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On June 10, 2021 on a private lake in the Crystal Lakes area near Eureka, Montana, a resident nesting loon pair successfully hatched three chicks. Three chicks! Loons only lay two eggs each clutch. But that wasn't the only surprise for photographer and area property owner Bob LeBlanc. These chicks were bright yellow. They were goslings! On May 6, Bob reported that a loon pair began incubation on their artificial nesting platform. Loon observers know that geese, which return earlier in spring...
One of the wonderful things about living in Seeley Lake and the Double Arrow Ranch is the abundance of wildlife in our area. We get to see many critters on a regular basis that most residents of the U.S. are lucky to see in their lifetime. Some of that is due to our rural setting, but it is also due to the fact that we live in a wonderful section of the beautiful state of Montana. I think sometimes we take all of the wildlife around us for granted and need to take a step back and observe what...
Springtime in Montana has arrived and even though it’s been a cold start, the building snowpack is a positive outcome. Hoping our rivers and streams hold up well this summer! Big Blackfoot Chapter of Trout Unlimited is gearing up for another busy season working on projects that create colder, cleaner and more connected habitat for trout populations throughout the Blackfoot River watershed. Working in collaboration with our many partners, we have several projects planned and ready to go for 2022. Since 2009, our restoration team has teamed up w...
Though we live dramatically different lifestyles, my oldest sister who resides in a subdivision in a north Texas city and I, the Montana “country living” member of our family, share a love of bees and an appreciation for pollinators. I think this mutual admiration may have originated with our love of gardening, which probably started with our grandparents. Our maternal grandfather had an annual competition for largest tomato with his next-door neighbor (who was also our uncle). Our paternal grandmother grew beautiful ornamental flower gar...
Those of us lucky enough to live, work and play in the Swan Valley know what a special place it is. Pointing a finger at exactly what makes this place special, however, can sometimes be difficult. If you were to mill around the Mission Mountains Mercantile on a Saturday and ask tourists and locals alike, "What makes the Swan Valley so unique?" you'd likely hear answers such as "the stunning views," "diversity of wildlife" or "rural character." While all of this is true, what you likely won't...
With gas prices on the rise, the motivation for consumers to consider an electric vehicle (EV) is steadily growing. Some of the top automotive manufacturers have already announced an end to production for gas and diesel engines in the near future. As drivers seek out ways to shield themselves from rising gas prices, utilities are already preparing for the coming transition to the electrified future of motoring. You might ask, why should I consider an EV? The list of benefits to owning an EV...
As spring creeps through the door, the Blackfoot Challenge continues fostering community collaboration for the benefit of all within the Blackfoot River watershed. The beauty of collaboration is the diverse array of experiences and perspectives that are brought to the table. Together, we can combine these individual experiences to result in more effective approaches to maintaining the natural environment and rural way of life in the Blackfoot watershed. With 30 board members, 12 full- and...
What is a "Hot" Real Estate Market? For the past two years, all that real estate professionals, economists and analysts seemed to talk about is the hot real estate market. But what does a "hot market" really mean? And if the market is hot, why are so many potential buyers frozen out? In simple terms, a hot real estate market favors sellers due to high demand for property and a low supply of homes for sale. But when you look a little deeper, you see that current market conditions are based on muc...
Acceptance of diversity, and isolationism: two concepts that have been at the forefront of my mind, given the current situation in our state, our country and the world. I’ll not discuss world history or politics, but rather look at those concepts as they relate to my own past experiences and my current concerns. The first half of my life, as a child and young adult, I did not have much experience outside my immediate environment. I was isolated from diversity, had little exposure to people who weren’t like me. That changed in 1984 when I mad...
A woman recently moved to Seeley Lake. She LOVES it here. She’s so excited to get involved. Where does she go for information? Where does she go to get involved? How does she meet people? • Perhaps by talking to people around town and getting on some local Facebook pages. • Perusing fliers around Seeley Lake, like the bulletin board at Cory’s. • Hopefully, she will pick up a Pathfinder, see all the businesses and services listed and start to get a sense of the community through articles and reading about local events. • She will probably Go...
Many people are not aware that the Northern Pacific Railway Company (NP) had a significant influence on the settlement, economy and timber industry of the upper Swan Valley. Looking at a current map of the upper Swan Valley, you might ask, "What influence?" No railways are located in the valley, nor are any Northern Pacific properties listed on the current maps. A closer look at the early history of the settlement in the upper Swan Valley reveals something quite different. Maps of the early...
A grizzly bear dubbed "Lingenpolter" by local biologists caught the attention of many in Montana and elsewhere last year. Using a GPS tracker, biologists watched as the young male bear repeatedly attempted and failed to cross Interstate 90. They followed Lingenpolter's movements in an area between Missoula and Butte, watching as he traveled for miles alongside the interstate and tried to cross it an estimated 46 times from fall of 2020 to spring of 2021. Lingenpolter's story illustrates an...
Carbon Monoxide alarms are not smoke detectors! Carbon Monoxide (CO) is a colorless, odorless and tasteless gas. It is the biproduct of incomplete combustion and it may be found in smoke. CO is in the air that we breath, this means that our bodies can handle low levels of exposure. At higher levels this gas is deadly to humans. It is known as the “silent killer” because people cannot tell when they are around it. The Carbon Monoxide Detector is a safety device that can alert homeowners of a CO leak and help them escape a potentially lif...
As the brisk January morning air settles in on the log yards in the north, the world finds yet another year has come and gone. Standing at the threshold of 2022, more than a few folks are relieved to see the prospect of hope in a New Year and many a lumber mill is glad to get another year in operation. In a year that saw record lumber prices, the small business world continued to face a challenging labor market throughout 2021. Overall, the volume of logs available last year seemed good...
Home food preservationists feel especially grateful in January, for having spent countless autumn hours canning, pickling, fermenting, drying and vacuum packaging their garden or local farmer's market produce. Ingredients are typically more identifiable and easier to pronounce than the generic commercially available or "temporarily unavailable" grocery store item. Few things compare to the gratification of consuming something that has been planted, fed, weeded, watered, picked and prepared by...
5 - THE REAL ESTATE BREAKOUT The past year has seen intense buyer pressure in the local real estate markets. Montana buyers primarily from Missoula, Helena, Bozeman and Great Falls continued buying in the Seeley-Swan Valley. Many of the Montanans coming here are seeking weekend and summer homes to bring families together for recreation. Others are seeking homes or land for their retirement. Out of state buyers primarily from Washington, Oregon, California, Colorado, Texas and the southeast...
Wildfire seasons are becoming longer and more destructive. The 2021 fire season in Oregon began in May, a month early, due to drought conditions resulting in low fuel moistures and a light snow pack. Typically, fire seasons come to a close in mid to late fall when we see our first snows. As climate change impacts regional weather, we are seeing devastating events like those in Superior and Louisville, Colorado, where 30,000 homes were evacuated on Dec. 30 , 2021 due to a wind-driven wildfire....
Just the other day while working at Placid Lake State Park, I observed a group of ducks gathered around a large space of open, ice-free water. Some were swimming and foraging in the shallow bottom gravel and mud, while others were situated near the edge of the ice mere inches from the cold open water. Of those birds on the ice, some were standing squarely on both feet while others were laying down; but there were three ducks who stood defiantly in the cold on one leg. One of those three even...
The New Year is a natural time for reflection and looking ahead. We hope you had a great holiday with your family and friends, and that you had time do just that. As I reflect on 2021, I am encouraged by the growing partnerships of people who share a common desire to live, work and play in the forested lands in our part of the world. Given some of the challenges we face, such as the rising numbers of people recreating in the woods, the intensity of wildfires across the West and the complexity of ecologically sound and economically realistic for...
As winter dawns over the Seeley Swan Valley, the ROCKS team springs into a frenzy of action. It is during this ever-changing and unpredictable weather season that we realize the somewhat limited control we have over this gorgeous environment, and much of the ROCKS team's time is spent watching the weather forecast. Rain? Not so good. Snow? Great for the ski trails, trouble for the ice skating rink. Cold and icy conditions? Not so great for the ski trails, fantastic for the rink. Yep – this is wh...
I can't believe I've lived to see this. It seems like it was yesterday. Maybe it was 30 years ago when I pulled my Fish, Wildlife & Parks (FWP) pickup off the north side of Highway 200, snuck down off the grade between Woodchuck and Blanchard Creek and set posts for the sign that monuments my work out there to this day proclaiming "Hunting District 283/285 Boundary." The loneliest destination sign in Montana. Connected to no other apparent landmark. Pointing in no particular direction. Barely vi...
Grizzly bears in the Mission and Swan mountains have likely entered their dens for the winter, but an important habitat linkage for the species will remain conserved as open space next spring-and for generations to come. The Vital Ground Foundation expanded its conservation protections in the Condon area last month, purchasing 20 acres to help maintain the Upper Swan Valley's rural character and connect existing open lands. The newly-conserved acreage lies in the Simmons Meadow wetland complex,...
The smell of freshly cut limbs and trees wafts through the air as I walk through the project area. The low hum of the harvester, a large and impressive piece of logging equipment, works right over the hill. This is the first of what I, and Swan Valley Connections (SVC), hope to be many forest stewardship and restoration projects on the Swan Legacy Forest that can be used to engage students and other landowners by demonstrating examples of stewardship and property management. Swan Legacy Forest...
At the Blackfoot Challenge, we believe that the best place to learn about the watershed is in the watershed and that our best teachers are those who have experience here. That's why our education programs are outdoors, hands-on and rely on a multitude of local residents and partners willing to share their expertise with the next generation. Based on the guidance and direction provided by our Teachers Steering Council, earlier this fall we coordinated two outdoor education days focused on the...
An October day several years ago next to a lake where I was working for the government on a grizzly project… The first lavender light of day is a time when the softness of shapes can barely be seen through the mist rising from the lake… The early morning fog slowly begins to clear, revealing pastel-hued forms that seem to float on the autumn air… I’m sitting on a dock at the edge of the lake. The day promises to be clear, sunny and calm. There is no breeze so the lake’s surface is a mauve mirror. Scattered throughout the fir and pine forest ar...
