Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 27
SEELEY LAKE – The bears have moved back into the valleys in search of food. There have been numerous bear sightings in the area this past week. Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Bear Biologist Jamie Jonkle asks that people be conscious of bears and help keep them out of trouble. An unmarked large adult male grizzly attempted to get into a bear-resistant garbage Monday, Aug. 27 along the North Placid Lake Road. This may be the same grizzly or a separate incident for a grizzly that got into a freez...
SEELEY LAKE – The lawn at Littlebird's Marketplace came alive for the final Farmers' and Crafters' Market of the season Sept. 2. The End of the Season Celebration closed out the tenth year with food, vendors, music and an opportunity to get together. Attendees were all smiles in the sunshine as they picked out their produce, browsed the many displays and visited with neighbors and vendors. Many of the vendors shared how much they love the atmosphere at the Seeley Lake Market. While it is a s...
HELMVILLE - Locals and visitors packed the stands again in Helmville over labor day weekend for the 54th annual Helmville Rodeo....
When I wrote my letter last week stating my support of the US Forest Service, the Seeley Lake Ranger District and the District Ranger, I intended it to be on the more general level in an attempt to offer a perspective of what government is, or rather isn’t, by stating it is not a business and should never be operated as a business, and the difficulties our land management agencies are facing now with severe budget cuts. With this much shorter letter I bring it to the local level. We are incredibly fortunate to have Rachel Feigley as the D...
The Pathfinder dated Aug. 30, 2018 certainly contained a great deal of controversial opinions on a variety of subjects. Those that seemed to generate the most emotion had to do with the petition regarding the way OUR ranger district is being run. We had just gone through an incredibly bad year of a fire that nearly cost us the very town we call home, followed by an incredibly good or bad snow year (depending on your winter activities). The beginning of our tourist season found that approximately 30 percent of the campsites available for our...
I’d like to thank Heather Richards for her heartfelt commentary “Strong Enough to Bend” in last week’s Pathfinder. Understanding the post-fire perspective of someone who has spent more than 30 years traversing the trails in the Bob Marshall Wilderness is very valuable. Her commentary demonstrates courage and flexibility. Wilderness is by definition, wild, chaotic and unpredictable. Without the wildness of grizzlies, bull trout and yes, wildfires, we lose our wildness. In federally designated wilderness areas, we humans don’t always get to de...
While not a complete authority on the Canyon Creek fire in 1988, I was there to cut snags and later me and Elden Rammell were sentenced to cut that burned timber. That fire camp there looked like a reunion of retired Forest Service people. I’m sure they donated their time. I’m thankful someone finally admitted that is a “let burn policy.” Apparently the left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing because they’re still doing it with most fires. A certain person who “sat” and got paid to look at the Rice Ridge fire told me the state fire...
After reading last week’s Pathfinder, page 2, OPINION Editor’s Note Headline: What is news in Seeley Lake? Story Andi & Nathan Bourne – Pathfinder Staff…It sure makes me wonder if most people in Seeley Lake read only what they’re looking for each week. How much dirt did ??? Find on??? This week? Oh yeah, this week most by-passed the above OPINION and went right away to the throat article, believing there would be one, of our Seeley Lake Ranger. Allow me to ask this question. Before Andi and Nathan Bourne took over the Pathfinder does anyone rec...
Why do the leaves of my French lilac fold up? It lives outside the garden fence, in full sun, in rocky soil which we have not improved as we did the garden soil. It has small leaves and double dark purple flowers. We do water it regularly. When a plant folds its leaves, it is defending itself from some kind of stress. In this climate, the common stresses are lack of water and cold weather (usually, but not necessarily, in winter). Your French lilac is probably trying to hang onto as much of its...
SEELEY LAKE – At the Seeley Lake Community Council meeting Monday, Sept. 10, Sheriff T.J. McDermott will introduce Seeley Lake’s new local deputy Ryan Dunster. Deputy Dunster is looking for a place to live in Seeley Lake with his wife and three children. Next will be a presentation by Amber Sherrill of Five Valleys Land Trust who will speak in favor of the proposed Open Space Bond. Following Sherrill, Republican candidate for re-election to MT House District 92 Mike Hopkins will speak in opposition to the bond. After that USFS District Ranger R...
SEELEY LAKE - Please join the Open Book Club as journalist and renowned author John Maclean reads from and discusses his recently released book, "River of Fire," Saturday, Sept. 8 at 7 p.m. at the Grizzly Claw Trading Company. There is no charge for this event and all are welcome. This book builds on the piece about the Rattlesnake Fire (California, 1953) that was included in his earlier book "Fire and Ashes." Maclean adds more details and includes information from and sections by firefighters...
As we approach Medicare's Open Enrollment Period, Oct. 15 – Dec. 7, it's time again to start thinking about your Medicare coverage. Open enrollment is when Medicare beneficiaries should review their coverage and make any changes for 2019. In particular, you may save money by checking your Medicare Part D choices. Many plans change which prescriptions they cover, which means your current Part D plan may no longer be the best plan for you. I can help you do that, as well as enroll in a new Part D...
SEELEY LAKE - The Seeley Lake Ranger District is planning to conduct prescribed burning this fall if weather, fuel and air quality conditions allow for safe and effective operations. The project areas with planned burning are located in four locations, two of which are directly adjacent to Seeley Lake. One is located just south of Seeley Lake within the Horeshoe Hills area, while the other is just north of Seeley Lake at the Auggie project area. The other two areas are near the Colt Summit and Swan Face project areas. All project areas have mul...
Each year we receive questions from the public about beavers. Some of those questions come from frustrated landowners wanting to know how to remove beavers that are causing flooding problems along irrigation ditches or at culverts along road crossings. Others are interested in learning more about beavers and curious about whether their property would benefit from the busy rodents. This dichotomy of feelings towards beavers is not unusual and certainly something that FWP has experienced with other wildlife species. It is true that in some...
SEELEY LAKE – More than 100 people crowded into the Seeley Lake Community Hall Thursday, Aug. 30, to view a film celebrating a man acclaimed as the father of bear biology. The documentary "Walking Bear Comes Home, the Life and Work of Chuck Jonkel" was part of the educational Pure Montana Tales series sponsored by Clearwater Resource Council and Blackfoot Challenge. Jonkel's interaction with bears began in 1959 after he graduated with a Master Degree in Wildlife Biology from the University of Mo...
SEELEY LAKE – Local law enforcement is looking for the owner of a pair of Nike Max Air running shoes that were stolen from a residence around Seeley-Swan High School in July. According to Missoula County Sheriff's Office Sergeant Robert Parcell, one of the juveniles involved in the vandalism at SSHS July 9 was barefoot when he/she left his/her home. The shoes were taken from a residence in the area and worn when the snow blower was pushed off the roof of the high school. The juvenile's p...
SEELEY LAKE - Mountain Lakes Presbyterian Church will be participating in the National Weekend of Prayer for Faith, Hope, & Life (Sept. 7-9, 2018). The entire community is invited to join the congregation during their Sunday service, Sept. 9 at 10:30 a.m. to offer prayer with and for those who struggle with mental health conditions, to be present with those who have been impacted by a completed suicide and to celebrate the gift of life - including the gift of life in this community. According...
“And Moses said unto the Lord, “O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore nor since Thou hast spoken unto Thy servant; but I am slow of speech and of a slow tongue.” When God called Moses to go to His people and lead them out of slavery in Egypt, Moses tried repeatedly to give reasons as to why he was not the one: “Who am I, that I should go forth...?”, “They shall say to me, What is His Name? What shall I say to them?”, “But behold, they will not believe me, nor hearken unto my voice: for they will say; the Lord hath not appeared un...
There's a problem and we all have the solution. According to The Center for the Developing Child at Harvard University, "When adults have opportunities to build the core skills that are needed to be productive participants in the workforce and to provide stable, responsive environments for the children in their care, our economy will be stronger and the next generation of citizens, workers and parents will thrive." Individuals, communities and the nation have within their grasp information that...
LINCOLN - The fifth anniversary of Blackfoot Pathways: Sculpture in the Wild this September promises to elevate further the surprising art park in this small mountain community. In addition to playing host to renowned sculptors Cornelia Konrads and Kate Hunt who will be working on new installations in the 26-acre sculpture park on the eastern edge of town, visitors and residents will be treated to an eclectic range of musical concerts curated by Composer-in-Residence Adele O'Dwyer. Visitors are...
Fire restrictions rescinded across northwest Montana KALISPELL — Cooperating interagency fire managers across northwest Montana followed suit with the Missoula area and rescinded Stage 2 Fire Restrictions Aug. 31. Recent rain and cooler temperatures have substantially slowed growth of all area fires, but fire managers encourage people to recognize that, while evenings are cool, forest vegetation remains dry. Historically, many of the wildfires in the Flathead area have grown substantially with weather systems and high winds common in late Augus...
SEELEY LAKE – All volunteers who serve on public boards in Missoula County are invited to attend the Missoula County Board Training in Seeley Lake, Sept. 25 from 6-8:30 p.m. at the Seeley Lake Historic Museum and Visitor's Center. This training is provided by the Missoula County Commissioners and will feature guest speaker Dan Clark with the MSU Extension Local Government Center. "Whether you're new to serving on a public board or have served on a board for many years, the Montana State University Local Government Center board training is a g...
MISSOULA – The Seeley-Swan Blackhawks ran the new 5K course at Big Sky High School for the first time this year at the Missoula Couches Invite Aug. 30. The runners came out strong for their first race and are looking forward to a great season. Due to the smoke last year, the team missed last year's new 5K race. I was anxious to see how the course had changed. Starting out on the northeast corner of the Westside Little League fields and racing around the grassy knoll, they abruptly took a r...
SEELEY LAKE - The Seeley-Swan Blackhawks hosted the Plains Horsemen Aug. 31 for their first home game of the season. The Blackhawks came out strong and played a tough game but came up short on some key plays that kept them out of the end zone. Dakota Wood scored the Blackhawks only points on a 71-yard kick return in the first quarter. Defensively, the Blackhawks found some success in pushing the Horsemen back with a handful of sacks and a couple of forced fumbles but the Horsemen would answer...
ARLEE - The Seeley-Swan Lady Blackhawks traveled to Arlee Aug. 30 to take on the Scarlets. The Lady Blackhawks put the Scarlets down early with a 25-11 win in the first game but Arlee took game two 15-25. The third game was a close one that went to the Lady Blackhawks 25-22 but the match went south for them after that. Arlee tied the match up in game four 13-25 and won game five 7-15. Ashley Miller led the Lady Blackhawks with 6 kills while Taylor Dillree scored with 5 aces. Klaire Kovatch had 6 stuff blocks and was joined by Sariah Maughan...
