Articles from the 'Logging Stories' series


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  • From Cross Cut Saws to Mechanized

    Colleen Kesterson, Pathfinder|Apr 28, 2016

    SWAN VALLEY - Neil Meyer, longtime Salmon Prairie resident, said that making a living as a logger in the early days was hard work in the Swan Valley. He shared stories about how logging was flourishing and was unhindered by regulations and big business as it is now. He said the pace was slower, many residents had their own small sawmills and the tools of the trade were less expensive and complicated. Meyer grew up in Ferndale, Mont. He worked with his father farming and cutting firewood with...

  • Old Loggers Never Die, They Just Fade Away

    Andi Bourne, Pathfinder|Feb 18, 2016

    OVANDO - Jim Bauer started logging with the Anaconda Company out of Missoula in 1956 after graduating from Missoula County High School. When he sold his logging business in 1988 he'd overcome many challenges and seen many changes in innovations and logging philosophy. Bauer first became interested in logging because his two uncles were loggers. He also loved being outdoors so it seemed like a good fit. He started working for Dick Rossignol with the Anaconda Company. His uncle Al Wulfekuhle was...

  • Kesterson Liked Physical Work in Woods

    Colleen Kesterson, Pathfinder|Jan 7, 2016

    SWAN VALLEY - Swan Valley resident Wes Kesterson started logging with his father Buck Kesterson when he was around 12 years old. After spending nearly 15 years, as a logger in the Swan Valley, the biggest change Kesterson has seen in the industry is that logging equipment is more efficient and has made logging safer. Kesterson learned how to log on his grandmother's property located on the Swan River at Salmon Prairie. He helped his father with salvage logging jobs around the Swan Valley with th...