	Summer on the North Fork Three views of the North Fork in the summer. See if you can guess where these were taken.

NFLA members for the board of directors Posted Aug. 8, 2010—North Forkers will see both familiar and new faces at the North Fork Landowners’ Association meetings, as some members of the the board of directors were re-elected for a second term and some new members elected at the annual elections held on Aug. 7. Betsy Holycross was re-elected to her second one-year term as NFLA president. Margaret Heaphy was also reelected to a second one-year term as vice president. Holycross and Heaphy have worked hard this past year on behalf of all the NFLA members who expressed their appreciation by voting them back into office by general acclamation. Shepherd will remain on the board of directors as immediate past president. She served as vice president of the NFLA under Immediate Past President Ed Heger, and is chairperson of the Fire Mitigation Committee. Tom Edwards was newly elected to the board for a two-year term as north director, replacing Steve Berg. Also new to the board of directors is Debo Powers, who was elected to a two-year term as south director. Powers has been busy in the last year working on the History Committee. Powers replaces the retiring Jan Caldwell. Per a provision in the bylaws, Holycross again appointed Valerie Cox to her second term as secretary-treasurer. Cox has been active in organizing hike-and-bike outings for North Forkers as well as masterminding many of the activities for the Weeds Committee. Not up for election were North Director Lee Secrest and South Director Richard Hildner, who were in the middle of their two-year terms. Full minutes of the meeting will be posted to the Meeting Minutes page once they are approved at the September meeting. Update from the Interlocal meeting Posted Aug. 2, 2010—A question was asked at the last Interlocal Meeting about why some roads are signed but do not show up on the Glacier View District map. Jimmy DeHerrera, District Ranger Hungry Horse, investigated and recently emailed us the answer: "The reason is that we try to sign all roads on our inventory with a post and road number even if they don't show on our maps. Even though they might not be on current visitor maps, they are still part of our road system and signing them helps us better manage them." We appreciate the follow-up! Corridor Study holds open house Posted July 23, 2010—A public meeting to review the Draft Corridor Study Document is scheduled to be held on Tuesday, July 27 from 6:30pm to 8:30pm at the Discovery Square Sperry Auditorium (540 Nucleus Avenue in Columbia Falls). Download a complete copy of the Draft Corridor Study Document from here. For more information about the open house, download this brochure. Everyone from the North Fork is encouraged to attend and let your thoughts be known. Comments requested by Corridor Study Posted Jun. 14, 2010—The first newsletter on the Corridor Study for the North Fork road has been published and can be downloaded from here. We urge you to read the newsletter and pay particular attention to the two pages titled “what we’ve heard so far.” There is also a section titled “Did we get it right?” which provides an opportunity to comment and provide additional information if they “have not accurately captured an issue or concerns you have about the study area." This is your opportunity to make sure that you are heard! NFLA Spring 2010 Newsletter in your mailbox Updated Jun. 17, 2010—The NFLA Spring 2010 newsletter has been mailed. You can read the newsletter on our Newsletters page or download it from here. And don't forget that the 2010 Activity and 2010 Bikes, Boats and Books schedules have been posted. Everyone is welcome to all of the social events, so please come and join us. 2010 schedule highlights Updated Jun. 17, 2010—2010 is a banner year for activities on the North Fork, both business and social. Check out all the latest news on activities with the 2010 Activity Schedule and 2010 Bikes, Boats and Books Schedule. Fire Mitigation Committee Hosts Workshop Posted May 7, 2010—The NFLA’s Fire Mitigation Committee will sponsor a workshop on July 7, 2010, immediately preceding the Summer Inter Local meeting. The theme of the workshop is “Save Your Home.” It will feature presentations on smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, fire extinguishers, dry sprinklers, water tanks and trailers, and the use and abuse of propane. The workshop counts as the North Fork’s annual Firewise Day, required to maintain our Firewise Community status. It will begin at 9 a.m. in Sondreson Hall, with time for demonstrations and questions before the Inter Local lunch at noon. For more news from the Fire Mitigation Committee, go to their home page. NFLA mail being returned Updated Dec. 17, 2009—Several members of the NFLA have reported that mail sent to our mailbox (P.O. Box 1603 in Columbia Falls) has been returned as undeliverable. This is apparently caused by a computer glitch in Billings and the NFLA mail box is not the only one affected. The U.S. Post Office is working on a fix, however the problem persists. Valerie Cox, the NFLA Secretary/ Treasurer, advises that if you continue to have problems sending dues and/or NF patrol signup forms to the Columbia Falls P.O. box, these can be sent directly to her using: 11 Wrangler Drive Bozeman, MT 59718 The Postmaster at Columbia Falls has promised to continue his efforts to permanently fix this problem. Further information regarding will be posted on the website as it becomes available.	Bears are about Posted Aug. 20, 2010—Although bears are typically up in the hills eating huckleberries this time of year, there are still some bears around says Tim Manley, grizzly-bear management specialist for Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks. In particular, Patti Bear (a four-year-old female, silver-tipped grizzly) has been seen by residents up and down the road north of Ford (10 miles north of Polebridge). She and other bears are being attracted to structures by hummingbird feeders and ground squirrels that have been shot. Manley encourages all residents of the North Fork to be bear aware and eliminate attractants. For example, remove dead ground squirrels by throwing them into the woods or brush well away from structures. Bears coming near structures or otherwise getting into trouble should be reported by calling Manley at (406) 751-4584 (office) or (406) 250-1265 (cell). Update on North Fork by Two Timber Sale Posted Aug. 16, 2010—As many who attended July's Interlocal Meeting heard, work has begun on the North Fork by Two Timber Sale. Jason Glenn from the Stillwater State Forest recently provided some information about the sale and an update. The Environmental Assessment for the North Fork by Two Timber Sale was started in 2007 and completed and signed in March 2008. Richard George Logging purchased the timber sale in January of 2009. The Sale encompasses 426 acres in the Moose Creek Section (S36 T36N R22W) and 113 acres in the Mud Lake Section (S16 T37N R22W). The total estimated sale volume is 13, 374 tons of sawlogs (approximately 1.9 Million board feet). The termination date for the sale is October 15, 2011. Glenn along with Brian Manning told participants at the July Interlocal meeting that Richard George was planning to start on the units accessed from the Moose Creek Road first and then move north. Since then George's plans have changed and he has started on the north side of Moose Creek. Operations should be complete on the north side of the Moose Creek section and moved over to Moose Creek Road tentatively mid to late September. "I’d expect the Moose Road units to go fairly fast and operations to be moved north to the Mud Lake section by sometime late October" reports Glenn. George hopes to have the entire project completed before winter sets in this year. What is the impact for people driving the North Fork Road? All the equipment has moved in and once hauling starts there will be 3 log trucks making 2 trips a day. Given this low number of hauls, Glenn says "I do not foresee any reason this project would impact travel on either the Moose Creek or North Fork Road." There will be two temporary road approaches built off the Moose Creek Road so the landings will be located well away from traffic and should have no impacts to travel on the Moose Creek Road. Log truck drivers have been asked to move slowly on Moose Creek and North Fork Road to reduce dust during dry periods and conflicts with other road users. Anyone with questions about activities surrounding the North Fork By Two Timber Sale may contact either Pete Evans (email) or Jason Glenn (email) or call (406) 881-2371. Wolves back under Endangered Species Act protection Posted Aug. 8, 2010—Last Thursday, Aug. 5th, U.S. District Judge Don Molloy ruled for the plaintiffs in Defenders of Wildlife et. al. vs. Ken Salazar et. al. For more information, see the story in the Missoulian dated Aug. 6th. Visit from Border Patrol Posted Aug. 8, 2010—Col. David Abegglen from the Whitefish Boarder Patrol Station is coming to talk with NFLA members at the September NFLA Business meeting about the future of the Border Patrol and to address questions, issues and concerns. Col. Abegglen will be first on the agenda, so everyone who would like to participate should be at Sondreson Hall by 8:00PM. Anyone who has specific questions that they would like to have answered should send them to Betsy Holycross e-mail for forwarding. Fire information Posted Aug. 2, 2010—Although it has been a relatively cool and wet summer, fires are still a threat. To stay abreast of wildfire activity on the Flathead, check the forest’s Fire Information page. For detailed definitions of Stage I and Stage II fire restrictions, click here. For information about fire activity in our national parks, including Glacier, go to the National Park Service’s Fire & Aviation Management page, and the Glacier National Park home page and Webcam page. Also see the NPS Fire News page. For a current interactive, zoom-in map of all wildfires in the country, go to GeoMAC (loads slowly). Go to the Northern Rockies Coordination Center’s Incident Information page for a regularly updated list of wildfires, and to InciWeb’s Montana page. Also see the National Interagency Fire Center’s Web site and the Daily Inter Lake. Finally, for tips on how you can protect your property from wildfire, go to the Fire Mitigation Committee page. Mountain pine beetle a threat Posted July 11, 2010—The Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) website reports that the mountain pine beetle will emerge from beneath the bark of infested trees in search of new host trees to attack between mid-July and August. Verbenone, a natural mountain pine beetle repellant, can effectively protect healthy trees from beetle attacks. DNRC Forest Entomologist Amy Gannon offers advice for those interested in using verbenone to protect their trees. Click here for the full story and other information about the mountain pine beetle. Dance at the hall a big success Posted July 1, 2010—The June 26th dance at Sondreson Hall was both "well attended and tons of fun" reported Val Cox. Don't forget the Pie and Ice Cream Social and square dance scheduled for Saturday, July 17th starting at 7:00PM at the hall. Photo by Val Cox Everyone enjoys the dance Sondreson Hall gets a cleaning Posted June 4, 2010—By all accounts the May 29th Hall Cleanup Day was a huge success. There were 17 people on the job, cleaning and organizing for the start of the season. Many thanks to those who participated and a special thanks to Margaret and the Caldwells for sponsoring the event. Photo by Margaret Heaphy NFLA members work together to get Sondreson Hall ready for the summer Open burning prohibited Updated July 10, 2010—Open burning is prohibited from July 1 through Sept. 30. Burning will resume between Oct. 1 through Nov. 30. More information may be found at the Interagency Burn Permit Center’s Web site Border Patrol numbers are increasing Posted May 28, 2009—Have you noticed that there are more and more U.S. Border Patrol vehicles and agents on the North Fork Road? We sure have. And if you’ve wondered why, here are some of the reasons: The Border Patrol has begun implementing Operation Stone Garden, a federal program mandating an increase in the patrolling of both U.S. borders with the involvement of local law enforcement agencies. The 36.2 miles of Canadian border from the Continental Divide to the Lincoln County line are patrolled out of the Whitefish Border Patrol office. David Jet Abegglen, the patrol agent in charge at that office, says that now there are approximately 25 agents in his charge. Abegglen said there were four agents working the North Fork before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. For more information see the full story on the North Fork Road web page. Road corridor study underway Posted April 28, 2010—Flathead County, in partnership with the Montana Department of Transportation (MDT), is conducting an ongoing road corridor planning study that covers 13 miles of Highway 486 (aka North Fork Flathead Road) north of Columbia Falls, beginning at reference marker 9.5 (Blankenship Road) and extending to reference marker 22.7 (Camas Cr. Road). This study is expected to be completed in the fall of 2010. More information about the study focus may be obtained from the mt.gov website. Comments may be submitted in writing by US mail to Lani Eggertsen-Goff at Parsons Brinckerhoff, 488 E. Winchester St. Suite 400. Murray, Utah 84107 or by emails provided on the website above. Please indicate comments are for project Highway 486 Study in Flathead County. Flathead Community Wildfire Protection Plan is available Posted Feb. 17, 2010—In December, 2009, the North Fork Landowners' Association's Fire Mitigation Committee revised and updated the North Fork Wildfire Mitigation and Planning Report. The committee undertook the revision in conjunction with Flathead County's revision of its Community Wildfire Protection Plan. For more information and access to the text of the North Fork report, visit the Fire Mitigation Committee web page.

Summer on the North Fork

Three views of the North Fork in the summer. See if you can guess where these were taken.

NFLA members for the board of directors

Posted Aug. 8, 2010—North Forkers will see both familiar and new faces at the North Fork Landowners’ Association meetings, as some members of the the board of directors were re-elected for a second term and some new members elected at the annual elections held on Aug. 7.
      Betsy Holycross was re-elected to her second one-year term as NFLA president. Margaret Heaphy was also reelected to a second one-year term as vice president. Holycross and Heaphy have worked hard this past year on behalf of all the NFLA members who expressed their appreciation by voting them back into office by general acclamation.
      Shepherd will remain on the board of directors as immediate past president. She served as vice president of the NFLA under Immediate Past President Ed Heger, and is chairperson of the Fire Mitigation Committee.
      Tom Edwards was newly elected to the board for a two-year term as north director, replacing Steve Berg. Also new to the board of directors is Debo Powers, who was elected to a two-year term as south director. Powers has been busy in the last year working on the History Committee. Powers replaces the retiring Jan Caldwell.
      Per a provision in the bylaws, Holycross again appointed Valerie Cox to her second term as secretary-treasurer. Cox has been active in organizing hike-and-bike outings for North Forkers as well as masterminding many of the activities for the Weeds Committee.
      Not up for election were North Director Lee Secrest and South Director Richard Hildner, who were in the middle of their two-year terms.
      Full minutes of the meeting will be posted to the Meeting Minutes page once they are approved at the September meeting.

Update from the Interlocal meeting

Posted Aug. 2, 2010—A question was asked at the last Interlocal Meeting about why some roads are signed but do not show up on the Glacier View District map. Jimmy DeHerrera, District Ranger Hungry Horse, investigated and recently emailed us the answer: "The reason is that we try to sign all roads on our inventory with a post and road number even if they don't show on our maps. Even though they might not be on current visitor maps, they are still part of our road system and signing them helps us better manage them."
We appreciate the follow-up!

Corridor Study holds open house

Posted July 23, 2010—A public meeting to review the Draft Corridor Study Document is scheduled to be held on Tuesday, July 27 from 6:30pm to 8:30pm at the Discovery Square Sperry Auditorium (540 Nucleus Avenue in Columbia Falls).
     Download a complete copy of the Draft Corridor Study Document from here.
     For more information about the open house, download this brochure.
     Everyone from the North Fork is encouraged to attend and let your thoughts be known.

Comments requested by Corridor Study

Posted Jun. 14, 2010—The first newsletter on the Corridor Study for the North Fork road has been published and can be downloaded from here. We urge you to read the newsletter and pay particular attention to the two pages titled “what we’ve heard so far.” There is also a section titled “Did we get it right?” which provides an opportunity to comment and provide additional information if they “have not accurately captured an issue or concerns you have about the study area." This is your opportunity to make sure that you are heard!

NFLA Spring 2010 Newsletter in your mailbox

Updated Jun. 17, 2010—The NFLA Spring 2010 newsletter has been mailed. You can read the newsletter on our Newsletters page or download it from here. And don't forget that the 2010 Activity and 2010 Bikes, Boats and Books schedules have been posted. Everyone is welcome to all of the social events, so please come and join us.

2010 schedule highlights

Updated Jun. 17, 2010—2010 is a banner year for activities on the North Fork, both business and social. Check out all the latest news on activities with the 2010 Activity Schedule and 2010 Bikes, Boats and Books Schedule.

Fire Mitigation Committee Hosts Workshop

Posted May 7, 2010—The NFLA’s Fire Mitigation Committee will sponsor a workshop on July 7, 2010, immediately preceding the Summer Inter Local meeting. The theme of the workshop is “Save Your Home.” It will feature presentations on smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, fire extinguishers, dry sprinklers, water tanks and trailers, and the use and abuse of propane.
The workshop counts as the North Fork’s annual Firewise Day, required to maintain our Firewise Community status. It will begin at 9 a.m. in Sondreson Hall, with time for demonstrations and questions before the Inter Local lunch at noon.
For more news from the Fire Mitigation Committee, go to their home page.

NFLA mail being returned

Updated Dec. 17, 2009—Several members of the NFLA have reported that mail sent to our mailbox (P.O. Box 1603 in Columbia Falls) has been returned as undeliverable. This is apparently caused by a computer glitch in Billings and the NFLA mail box is not the only one affected. The U.S. Post Office is working on a fix, however the problem persists.
Valerie Cox, the NFLA Secretary/ Treasurer, advises that if you continue to have problems sending dues and/or NF patrol signup forms to the Columbia Falls P.O. box, these can be sent directly to her using:

11 Wrangler Drive
Bozeman, MT 59718

The Postmaster at Columbia Falls has promised to continue his efforts to permanently fix this problem. Further information regarding will be posted on the website as it becomes available.

Bears are about

Posted Aug. 20, 2010—Although bears are typically up in the hills eating huckleberries this time of year, there are still some bears around says Tim Manley, grizzly-bear management specialist for Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks. In particular, Patti Bear (a four-year-old female, silver-tipped grizzly) has been seen by residents up and down the road north of Ford (10 miles north of Polebridge). She and other bears are being attracted to structures by hummingbird feeders and ground squirrels that have been shot.
Manley encourages all residents of the North Fork to be bear aware and eliminate attractants. For example, remove dead ground squirrels by throwing them into the woods or brush well away from structures.
Bears coming near structures or otherwise getting into trouble should be reported by calling Manley at (406) 751-4584 (office) or (406) 250-1265 (cell).

Update on North Fork by Two Timber Sale

Posted Aug. 16, 2010—As many who attended July's Interlocal Meeting heard, work has begun on the North Fork by Two Timber Sale. Jason Glenn from the Stillwater State Forest recently provided some information about the sale and an update.
      The Environmental Assessment for the North Fork by Two Timber Sale was started in 2007 and completed and signed in March 2008. Richard George Logging purchased the timber sale in January of 2009. The Sale encompasses 426 acres in the Moose Creek Section (S36 T36N R22W) and 113 acres in the Mud Lake Section (S16 T37N R22W). The total estimated sale volume is 13, 374 tons of sawlogs (approximately 1.9 Million board feet). The termination date for the sale is October 15, 2011.
      Glenn along with Brian Manning told participants at the July Interlocal meeting that Richard George was planning to start on the units accessed from the Moose Creek Road first and then move north. Since then George's plans have changed and he has started on the north side of Moose Creek. Operations should be complete on the north side of the Moose Creek section and moved over to Moose Creek Road tentatively mid to late September.
      "I’d expect the Moose Road units to go fairly fast and operations to be moved north to the Mud Lake section by sometime late October" reports Glenn. George hopes to have the entire project completed before winter sets in this year.
      What is the impact for people driving the North Fork Road? All the equipment has moved in and once hauling starts there will be 3 log trucks making 2 trips a day. Given this low number of hauls, Glenn says "I do not foresee any reason this project would impact travel on either the Moose Creek or North Fork Road." There will be two temporary road approaches built off the Moose Creek Road so the landings will be located well away from traffic and should have no impacts to travel on the Moose Creek Road.
      Log truck drivers have been asked to move slowly on Moose Creek and North Fork Road to reduce dust during dry periods and conflicts with other road users.
      Anyone with questions about activities surrounding the North Fork By Two Timber Sale may contact either Pete Evans (email) or Jason Glenn (email) or call (406) 881-2371.

Wolves back under Endangered Species Act protection

Posted Aug. 8, 2010—Last Thursday, Aug. 5th, U.S. District Judge Don Molloy ruled for the plaintiffs in Defenders of Wildlife et. al. vs. Ken Salazar et. al. For more information, see the story in the Missoulian dated Aug. 6th.

Visit from Border Patrol

Posted Aug. 8, 2010—Col. David Abegglen from the Whitefish Boarder Patrol Station is coming to talk with NFLA members at the September NFLA Business meeting about the future of the Border Patrol and to address questions, issues and concerns. Col. Abegglen will be first on the agenda, so everyone who would like to participate should be at Sondreson Hall by 8:00PM. Anyone who has specific questions that they would like to have answered should send them to Betsy Holycross e-mail for forwarding.

Fire information

Posted Aug. 2, 2010—Although it has been a relatively cool and wet summer, fires are still a threat. To stay abreast of wildfire activity on the Flathead, check the forest’s Fire Information page.
     For detailed definitions of Stage I and Stage II fire restrictions, click here. For information about fire activity in our national parks, including Glacier, go to the National Park Service’s Fire & Aviation Management page, and the Glacier National Park home page and Webcam page. Also see the NPS Fire News page.
     For a current interactive, zoom-in map of all wildfires in the country, go to GeoMAC (loads slowly). Go to the Northern Rockies Coordination Center’s Incident Information page for a regularly updated list of wildfires, and to InciWeb’s Montana page. Also see the National Interagency Fire Center’s Web site and the Daily Inter Lake.
     Finally, for tips on how you can protect your property from wildfire, go to the Fire Mitigation Committee page.

Mountain pine beetle a threat

Posted July 11, 2010—The Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) website reports that the mountain pine beetle will emerge from beneath the bark of infested trees in search of new host trees to attack between mid-July and August. Verbenone, a natural mountain pine beetle repellant, can effectively protect healthy trees from beetle attacks. DNRC Forest Entomologist Amy Gannon offers advice for those interested in using verbenone to protect their trees. Click here for the full story and other information about the mountain pine beetle.

Dance at the hall a big success

Posted July 1, 2010—The June 26th dance at Sondreson Hall was both "well attended and tons of fun" reported Val Cox. Don't forget the Pie and Ice Cream Social and square dance scheduled for Saturday, July 17th starting at 7:00PM at the hall.

Photo by Val Cox
Everyone enjoys the dance

Sondreson Hall gets a cleaning

Posted June 4, 2010—By all accounts the May 29th Hall Cleanup Day was a huge success. There were 17 people on the job, cleaning and organizing for the start of the season. Many thanks to those who participated and a special thanks to Margaret and the Caldwells for sponsoring the event.

Hall Project
Photo by Margaret Heaphy
NFLA members work together to get Sondreson Hall ready for the summer

Open burning prohibited

Updated July 10, 2010—Open burning is prohibited from July 1 through Sept. 30. Burning will resume between Oct. 1 through Nov. 30. More information may be found at the Interagency Burn Permit Center’s Web site

Border Patrol numbers are increasing

Posted May 28, 2009—Have you noticed that there are more and more U.S. Border Patrol vehicles and agents on the North Fork Road? We sure have. And if you’ve wondered why, here are some of the reasons:
     The Border Patrol has begun implementing Operation Stone Garden, a federal program mandating an increase in the patrolling of both U.S. borders with the involvement of local law enforcement agencies. The 36.2 miles of Canadian border from the Continental Divide to the Lincoln County line are patrolled out of the Whitefish Border Patrol office.
     David Jet Abegglen, the patrol agent in charge at that office, says that now there are approximately 25 agents in his charge. Abegglen said there were four agents working the North Fork before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
     For more information see the full story on the North Fork Road web page.

Road corridor study underway

Posted April 28, 2010—Flathead County, in partnership with the Montana Department of Transportation (MDT), is conducting an ongoing road corridor planning study that covers 13 miles of Highway 486 (aka North Fork Flathead Road) north of Columbia Falls, beginning at reference marker 9.5 (Blankenship Road) and extending to reference marker 22.7 (Camas Cr. Road). This study is expected to be completed in the fall of 2010.
More information about the study focus may be obtained from the mt.gov website. Comments may be submitted in writing by US mail to Lani Eggertsen-Goff at Parsons Brinckerhoff, 488 E. Winchester St. Suite 400. Murray, Utah 84107 or by emails provided on the website above. Please indicate comments are for project Highway 486 Study in Flathead County.

Flathead Community Wildfire Protection Plan is available

Posted Feb. 17, 2010—In December, 2009, the North Fork Landowners' Association's Fire Mitigation Committee revised and updated the North Fork Wildfire Mitigation and Planning Report. The committee undertook the revision in conjunction with Flathead County's revision of its Community Wildfire Protection Plan. For more information and access to the text of the North Fork report, visit the Fire Mitigation Committee web page.

North Fork Landowners’ Association

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