous survey online at missoulacountyvoice.com. The survey opens Thursday, Feb. 1, and closes at 3 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 15. This annual survey helps gauge the community's interests and funding priorities and identifies needs throughout Missoula County. The data gathered will help inform and guide the process of...
Under a sky threatening rain, Chris Lorentz was explaining to some Seeley Lake Elementary students what they were about to do. Tuesday before the Seeley Lake Biathlon on Feb. 3, Lorentz set up targets on the Seeley Creek Nordic Ski Trails and Friday the students were given a preview. "These are our local kids," Lorentz, race director of the Seeley Lake Biathlon, said. "I don't mind giving them a little bit of an edge." On Tuesday, the snow was thin, but Lorentz was confident in pulling off the...
On Jan. 31, about 30 people including Seeley Lake residents, nonprofit representatives and Missoula County government officials gathered in the cafeteria at Seeley Lake Elementary School to discuss the town's struggles and suggestions regarding tourism in the area. Glacier Country Tourism — recognized by the state of Montana as the official marketing and management organization for western Montana — started developing its destination stewardship plan in response to the covid-19 pandemic in 2021. Racene Friede, president and CEO of Glacier Count...
Roadside safety issues are at the core of upcoming changes to opening day for antler hunting. Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks (FWP) will be hosting meetings to discuss possible solutions to the annual opening day congestion at the Blackfoot-Clearwater Wildlife Management Area game range. New this year, antler hunters planning to enter the WMA in a vehicle will not be allowed to stage along Highway 83 and will instead register for a spot in line ahead of opening day. According to Montana law, a...
This year’s Snowball Dinner, a fundraiser for Scenic Montana Trails, was all about local businesses, sponsors, prizes and keeping dollars in the community. “Bottom line is our Snowball was a great success from pretty much every angle,” Tom Stanley, secretary of Scenic Montana Trails, said. Scenic Montana Trails buys fuel locally, as many parts as it can to fix any machinery locally and it pays groomers who live locally. “By and large, most of this money stays local in our effort to improve the recreational trails in the greater Seeley Lake area...
Thirty-five years ago ... Thursday Feb. 9, 1989 Centennial 500 Mushers headed this way Bruce Graham, Seeley Lake, will be one of several mushers competing in the Governor's Cup 500 sled dog race starting Saturday in Helena to Holland Lake Lodge and back. Renamed the Montana Centennial Sled Dog Race in recognition of the State's Centennial, mushers will be urging their dogs in the longest race in the lower 48 states. An endurance race, mushers will follow trails that exceed 7,000 feet in...
Montana's Race to the Sky, a sled dog race winding from Lincoln to Condon and back in either 100 or 300 mile distances, has been canceled this year due to lack of snow and out of consideration for the safety of mushers and their dogs. The race has only been canceled two other times in its 38-year history - once in 2021 because of the covid-19 pandemic and once in 2005 also because of lack of snow and icy conditions. Pam Beckstrom, Race to the Sky board member and volunteer since 1986, said it's...
The Seeley Lake Senior Center (Sela Senci) took a step into the future this month, launching its first-ever website, which organizers hope will bring more attention and fundraising to the center. Senior Center President Debbie Anderson said the center hopes to make it easier to access meal schedules, events and volunteer opportunities. The website, called seeleyseniorcenter.org, should be live as of Jan. 22. Suzette Baker made the website. “We’re trying to get the senior center into the 21st Century,” Anderson said. “There’s still a lot of se...
The Seeley Lake Rural Fire District Board heard remarks from its fire chief over a recent Pathfinder story, approved its spending, checked in call numbers and talked about potential grants during its Jan. 16 meeting. Dave Lane, the fire chief, said he has written a letter to the owner of the Pathfinder, Jesse Mullen, to ask for corrections and an apology over the Jan. 11 story, which said facts from Lane and the Montana Board of Medical Examiners do not match county records. “This last article was very slanderous with the lies that were publish...
Missoula County is applying for federal grants and seeks public comment in order to replace five weakened and aging bridges in the Blackfoot and Swan Valleys. Construction could begin by 2027 on Boy Scout Bridge, Riverview Drive Bridge, Sunset Hill Bridge, Glacier Creek Bridge and Cold Creek Bridge. Funding for the project is expected to come through two federal grants, Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) and the Bridge Investment Program (BIP), as previously mentioned in the Pathfinder. The total cost...
Alpine Artisans' 2 Valleys Stage is showcasing the Oregon “Glam Rock” duo, Champagne Sunday, on Sunday, Feb. 4 at 3 p.m. at the Swan Valley Community Hall in Condon. Husband and wife members Jessi and Jared Fredeen tear up stages and crowds nationwide with their unique, upbeat, roller-coaster-style shows, firing off gypsy-punk rock songs alongside everything from intimate tear-jerkers to anthemic foot-stompers, peppering their sets with compelling stories behind their music. Champagne Sunday is one of the rare original acts that performs wit...
Rural planning official speaks out Missoula County's future: timber, tourism, or both? Last May 14, the Missoulian featured coverage of the timber industry's Great Northwest Log Haul. Tucked innocently, but perhaps prophetically, into a sub-headline underneath this story was the notation to look on the following page for information for possible recreational opportunities on Lolo Peak. Five months later on Oct. 14, Forest Service Chief F. Dale Robertson admitted that "fish, wildlife and recreati...
The Missoula County Health Department now requires tighter standards for septic systems in the Seeley Lake Special Management Area (SMA) as officials said the best available data from the area shows any new permit would violate federal drinking standards. While the regulations are different, and no public process was held over the matter, the Health Department argued it has not technically changed the rules. The new guidelines require future buildings to keep nitrate discharge at a lower than...
The Ice Skating rink is now open to the public for the winter season. Garry Swan, President of Seeley Lake ROCKS, said the rink has developed great ice with the recent chilly temperatures. Rules for the rink are posted on the shed near the rink, but Swain reminded folks to hang up skates and helmets when not in use, shovel snow off the surface when needed and of course, to have fun. Swain and Seeley Swan High School senior Connor Chadwick do most of the maintenance. He also thanked Andi Bourne...
Two snowmobilers got stuck off trail above Marshall Lake on the evening of Jan. 13, prompting Seeley Swan Search and Rescue and Two Bear Air to extract them amid extremely cold temperatures. Seeley Swan Search and Rescue Chief Ken Brochu said the team got a call at around 5 p.m. that the snowmobilers were stranded. The temperature stood at negative 20 degrees, with wind chill of negative 35. That did not stop responders, as four members of search and rescue, Karl Zurmuehlan and an employee from Kra-Z Sports Rentals ascended the mountains with...
Highway 200 just after the Helmville turnoff stood closed for several hours Jan 21. after a massive pileup of cars halted any access to the road. Luckily, law enforcement reported no injuries with the incident. The Montana Highway Patrol reported early on Sunday that freezing rain created extremely dangerous conditions at mile marker 57 on Highway 200, about 1.5 miles east of the Montana Highway 141 junction. Traffic was diverted eastbound onto Highway 141, while westbound traffic rerouted through Highway 279 through Helena. The closure...
As an intrepid member of the Fourth Estate, I ventured out into the frigid night, determined to shine light on the Swan branch of the Deep State. Parenthetically, the Fourth Estate refers to the press. I’d never actually known what the first three are, so I looked it up (as older people say rather than Googling). The monarchy, barony (people with titles), and the Commons are the first three, with the fourth apparently keeping an eye on the first three. There is now a Fifth Estate, that being social media and other online sewage systems. When a...
The January community Council Meeting provided updates for the Seeley Lake bridge projects. Shane Stack, the Missoula County Public works director, said he feels confidence in various grant applications, letters of support from local people and organizations are still being welcomed to build a better application for grant money to construct the bridges in need. All letters are needed back by Feb. 9, in order to submit an application for a grant from RAIN (Rebuilding America’s Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity) which is due on F...
