Outdoors

News from the University of Montana MONTANA — Those in love with the outdoors can spend their entire lives chasing that perfect campsite. New University of Montana research suggests what they are trying to find. Will Rice, a UM assistant professor of outdoor recreation and wildland management, used big data to study the 179 extremely popular campsites of Watchman Campground in Utah’s Zion National Park. Campers use an online system to reserve a wide variety of sites with different amenities, and people book the sites an average of 51 to 142 days in advance, providing hard data about demand. Along with colleague Soyoung Park of Florida Atlantic University, Rice sifted ...

News from MT Fish, Wildlife & Parks HELENA — Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is seeking public comment on a proposal to establish emergency haying and grazing leases on portions of 14 Wildlife Management Areas in the state.  The purpose of these late summer/fall 2021 leases is to im...

All of Lake County moved into moderate drought conditions last week, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor, significantly different from the week before, when the easternmost portion of the county was listed as only “abnormally dry.” At this time last year, nearly all of Montana was in the &ld...

News from Montana FWP MONTANA — Several angling restrictions on rivers in southwest, north-central and south-central Montana go into effect due to warming temperatures and low flows. The restrictions include what are commonly known as “hoot owl” restrictions, which means fishing is clo...

News from MT Fish, Wildlife & Parks HELENA — Hunters interested in participating in game damage hunt opportunities need to register online for the Hunt Roster by Thursday, July 15, through: MyFWP. The roster is used by Fish, Wildlife & Parks to quickly respond to landowners who are eligibl...

Wildlife & Parks KALISPELL — Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is seeking individuals to serve on its Region 1 (northwest Montana) Citizen Advisory Council. The purpose of the Citizen Advisory Council is to advise FWP on various regional and statewide issues, programs and policies; help iden...

News from the LCCD LAKE COUNTY – The Lake County Conservation District invites people to get ready for this fall’s local scenic bike route, featuring local farms and food. Mission Mountain Area Pedal to Plate will be held on Sept. 25. Participants will get to view local farms in the missi...

News from CSKT Division of Fire  FLATHEAD RESERVATION — Division of Fire officials state that fire danger is moderate, but is very close to high, especially on the west side of the reservation.   Debris burning by permit will close for the fire season on June 30. CSKT Division of Fire...

News from Glacier National Park   GLACIER NATIONAL PARK — The park hosted 170,277 visitors in May 2021. This year is the park’s highest visitation year-to-date through May on record.     May 2020 cannot be used as a good year-to-year comparison due to the park being closed u...

News from Glacier National Park  More locations and services in Glacier National Park are gradually opening as summer gets closer. Glacier National Park is offering additional services and visitor opportunities as the summer season approaches.  The new Going to the Sun Road ticketed entry r...