The Fall 2025/Winter 2026 activities calendar is now available on the NFLA Calendar page!
Cyclomoose Forest Management Project – comment deadline is October 16th
The Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) is asking for public moment on the proposed Cyclomoose Forest Management Project. Most of the work would be located in the Coal Creek State Forest near Polebridge. (See the map.)
Comments should be sent to:
Department of Natural Resources and Conservation
Attn: Cullen O’Brien
Stillwater Unit
P.O. BOX 164, Olney, MT 59927
Cullen.O’Brien@mt.gov
The comment deadline is October 16, 2025 so, realistically, comments should be sent via email.
For more detail, including project objectives, here’s the meat of the original press release . . . Continue reading Cyclomoose Forest Management Project – comment deadline is October 16th
Flathead Forest to begin prescribed burns
It’s that time again. The US Forest Service is planning on a number of prescribed fires across the Flathead National Forest. They also hope to burn some slash piles here and there. Details are limited, probably because of the government shutdown, but they are not announcing any significant activity in the North Fork.
Here’s the meat of the official press release . . .
Flathead National Forest to Begin Prescribed Fires
As favorable weather conditions allow for hazardous fuels reduction work
Kalispell, Mont., October 9, 2025— The Flathead National Forest is planning prescribed fire operations beginning this week, pending all required approvals. We estimate this work to continue through November as weather conditions allow. We use prescribed fires to help reduce overgrown vegetation to help protect local communities, infrastructure and natural resources from wildfires.
Planned prescribed fires for this fall may include:
- Spotted Bear Ranger District – 20 acres in the Spotted Bear Mountain area, south of Spotted Bear Ranger Station (broadcast and pile burning).
- Swan Lake Ranger District – hazardous fuels reduction work in Beaver Creek and Lindburg areas, Crane Mountain area, and Blacktail Mountain area (pile burning).
- Tally Lake Ranger District – 146 acres in the Star Meadows area, west of Whitefish, MT (broadcast and pile burning).
- Pile burning across the Flathead National Forest to reduce hazardous fuels in Flathead, Missoula, and Lake counties.
Watch for warning signs along roads near all prescribed fire areas before and during burns. Residents may experience smoke during the prescribed burns. When driving, slow down and turn on your headlights when you encounter smoke on the road. Go to https://fire.airnow.gov/ for detailed information about air quality.
We will evaluate weather conditions in the hours before a burn begins. If conditions warrant, scheduled prescribed fire activities may not commence.
Stay informed about the scheduled prescribed fires through the forest website and social media channels. We will notify county emergency management officials when burning begins.
Red Meadow & Moose Creek Roads construction update for Oct 8th: The worst is over
(October 8, 2025, about noon) Via Richard Hildner…
Good News! This just in from Kevin Ulrichsen who reports that the contractor working on the Moose Creek Road is just finishing up the last culvert today (as I type) and he will be working on the dips and grading next. Dips and grading should not cause any delays.
Red Meadow & Moose Creek Roads construction update for Sep 26th
(September 26) Here’s the latest information on the construction work scheduled for Red Meadow and Moose Creek roads from Rob Davies, Hungry Horse-Glacier View District Ranger…
I just talked to the Forest Service COR, Cliff Lewis.
The contractor is still working on the 1677 cut-across road towards Red Meadow Road. He is hoping to finish the 1677 Rd this week and then start on the Red Meadow Road on Monday. The Road work on Red Meadow will have delays and is expected to last 2 weeks.
So, at this point, Moose Creek Rd work is expected to start in 2 weeks — approximately Oct 13th.
Once the Moose Cr Road work and culvert replacement gets started, the contractor, and myself, will do our best to communicate what’s going on. There will be an option for emergencies.
If a resident needs to get through for medical reasons or other emergencies they could use the newly refurbished 1677 and cut-across to Red Meadow… then out to the North Fork.
The contractor is Erin Gyman of AGS Inc. He is willing to communicate directly with land owners once he begins work on Moose Cr. Rd.
Wedge Canyon Fuels Reduction – last chance!
Do you have a forest that’s located within the boundary below? Do you want to help protect against fire, disease and insects? Then this sounds like an opportunity for you!
This is your last chance to get financial and technical assistance for your property from the NRCS.
Last chance to sign up: October 31, 2025.
Sign up in person at 133 Interstate Ln, Kalispell, MT 59901 or call us
at (406) 752-4242 ext. 3
Radio, Moose, and Hallowat Fire updates
The following information about wildland fires in the Glacier View Ranger District was received on Thursday, September 3, from Ryan Butler, Acting Fire Management Officer for the district. Thanks, Ryan!
(Note that all these fires are south of Moose Lake and some distance west of the North Fork Road.)
Good Morning,
I wanted to reach out to the North Fork Community to give an update on several fires in the Hallowat/Big creek drainages. Below is a summary of the fires . . .
Hallowat Fire (See attached photo. The attached map shows location of all three fires)
Discovery date/time: 9/2/25 @1630
Location: Dead Horse Ridge in the Big Creek drainage, Glacier View RD.
Size: 3-5 acres
Status: Fire was called in by Huckleberry Lookout. The fire is located on the ridge top within the footprint of the 2001 Moose Fire. Terrain is steep, rugged, and remote with limited access for firefighters and equipment. Fuel type is grass, brush, dead and down logs, and standing snags. Firefighters from the nearby 2025 Moose Fire responded but were unable to engage due to fire behavior and limited access. Air Attack, one Type 2 helicopter, and one Type 1 helicopter responded and delivered buckets until dark on 9/2/25.
Trail #452 is within the area of active fire and should be avoided by the public.
Weather is forecasted to move to a cooler, wetter weather pattern. Based on this and the time of year and fire location, our strategy for the Hallowat fire will be to utilize natural barriers, and trails and roads as containment features. District firefighting resources will be on this fire for the foreseeable future or until we get a season-ending event.
*Note* Smoke from the Hallowat Fire has been visible from the summit of Big Mountain, as well as the summit webcam.
Moose Fire
Discovery date/time: 9/1/25 @ 1400
Location: ½ mile west of the junction of Rd 315 and Rd 316, Big Creek drainage, Glacier View RD.
Size: 1/4 acre
Status: Staffed with 8 firefighters and 1 type 4 fire engine. Fire has line around it and is contained. Expected to be declared out 09/05/25
Radio Fire
Discovery date/time: 9/2/25 @1100
Location: Approx. 1 mile NW of the radio tower on Big Mtn, Glacier View RD.
Size: 1/10 acre
Status: Staffed with 4 firefighters. Fire is contained. Expected to be declared out 09/05/25
Information from ‘Understanding the New Property Tax Laws’ presentation’
On Thursday, August 28th, at Sondreson Hall, State Representative Debo Powers gave a presentation on the effects of the recent revisions to Montana’s property tax laws. Debo concentrated on the residential aspects of the legislation, a considerable task in itself.
The full Montana Department of Revenue PowerPoint slide deck, including the more tightly focused material that Debo discussed, can be downloaded as a PDF here. (Debo only used the slides pertaining to residential property owners—slides 2, 4, 5, 6, 9, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22.)
Additional information can be found at Montana’s “2026 Tax Information for Montana Property Owners” page.
Below are some photos of the event, including images of the more relevant slides.
Red Meadow & Moose Creek Roads construction updates
(August 26) Here’s the latest information on the construction work scheduled for Red Meadow and Moose Creek roads from Rob Davies, Hungry Horse-Glacier View District Ranger…
I do not have a lot of details, contractors sometimes are not very precise with the timing of their work, but this is what I know.
There are two separate contracts on Red Meadow Rd and Moose Cr.
One contract is operating now, brushing 2 side roads off the Red Meadow Road. The main Red Meadow will have a brush-cutter working both side of the road starting this Friday 8/29.
The other contractor will be installing 5 culverts on Red Meadow and one at the end of Moose Cr Road. That contractor had to shift priorities based on material delivery and went to complete another project. The latest info we have is this: He was planning on mobilizing this week and starting work next Tuesday, Sept 2nd after the long weekend.
I’ll share more details if and when I receive updates.
Foothills mule deer migration …and more
This just arrived from Ethan Lula, Wildlife Biologist with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP). The status of mule deer and other area large animal populations has been a hot topic at the past several Interlocal meetings. Ethan provides some insight, as well as a link to a wealth of additional information . . .
I just wanted to share a highlight from some of the ongoing wildlife research in the area. This past winter, as part of a region-wide effort designed to evaluate the use of remote cameras to estimate elk and deer abundances in forested habitat, FWP captured 3 elk, 9 mule deer and 9 white-tailed deer in HD 101. The map [above] is from an adult doe mule deer that was captured along Foothills Rd, and is currently spending the summer about 40 miles, as the crow flies, in BC. This is one of the farthest migrations FWP has documented in the area, and took about 20 days to complete (May 7 – May 22), crossing the width of the Whitefish Range and the North Fork of the Flathead River. Very impressive and serves as an important reminder that our “local” wildlife populations are influenced by factors and interconnected at much larger spatial scales than we often realize.
If you want to learn more about the large mammal monitoring project, here is a link to the website where you will find background info, a YouTube video, and the annual reports:
https://fwp.mt.gov/conservation/wildlife-management/research/northwest-large-mammal-monitoring-project.