Here’s the first North Fork bear update of the spring from Tim Manley, Grizzly Bear Management Specialist for Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks. It was posted to Facebook on Wednesday, May 5 . . .
Good morning. Just a quick update on bears.
Continue reading First bear update of the year from Tim Manley
Heads up! It is Forest Service special use permit time again. Some of you may recall the kerfuffle over this last year, particularly when it came to guided ATV tours. There are a few more requests this year. There is a May 12 deadline for responses.
View/download the official press release.
Details on the various projects and information on how to submit concerns can be found at: https://www.fs.usda.gov/detailfull/flathead/passes-permits/event-commercial/?cid=fseprd903970&width=full
Here is an extract from a very useful note sent by Rob Davies, Hungry Horse/Glacier View District Ranger, that provides more focus on the projects affecting the North Fork . . .
Continue reading Forest Service posts Special Use permit details; deadline for comments is May 12
Spring 2021 prescribed burn activity in the North Fork is limited to areas close to Columbia Falls, Coram and Martin City, although the rest of the Flathead National Forest is seeing considerably more activity.
From the press release…
Kalispell, MT, March 18, 2021- The Flathead National Forest is planning to conduct spring prescribed fire projects, when weather, fuel conditions, and air quality become favorable. Smoke will be visible from various places in the Flathead Valley depending on the location of the burn units and weather conditions.
Each project follows a Prescribed Fire Burn Plan. The prescribed fire projects are located and designed to be controlled to reduce the potential for adverse effects, or to escape as a wildland fire. These projects will follow Montana air quality standards and coordinated with Montana State Department of Environmental Quality to reduce the impacts of smoke to our neighbors, cooperators, and surrounding communities. The project areas include:
Pile burning: On the attached map major locations of concentrated piles are identified. These may include both landing and hand piles. There are also scattered piles not identified on the map which may also be burned. Continue reading Flathead National Forest Spring Prescribed Fire Projects
From the official press release . . .
WEST GLACIER, Mont. [March 17, 2021] – Glacier National Park announces access to the east side of the park will reopened on March 18 at Two Medicine, Cut Bank and St. Mary for foot traffic, skis and snowshoes. Regular winter closures remain in place. Chief Mountain Road will remain closed at the park boundary until road conditions permit.
The entrance at St. Mary allows vehicle traffic on Going-to-the-Sun Road for 1.5 miles until the winter gate closure at St. Mary Campground. Access past the gate is allowed by foot, skiing and snowshoeing as is typical of normal winter seasons. The St. Mary Campground remains closed to winter camping until further notice.
The roads into Cut Bank, and Two Medicine remain closed to vehicle traffic for the winter, but access by foot, skiing and snowshoeing is available past the gates as is typical of normal winter seasons. Construction began on Many Glacier Road on March 15 and is closed to vehicular traffic and closed to hiker/biker traffic Monday through Friday through May 28.
Visitors are reminded that winter conditions are unpredictable and can quickly become dangerous. Visitors should prepare for icy conditions, high winds, and snow. Cellular communications in the park are extremely limited.
Access to the park east of the Continental Divide has been closed since March 2020 to protect the Blackfeet Indian Reservation population from COVID-19 due to high-risk members of the community. The decision to allow access to the east side was made after close consultation between health officials from the National Park Service, Indian Health Service, the Blackfeet Tribe, Glacier County and the state of Montana.
A note from Rob Davies, Hungry Horse-Glacier View District Ranger:
Attached is a letter describing the proposed expansion of Whale Gravel Pit. The material from the pit will be used primarily for the North Fork FLAP project… We are accepting public comments now through April 1st.
PDF attachment: Whale Pit Scoping Letter final 03152021
Greetings! You are all cordially invited to the next North Fork Land Use Advisory Committee meeting being held Tuesday March 9th at 6:00pm at Sondreson Hall. The text Amendment Sub Committee will be updating their progress. Your involvement is crucial to the success of this important endeavor to help preserve the North Fork we all know and love. Thank you.
Randy Kenyon
Chair, NFLUAC
A note from Mark Heaphy . . .
The North Fork Patrol is finishing up checking and/or skiing into all properties that were signed up (about 140). Last month’s windstorm blew down many trees and if damage occurred, the property owner was notified. Be prepared for downed trees across entry roads or on properties when you return in spring or summer.
North Valley Rescue will be conducting winter training in the vicinity of Trail Creek and Kintla Ranch on Saturday, February 27th. Two Bear Air may be conducting ops in the area mid to late morning. If you have questions please contact Mark Heaphy.
The 2021 winter North Fork Interlocal Agreement meeting will be held Thursday, March 4 at 9:00 a.m. The meeting usually lasts abut three hours. Due to the the ongoing pandemic, it will be a virtual meeting using the Zoom conferencing software.
The Interlocal Agreement provides for face-to-face contact (usually!) with representatives of agencies whose policies and actions affect the North Fork. Interlocal Agreement meetings are held in the winter (in town) and summer (at Sondreson Hall). Agency attendees include Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Montana Department of State Lands, U.S. Border Patrol, Glacier National Park, Flathead National Forest, U.S. Fish &Wildlife Service and Flathead County.
This is always a very interesting meeting, with reports from a range of government agencies and local organizations and often some quite vigorous discussion.
As some of you may recall from last summer’s Interlocal, Flathead County discovered, after 100+ years, that the North Fork Road has no official easement through a section of state land near the border. This means they have to buy access from Montana DNRC. *And* that means DNRC has to scope out the sale, including a public comment period. (They were going to ride the Forest Service’s coattails on this as part of the overall North Fork Road FLAP grant work, but USFS was moving too slowly.)
Anyway… Below are the materials DNRC sent out Friday, January 4. If you have any questions or comments on this proposed easement, please contact Dave Ring at dring@mt.gov or by calling 406-881-2663. Comments must be received no later than December 18, 2020 to be considered.
Cover Letter
Map of Requested Easement
General Area Map
Also, the Daily Inter Lake posted a good article on this issue: “Land Board to consider easement for North Fork Road project“
The governor has tightened up the state’s pandemic-related restrictions, effective November 20, 2020. The only impact locally is to reduce Sondreson Hall’s maximum capacity from 50 to 25. Everything else remains the same. Here are the updated “Sondreson Hall Use Restrictions and Guidelines” . . .
The following restrictions, guidelines and notices apply to the use of Sondreson Hall under Montana’s “Phase 2” COVID-19 management plan, the November 17, 2020 “Directive on Group Size and Capacity,” and in accordance with Montana’s mask directive:
The maximum number of people in the hall at any given time is 25. For a given event, up to 25 chairs will be set up, dispersed as widely as practical. If there are no empty seats available, please do not enter the hall until someone else leaves. If the event requires tables, they should be dispersed as widely as practical (ideally at least 6 feet apart) with no more than six individuals seated at each table.
Face coverings are required within the hall for all individuals with the following exceptions:
No food sharing beyond family groups except under specific circumstances. The exception is when food is distributed in a serving line with the individuals handing out the food using appropriate protection (masks and gloves).
During clean-up after events, please follow the disinfection guidelines posted throughout the hall:
“Please use spray bottle solution to disinfect all surfaces, including tables, counters, the lectern, the stovetop, and the sink area. Also wipe down any chairs that were used during the event. Disposable gloves are provided. The solution contains bleach so be careful with your clothing. Thank you for helping us keep our members and guests safe.”
Hand sanitizer is available several places throughout the hall. Please use it as needed.
If needed, disposable masks are available at the hall. The suggested donation for a mask is $1.00, but do not hesitate to use a mask just because you don’t have a dollar handy.
(To view or download this information as a printable PDF, click here.)