Sorted by date Results 26 - 50 of 1846
On the coldest day of 2024, Montana's Poet Laureate Chris LaTray spoke in tandem with author Peter Stark at an Open Book Club event in Seeley Lake, lending an Indigenous perspective to Stark's latest book about the West. Those of us lucky enough to attend have been eagerly awaiting LaTray's return. Fresh from a nation-wide tour, Chris LaTray will be presenting his newest book, Becoming Little Shell, A Landless Indian's Journey Home at the Swan Valley Community Hall in Condon, Saturday, Nov. 9...
Maybe you opened your paper today thinking, I’m pretty sure the Pathfinder’s missing something. Don’t we have a new president? Statehouse representative? You’re probably right. Since our papers are printed on Mondays, it made for a very quiet Nov. 7 paper regarding election details. We sent the paper off to press before Election Day even began. I intend to publish a story online focusing on the statehouse races pertinent to the Seeley-Swan and Blackfoot Valleys on Wednesday or Thursday this week. But in the meantime, there are plenty of othe...
The Flathead National Forest has received an application from Eric Jacobsen and Thomas Knowles for a special use permit to operate Holland Lake Lodge with no proposed expansion. Private equity investors Jacobsen and Knowles held a meeting announcing their interest in purchasing the historic lodge in the Swan Valley in September and the Forest Service received notice of a purchase agreement between the two and the current holders of the lodge’s special use permit — longtime owner Christian Wohlfiel and POWDR, owner of ski resorts across the cou...
Thirty five years ago... Thursday Nov. 2, 1989 Citations issued in moose shootings; general doe season ended Sunday The general hunting season seems to be going along "pretty normal," according to FWP game warden Jay Haveman, except for a couple of moose that were shot. "It may have been mistaken identification," Haveman said, but he issued citations in both instances. "One involved a bull moose that was shot near Squeezer Creek, east of Goat Creek, in the upper Swan Valley," Haveman said. The...
On Tuesday, Oct. 22, 20 Missoula County officials participated in the “Swan Valley Community Conversation,” held at the Swan Valley Elementary School. The event, designed to foster communication between county government and the more outlying Swan Valley community, had a unique format and was met with positive reviews by attendees. Rather than a large open meeting, eight “stations” of citizens were seated at tables, and the officials rotated every 10 minutes, so that each group of three to five attendees had face-to-face interactions with re...
The northern lights have been visible in the Seeley-Swan Valley many times this year, including multiple times this month. Meteorologist Dave Noble, who works with the National Weather Service in Missoula, explained why the northern lights occur. "Occasionally we can have these explosions off the sun that are spewing plasma at a million miles an hour towards space, and sometimes they can be directed towards the earth," Noble said. "If it is carrying the right magnetic field with it, or the...
Folks who live in our Seeley-Swan Valley fall into several categories: old timers, newcomers, “medium timers” and people who returned after many years. One person who returned after many years was Mabel Stilwell. Born Mabel Lundberg in the Swan Valley in 1917, she may well have been the first baby of white settlers born in these parts. Let’s take a closer look at the Swan Valley during these years, and where Mabel’s life took her. During the years around Mabel’s birth, the Swan Valley had homesteaders moving in, drawn by the beauty and amaze...
The Forest Service received notification of a purchase agreement regarding Holland Lake Lodge between Eric Jacobsen, Great Falls native and current Utah resident, and longtime owner of the lodge and holder of its special use permit, Christian Wohlfeil, and POWDR on Oct. 11. POWDR, a company that owns and operates ski resorts across the country, owns about 20% of the assets of Holland Lake Lodge. A controversial plan to expand the lodge was rejected by the Forest Service last fall after being met with forceful local opposition. Ivy Gehling,...
Twenty years ago... Thursday Oct. 28, 2004 Who homesteaded here? Another reason to visit the Seeley Lake Museum Have you ever wondered who homesteaded the property where you live? Have you ever wondered if any of your family namesakes homesteaded in the valley? Now you can find out. The Seeley Lake Historical Society has a listing of all the people who successfully homesteaded in the Clearwater Valley. A project entitled “Who Homesteaded Here?” was completed with a grant from the Hansen Endowment Committee through the Wilderness Institute at...
The Missoula County Commissioners approved spending a portion of funds from a 2018 bond to preserve 158 acres in the Swan Valley for conservation. The funds made available in 2018 were part of a voter-approved open space bond measure. This bond provided $15 million that was to be used to enhance open space for purposes including access, agriculture, fish and wildlife habitat, rivers, streams and scenic views, per the ballot language. One way those purposes can be realized is through the...
Steve Lamar has only lived in these parts for 48 years. I asked him if he was a rich out-of-stater who doesn't understand our Montana values. He assured me he isn't running for political office. Perhaps you have heard of the Lamar Valley in Yellowstone National Park, the Lamar River or Lamar Mountain. An ancestor of Steve's was head of the Interior Department under Grover Cleveland. An army friend of Mr. Lamar was sent to the Yellowstone area to survey it and was given the responsibility of...
The Seeley-Swan Lady Blackhawks beat the Saint Regis Tigers, 3-0, in an intense game. After losing the games last week, the Blackhawks had a lot to prove. Hoping to take home victories this weekend, the girls walked onto the court confident that they'd walk over winners. Starting the first set on Oct. 10, the Tigers were leading, but with quick reflexes and smart play, the Blackhawks made a comeback. Kilty Hanson, a junior, got an ace, leading Seeley-Swan to win the first set, 25-23. The second...
Since its founding in 1993, Clearwater Montana Properties has emphasized community-building as a key component of its company culture. Through its Charitable Giving Program, the company's agents give back a portion of all real estate proceeds to the communities in which they were earned. To date, the program has produced over $1,248,284 in charitable donations to causes throughout Montana, Idaho, North Dakota, Washington and Wyoming. "Each year Clearwater and our agents give a portion of each...
Seeley Lake started off the homecoming weekend in style with a parade requested by student athletes and assembled by the newly re-established Seeley Swan Blackhawk Booster Club. Various official vehicles and floats with the football and volleyball team players drove down local roads for about 30 minutes to help get the town hyped for the football game later in the day on Oct. 4 and the volleyball game the day after. The booster club also sold burgers at the football game. Jamie Wood-Hanson,...
By reading the column “A Place for All” in the Pathfinder over the years, we can learn about the places, organizations and programs that make our valley a special place. We can remember what went on in the past underlies all of what we have now. In times like today with lots of changes happening, it’s important to look back at this history and ask ourselves a question. Is what we are today because of external — things from the outside -— or internal, driven by those who live here? The answer is both. Indigenous peoples were present in our ar...
Tour some of western Montana's most amazing artist studios while driving through the explosive fall color of our region's tamaracks during the 22nd annual Tour of the Arts. Alpine Artisans offers this self-guided artist studio tour on Oct. 12-13. Saturday hours are 10-5 p.m., and Sunday from 12-5 p.m. This free tour stretches from Condon through Seeley Lake to Ovando and Lincoln, Montana. The tour features 10 studios and galleries and over 25 artists showing and demonstrating their work...
The Seeley-Swan girls' volleyball team and boys' football team faced off against challenging teams on homecoming weekend. Playing against their toughest opponents yet, the pressure was on, and unfortunately, the teams came up short. Football On Oct. 4, the Seeley-Swan football team took on the Valley Christian Eagles. The Blackhawks entered the game undefeated at 5-0, the same as the Eagles. The Blackhawks knew this game would be the toughest they've faced all season, and anticipated an...
Nearly 60 community members piled into Seeley Lake's Sullivan Community Hall last Tuesday evening to hear what the people vying to represent them in Helena had to say. Sponsored by the Seeley Swan Pathfinder, the candidate debate, moderated by editor Keely Larson, starred seven hopeful state representatives and senators, plus written statements shared aloud by Larson from one absent candidate. Audience members, about a third of whom wore bright red "Ted Morgan" t-shirts in support of House...
In 2020 Montanans elected a super-majority of Republicans to govern our Last Best Place. Republicans currently control every branch of government. The consequences of that election cost ordinary Montanans dearly. Homeowners saw huge property tax increases. Housing costs increased and that burden is passed on to renters. Our utility rates were also raised by 28% by a Republican dominated Public Service Commission. Montanans are understandably upset about being priced out of our homes. Who is getting blamed for this catastrophic mess? Montana...
For a good deal of my medical career there worked in my office an avid quilter. She participated in quilting groups, received quilting magazines and periodically went on quilting junkets, riding around a multi-state region on a bus with other quilters, allegedly stopping at quilting stores and networking with other quilters. I always wondered about quilters. If, for instance, you wanted to run a secret, special-ops, counterintelligence sort of thing, who would ever suspect quilters? We think of...
Folk-rock musician Rebecca Folsom and Friends are returning to the Seeley-Swan for a third encore performance in the 24-year history of 2 Valleys Stage, performing on Sunday, Oct. 6, at 3 p.m. at the Seeley-Swan High School. Tickets are available at the door. Born and raised in Boulder, Colorado, Rebecca's formative years were inspired by the alternative pulse that beats in a town nestled at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. She grew up running trails and writing songs amongst the pines and...
Last Thursday evening, upwards of 30 people piled into the Potomac Bar and Grill's compact upper level to talk secession. While meeting leaders themselves admitted to uncertainty about what jumping ship from Missoula County would look like, how exactly one goes about seceding and how possible, or even effective, such a measure would be, citizens present were aligned on the raison d'etre behind what some are referring to as Potomac's "Secession Movement:" rising property taxes; specifically, a...
The Swan Valley Community Council met last Tuesday evening and received updates on the Condon Work Center, heightened bear activity, incorporation and a community questionnaire. Sara Lamar, managing director of education with Swan Valley Connections, gave an update on the Condon Work Center, which the Northern Region of the Forest Service — based in Missoula — decided to put up for conveyance, or transfer of ownership, at the end of June. Swan Valley Connections, who uses the space for its operations, was given a move-out date of the end of...
The fifth annual Mike Haley Memorial golf tournament took place in Seeley Lake on Sept. 15 and raised over $6,000 for youth sports in the Seeley-Swan valley. The money goes directly to the principal of Seeley-Swan High School and in the past has been used for a shot clock and scoring table in the basketball gym. Jacob Haley, son of the late Mike Haley, said he's not sure what the school will use the money for this year. "I like to do it to keep my dad's name around," Haley said. "It means a lot...
Thirty five years ago ... Thursday Sept. 21, 1989 School bustles with activity at Swan Valley Elementary The Montana Energy Education Council conducted an art contest last May to get art to be included in the 1990 Montana Energy Calendar. Swan Valley Elementary School student Boomer Alexander submitted artwork and his art was one of 13 chosen for the calendar. Congratulations to Boomer Alexander. The seventh and eighth grades have elected their class officers for this school year. They are President Boomer Jenson, Vice-president Justin Shoup,...
