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  • Dancing is good medicine, Supaman performs in the Seeley-Swan Valley

    Keely Larson, Editor|Mar 21, 2024

    Dressed in traditional regalia with a sound mixer, projector and speakers set up in the Seeley Lake Elementary School gymnasium, Christian Parrish Takes The Gun said good morning to his audience. "Are you happy?" Parrish Takes The Gun, a member of the Apsáalooke tribe, asked. "Yeah!" the Seeley Elementary students replied. "Turn to your neighbor, shake their hand, and say I'm glad you're happy," Parrish Takes The Gun said. A moderately muffled but in-tandem response floated through the...

  • Intern to assist Protect the Clearwater this summer

    Jean Pocha, Reporter|Mar 14, 2024

    Riley Comstock, a double major Environmental Science and Sustainability and Journalism sophomore at University of Montana, accepted an internship with Protect the Clearwater (PTC). Protect the Clearwater a nonprofit founded in 2023 challenges Montana DEQ's actions as violations of the Montana Environmental Policy Act (MEPA), the Montana Public Participation Act and the Montana Constitution. The internship is funded through the Baucus Institute Climate Scholars program. The internship will be...

  • First ski day hosted by Blackfoot Challenge

    Jean Pocha, Reporter|Mar 14, 2024

    The Blackfoot Challenge hosted the first ever Winter Ski Day on the Blackfoot Community Conservation Area (BCCA) Feb. 24. "I spend a lot of time skiing on the BCCA in the winter and wish that other people were enjoying it too," Elaine Caton, Blackfoot Challenge Education Coordinator. Thirty adult and children winter aficionados attended the ski day on the Blackfoot Challenge property north of Ovando. Maps were distributed and small groups found their way by cross country skis or snowshoes on a...

  • Hearing the 'Hush of the Land,' Smoke Elser and Eva-Maria Maggi discuss their new book, Hush of the Land, chronicling decades of mule packing trips in the Bob Marshall Wilderness

    Keely Larson, Editor|Mar 14, 2024

    A version of this article was first published in Mountain Journal, a digital magazine covering wildlife and wild lands in Greater Yellowstone. Arnold "Smoke" Elser is a storyteller, but he's not a big reader. In his office, tucked into a faded red barn built around 1900 in Missoula, Montana, an entire wall of shelves contains binders and books on wilderness policy and regulations. They're more work than pleasure for Elser; he waves them off with an air of modesty. It's the mules strolling by...

  • Archives

    Pathfinder Staff|Mar 14, 2024

    Thirty-five years ago... Thursday March 16, 1989 Accident free for two years Workers on the Pyramid Lumber swing shift who have worked two years without a lost time accident. From left, back row: Edd Nentwig, safety director, Alan Fuqua, Manuel Kesterson, Tammy Keenan, Jason Cole, Bryon Wieder, Joe Plumb, Joe Novak, Tom Montgomery, Austin Dillree, Tom Houtchens, Dave Sterling, Errol Evenson, Ron Brown, Greg Evans, Ted Wheeler, Lou Siloti, shift supervisor. Front row: Curtis Gehrke, Carl Gehrke,...

  • Keeping it in the family, Deer Creek Excavating welcomes new owner

    Keely Larson, Editor|Mar 7, 2024

    Marcos Arroyo said there has been a running joke in the Lewis family that he was born to inherit Deer Creek Excavating. "Arroyo" is Spanish for creek, anyway. As of Feb. 20, Arroyo took the helm of Deer Creek Excavating from his father-in-law, Gary Lewis, who took ownership of the company in 1990. Before that, Lewis's brother had the company - then called Wilderness Excavation - for several years. Lewis's father had it as Lewis Excavating prior to that, which was one of two excavating companies...

  • Sharing a wastewater system, pros and cons of a membrane bioreactor in Seeley Lake

    Keely Larson, Editor|Mar 7, 2024

    RV park owners want to share a wastewater system with Seeley Lake and many experts see it as a good option for the town's wastewater challenges. During last month's Seeley Lake Sewer District Board meeting, members heard about a type of wastewater treatment system possible for a new RV park south of Seeley Lake, which was presented as an option for wastewater treatment in Seeley more generally. This system - called a membrane bioreactor, or MBR - has garnered attention in the past couple of...

  • Protect the Clearwater finds common ground statewide

    Jean Pocha, Reporter|Mar 7, 2024

    Protect the Clearwater, a nonprofit based in Greenough, joined other citizen groups in the Jocko Valley, Libby, Paradise Valley, Ennis and Gallatin Gateway to oppose the effects of new open cut mining laws established in 2021. The changes brought about by a 2021 mining law, House Bill 599, removed red tape and streamlined the gravel mine permitting process for applicants. Gayla Nicholson, spokesperson for Protect the Clearwater (PTC), gave an update on the nonprofit's work to stop gravel mining...

  • Locals help in Marshall Lake rescue

    Keely Larson, Editor|Mar 7, 2024

    Seeley-Swan Search and Rescue were called to assist an injured snowmobile rider on the evening of Feb. 28. The injured 40-year-old man, along with two other people, were located above Marshall Lake. The injured person was in a “tricky spot,” Karl Zurmuehlen — one of the volunteer responders and owner of Kra-Z’s Snow & Water Powersports Rentals in Seeley Lake — said, but the rescue team, which included volunteers Kurt Friede and David Pitman and Search and Rescue member Kelly Darrow, had 40-plus years of experience riding in the area, so they w...

  • Archives

    Pathfinder Staff|Mar 7, 2024

    Thirty-five years ago ... Thursday March 9, 1989 Writers planning return trip Three national magazine writers were so enamored with the Seeley Swan that they are planning a reunion to return sometime this summer. Cindy Sanguins, who played host to the writers along with her husband, Ron, for the Seeley Lake Driftriders said the writers "loved the winter and now want to come back and see the area in the July summertime." The writers will be publishing stories this fall about Seeley Swan's snowmob...

  • Potomac athlete heads to New York City, from gravel track to Nike stadium

    Keely Larson, Editor|Feb 29, 2024

    On an overcast day in early February, Potomac School's outdoor track was covered in snow. Cows and horses stood on a property nearby and the sounds of cars whooshing along Highway 200 could be heard a few miles away. Corbin Weltzien crunched footsteps into the snow as he walked out onto the track. He started training on this track in the fifth grade and grinned as he talked about some of its more run down elements. Now a Junior at Hellgate High School in Missoula, Weltzien and five other athlete...

  • Antler hunt to continue with changes

    Jean Pocha, Reporter|Feb 29, 2024

    Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks is developing a new online registration system for participants to determine their place in line for vehicles on opening day of antler hunting season on the Blackfoot Clearwater Wildlife Management Area. Online registration will open a few weeks before May 15, the opening day. FWP is still deciding if a first come, first serve system or a random drawing will be the best way to distribute numbers for waiting in line on opening day. There will be phone-in options for those not using a computer. “This is year one f...

  • Seeley Lake Fire Department welcomes a new volunteer, board discusses response times

    Keely Larson, Editor|Feb 29, 2024

    The Seeley Lake Fire Department is adding two new volunteers to its ranks and the addition of another paramedic makes it so the department is fully staffed with paramedics during the day at least five days each week. At February's Seeley Lake Fire Board meeting, Fire Chief Dave Lane said over the past couple of months there have not been any responses to filling open volunteer positions. But now the department has received two - one for a firefighting position and one for a chaplain. Michael...

  • Archives

    Pathfinder Staff|Feb 29, 2024

    Thirty-five years ago ... Thursday March 2, 1989 Good Times operating in temporary space following explosion The Good Times is open and temporarily operating out of space adjacent to its main retail space following a propane explosion last Wednesday. A wood stove inside the Good Times is believed to have ignited leaking gas while a propane delivery truck driver was filling a propane truck on the outside of the building where The Filling Station and other retail outlets are located. The Seeley La...

  • County school budget cuts fall easier on Seeley-Swan High

    Keely Larson, Editor|Feb 22, 2024

    Seeley-Swan High School faces significantly less budget cuts than the three Missoula high schools after the Missoula County Public Schools Board of Trustees supported the school district administration’s budget plan. Business Director at Missoula County Public Schools Pat McHugh said the budget cuts are the result of an unfortunate combination of three different things: an anticipated reduction in ESSER funds — or emergency funding given to schools during the Covid-19 pandemic to help maintain staff — inflation; and growing special educa...

  • Lions Club training swimming instructors

    Jean Pocha, Reporter|Feb 22, 2024

    Swimming lessons are coming soon to Seeley Lake after strong community interest and instructor training. "We were finally able to hire a Red Cross instructor to come to Seeley Lake to train our instructors," Westin said. "It cost a little more but it's worth it to make the training process easier on our instructors, rather than them having to drive back and forth to Missoula or Kalispell at inconvenient times." Parents representing 96 kids responded in favor of swimming lessons in Seeley Lake...

  • Seeley Sewer District hears wastewater treatment option, septic system standards discussed at Missoula County Board of Health meeting

    Keely Larson, Editor|Feb 22, 2024

    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...

  • A broken bridge changes Snow Joke course

    Keely Larson, Editor|Feb 22, 2024

    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...

  • Swan Valley Connections welcomes new leadership

    Keely Larson, Editor|Feb 15, 2024

    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...

  • Cooking up educational goals at Ovando School

    Jean Pocha, Reporter|Feb 15, 2024

    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...

  • Funding approved for Clearwater Park upgrades

    Keely Larson, Editor|Feb 15, 2024

    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...

  • Rosendale enters the Senate race

    Keely Larson, Editor|Feb 15, 2024

    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...

  • Pathfinder Archives

    Pathfinder Staff|Feb 15, 2024

    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...

  • Housing and community development survey, Provide your feedback between Feb. 1-15

    Sarah Bell Missoula County Grants Administrator|Feb 15, 2024

    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...

  • Handmade trails, Lack of snow doesn't stop Seeley's Biathlon

    Keely Larson, Editor|Feb 8, 2024

    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...

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