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SEELEY LAKE – Pyramid Mountain Lumber Company, Inc. has maintained 140 employees and kept their doors open through the worst year financially the mill has ever experienced. Pyramid’s Chief of Operations Loren Rose said the mill intends to persevere and keep their employees on the payroll despite economic challenges. Rose said the biggest reasons for the loss of revenue are log costs and the drop instead of rise in market prices in the spring. Pyramid was the first of the Montana mills to adjust spending to account for poor lumber prices. Abo...
SEELEY LAKE - The Seeley Lake Volunteer firefighters and Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) responded to their first out-of-control debris burn April 2 around 2:30 p.m. on Whitetail Drive in Seeley Lake. The fire was contained at 0.10 of an acre and no structures were lost. Seeley Lake Fire Chief Bob Vanden Heuvel said that it was a classic scenario for burn piles to spread. Burning conditions were perfect in the morning but changed in the afternoon getting warmer,...
HELENA - Wolf numbers in Montana remain healthy and well above federally-mandated minimums as the fifth and final year of federal oversight of state wolf management comes to an end in May. Montana's annual wolf report shows a minimum wolf count of 536 wolves in 2015, which is down from 554 in 2014. Included in this number is a minimum number of breeding pairs of 32, which is down from 34 in 2014. The difference between the overall minimum wolf counts in 2014 and 2015 is 18, well within the...
SEELEY LAKE - Pyramid Mountain Lumber excels again this year in grader performance. The Western Wood Products Association (WWPA) recognized Monie Bergeson and Rod Groom with the High Quality (Hi-Q) Award for their timber grading accuracy in 2015. They are two of the 10 graders currently employed by Pyramid. WWPA performs a monthly inspection of graders at various mills. Graders must be at least 95 percent accurate over the course of the year to qualify for the award. Typically more than half of...
The Cakes for Canines on March 16 held at Pop's Place was a great success! Thanks to the many who showed up in support our much needed animal shelter! Big thanks to Tim and Connie who donated all the eggs, bacon and cakes. Thanks to Doug Richards for all his helpful art work and the great cakes which were grabbed up quickly. The lamp and nightlight crafted by Monty Montgomery were beautiful and all of the squares for a chance to win one filled up quickly which sure helped our fund! Mary Anna and...
SEELEY LAKE & DRUMMOND - The Montana Department of Transportation (MDT) would like to notify the public and seek comments on a proposal to install safety improvements on Highway 83 and Interstate 90 in the Seeley Lake and Drummond areas. The proposed project includes the following work at three sites: • Site 1: Highway 83 north of Seeley Lake between reference posts 19.2 and 19.7: Install a northbound advance intersection sign, nameplate and actuated flasher assembly for northbound traffic and upgrade the intersection signing for southbound t...
SEELEY LAKE - Todd Johnson, Seeley Lake Elementary (SLE) School Board Chair, will kick off the next Seeley Lake Community Council (SLCC) meeting with a discussion of the proposed SLE levy, which will be voted on in the May 3 Special Election. Filmmaker Jenny Rohrer will follow with the presentation of two movie shorts: “Keeping Clearwater” tells the story of the work that local volunteers and students are doing in collaboration with the Clearwater Resource Council (CRC) to learn about and protect local waters. The film illustrates how the...
SEELEY LAKE - On April 17 the Tappan/Williams Quartet will amaze audiences with their jazz selections and enormous talent. The concert, to be held at 3 p.m. at Seeley-Swan High School (SSHS), is the final concert for the 2 Valleys Stage 2015/16 season. The venue was originally to be the Presbyterian Church, but has been changed to SSHS. The four musicians of the quartet have vast experience and acclaim, nationally and internationally. The networks and collaboration these four have with famous...
In 1896, Gifford Pinchot, who later became the first Chief of the U.S. Forest Service, traveled through the Swan Valley inspecting this region of Montana, while working for the National Forest Commission. Jack Monroe, a trapper and guide, accompanied him. In an account of his trip through the Swan Valley recorded in 1897, Pinchot wrote: In the course of work on the National Forest Commission, I camped last summer, on the shore of Swan Lake, through which passes on the tributaries of the Flat Head River in northwestern Montana. I was anxious to...
MISSOULA – As it begins revising its 30-year-old Resource Management Plan (RMP), the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) Missoula Field Office wants to make public involvement in the process one of its top priorities. The RMP, a key source for the field office’s planning and operations of 156,000 acres of surface BLM-managed lands and about 268,000 acres of sub-surface minerals, provides goals, objectives and direction to the field office for managing those public lands. The Missoula RMP revision process could last up to four years and will...
HELENA - Attorney General Tim Fox and the Montana Department of Justice want to make Montanans aware of deceptive vehicle service contract “notices” that claim to be issued from the “Motor Vehicle Division (MVD)” that may be appearing in consumers’ mail boxes. “We consider these notices deceptive because neither our Motor Vehicle Division nor the motor vehicle division of any other state is mailing them,” said Fox. “These governmental entities are not in the business of selling vehicle service contracts. However, these notices are often addre...
This past month our family traveled back to Washington to celebrate my parents’ 50th wedding anniversary. We had a wonderful visit with my parents, along with my brother and family traveling from Florida. The occasion of 50 years of marriage together was truly a time of celebration and thanksgiving. As my parents looked back over their years together, they were full of gratitude for the years they have shared and all the blessings received. Furthermore, all those who are close with my parents have experienced the example and demonstration of w...
Part I established the rusty Model A Ford in Dick Wolff's backyard is what remains of the 1930s mail delivery vehicle called the Seeley Lake Stage. That vehicle was outfitted by Orlie Coates with a snow mobile kit to make winter service possible in the Seeley Swan Valleys. After its stage career ended the Model A was taken apart, reportedly to make it into a tractor. Though that transformation never occurred, parts and pieces of the Model A were subsequently scattered from Swan Valley to...
SEELEY LAKE –Co-owners Kristy Pohlman and Shawn Ellinghouse opened Blackfoot Lawn Care and Property Maintenance this spring. They offer quality, affordable lawn care with the hopes of giving their customers their weekends back to spend more time with friends and family. Pohlman realized how much she enjoyed mowing lawns after working for a friend in Alder, Mont. two summers ago. "I love being outside and I'm detail oriented," said Pohlman. "I enjoyed the heck out of mowing lawns." Last summer P...
SEELEY LAKE - Seeley Lake Elementary fifth-grader Ben Haley has been wrestling since he was seven-years-old. He just completed his third season with the Bonner Wrestling Club. He thinks the sport has a lot of personality, said it has made him better at other sports and has taught him discipline and to work hard. Wrestling has been a family sport for the Haleys. Ben is following in the footsteps of his grandfather, father and older brother Jacob. "I tried it and liked it so I stuck with it,"...
Goal: Potomac residents and owners of Blackfoot Native Plants Kathy and Michael Settevendemie promote the use of native plants through landscaping. "If we grow native plants in our landscapes we can look like Montana and have a sense of beauty and of place that is Montana," Kathy said. The Settevendemies try to capture Montana through their native plants. History: Blackfoot Native Plants began as a small business 15 years ago in Potomac. It started when Kathy was implementing weed management on...
HELENA - In an effort to remind everyone about safe practices when digging, the non-profit Common Ground Alliance sponsors National Safe Digging Month every April. Montana Public Service Commission (PSC) Chairman Brad Johnson delivers the following message to kick off National Safe Digging Month, “As spring projects get underway, I would like to remind Montana that anyone digging take the proper precautions to ensure their own, and others’, safety. A quick call to 811 before you dig can save a life and as April is National Safe Digging Mon...
The Seeley-Swan Blackhawks' track season got underway at the Jim Johnson Invitational in Frenchtown March 31. The Lady Blackhawks took first place with 99 team points at the event that hosted 19 teams from A, B and C schools. The Boys earned 11 team points. The Ladies swept the 400 and 1600-meter relays. Stephanie Robbins won the 800 and 1600 while Alex Bohlman won the 100 to help propel them into the top spot. Quinton Johnson was the top winner for the Boys, earning a third place in the...
The Seeley-Swan Blackhawks golf team took to the fairways of the Missoula Country Club to open their season during the Loyola Sacred Heart’s Spring Swing April 1. McKinley Nicholas led the Blackhawks, shooting an 88. Nicholas, Jacob Haley and Joshua Cahoon all shot scores qualifying them for State though none of them broke into the top 15. The Blackhawks have been lacking practice due to the Double Arrow Golf Course being closed for winter. Double Arrow is now available for practice and the coaches expect to see their scores improve. Their n...
SLE School Board Approves Levy Amount SEELEY LAKE - The Seeley Lake Elementary (SLE) School Board will run a trustee election and a general fund operating levy of $17,056 or 2.21 mills on the May 3 ballot. Three candidates have filed for two open positions on the board. Incumbents Jenny Lindemer and Karen Kovatch are running along with write-in candidate Amanda Fowler. The general fund levy would increase taxes on a $100,000 home by $2.98 and on a $200,000 home by $5.96 annually. This year, the District’s 20-year bond will be paid off, r...
Editor's note: I know full well many people would just as soon never hear the name Ted Kaczynski again. While Kaczynski deserves no press, the story of his arrest and it's impact on the community, like it or not, is a fascinating and indelible part of the town's history and it isn't a simple one to tell. This week looks at how people saw him while he lived here and at his arrest. Next week's issue will look at the fallout, both good and bad, that came out of it. April 3,1996. LINCOLN - A lot of...
