North Fork Patrol

Update from the North Fork Patrol

Here are some updates from the North Fork Patrol courtesy of Mark Heaphy:

1). During the last week of this past general hunting season a hunter illegally shot two cow elk in the vicinity of Whale Creek road; the truck and license plate were reported by some landowners. Although the case is still ongoing, the patrol voted to give an award to the landowners; this award is split between the patrol and the NFLA. Thanks to all who continue to keep an eye out for their neighbors properties.

2). The patrol also added Kevin Ulrichsen to its patrollers. After the required background check and briefing he is starting to help check on signed up properties. Kevin is an EMT, former fireman and a great addition to the NF patrol.

3). There have been a few medical incidents these last few months and folks have since asked what they should do. The very first thing one should always do in any emergency is to somehow contact 911; if you don’t have phone service figure out who near you does and have them do so. Be sure to have your address and pertinent info available (things can get stressful so write it down beforehand if possible) for example: 12345 NF road, 120 year old man with pacemaker, high blood pressure, diabetic with history of…etc). By making this call the ball gets rolling and available resources are notified, such as park rangers, law enforcement, SAR, border patrol, hospital etc. Next, you can contact other neighbors, professionals, north fork patrol etc. Typically you can expect both a truck from Blankenship Fire and Three Rivers ambulance, or/and (depending on the emergency) a helo from ALERT or 2Bear. As necessary (to save time), you can always transport the subject down the NF road with flashers on to meet an ambulance en-route. If possible, have an extra person available to mark your entranceway for an ambulance. You can also have little “go bag” ready if you’re going to stay the night at a hospital or in the valley.

These are just basic steps to help during an unexpected emergency.

4). Currently there are about 125 properties signed up for the patrol.

5). The annual winter North Valley SAR training is scheduled for Saturday, 8 Feb. It will be conducted in the Kintla Ranch/Trail Creek area and possibly state section 16.

6). If there are any questions, folks are always welcome to contact Mark at 406-890-5043.

Thanks!

North Fork Patrol finishes winter/spring property checks

The North Fork Patrol has finished its winter/spring patrol; 137 properties registered with the patrol were checked. 11 property owners were contacted about various issues (damaged stovepipes or vent stacks, snow damage etc.).

We will be having our spring meeting in May, so if you have any questions or concerns please contact Mark at 406-890-5043 or m-mheaphy@hotmail.com.

A note from the North Fork Patrol

The North Fork Patrol has finished checking on all properties that are currently signed up (113). Landowners have been notified if there was any property damage. This was mostly due to snow sliding off roofs and damaging vent stacks, stovepipes, satellite/Starlink dishes and a solar panel mount. There was no evidence of any vandalism on patrolled properties.

This year, especially due to all the local road projects, we can definitely expect to see more people in the area driving around, getting lost and “looking around”. So please remember that the best “security” is relying on neighbors to keep an eye on each other’s properties.

If you have questions, contact Mark Heaphy at 406-890-5043 or m-mheaphy@hotmail.com.

Real estate scammers target North Fork landowner (unsuccessfully)

From Mark Heaphy of the North Fork Patrol . . .

Recently a landowner reported that they had gotten three phone calls in the last week from three different realtors who were checking to see if they had just asked them to list their property for sale. They had not.

Evidently there is a scammer who picked up their information from Flathead County GIS (public site and easily obtained information) and then contacted local realtors on Zillow to see if they would list their property. They used fake email addresses that mimicked their name and cell phone number.

Fortunately the realtors got suspicious and contacted the landowners to verify. The landowner then contacted the county plat room and their title company’s title fraud specialist to make sure everything was in order, which it was. The fraud specialist did comment that: “She looked into things and she found a similar deal also in the North Fork area that failed at closing last year. The scammers typically target vacant land and out of state owners.”

Unfortunately the North Fork is not immune to this type of fraud. So please be aware, especially if you’re an out of state landowner.

North Fork Patrol year-end report

North Fork and the moon - photo by Mark Heaphy — North Fork and the moon – Mark Heaphy

The North Fork Patrol had its year-end meeting this past Thursday, December 16, and had only a few things to report:

- There were no major incidents this past year. Recorded patrol mileage was 1427 miles.
- With the increase of people in the area, the board wanted to recommend to folks who store weapons in their structures that they make sure guns are locked up, preferably in a safe.
- Keeping an eye on your neighbor’s property goes a long way to helping out the community and the patrol.

Mark Heaphy

An update from the North Fork Patrol

Here’s the latest activity report from the North Fork Patrol, courtesy of Mark Heaphy . . .

All 126 properties were checked at least once and 618 miles were logged.

There were a few places that had downed trees, dented vent stacks, unlocked doors and a damaged screen (due to a bear). All owners were notified.

North Fork Patrol update

The North Fork Patrol had its spring meeting on 30 May. So far this year the patrol has logged 722 miles and checked on 132 residences. Only two owners had to be notified of damages.

As folks return to the North Fork for the summer, the patrol reminds them to be sure to have a plan of action incase of medical or fire emergencies.

I hope you are having good early summer.

Mark

Report from the North Fork Patrol’s Board Meetings

Following is a report from Mark Heaphy… Since January of this year, the patrol has logged more than 658 miles of patrolling, has checked on 151 properties and notified 19 landowners of various problems or damages. The heavier, longer lasting wet snows of this past winter took out more than a few stacks, vents and chimneys. Also, Irv and Chris Heitz have been added to the patrol and will assist in patrolling the more northern properties.

Thank you Mark and all of the participants of the patrol for all the hard work. Your North Fork neighbors appreciate it!

If you would like to learn more about the North Fork Patrol, check out their webpage here.

North Fork Patrol Spring Board Meeting

The North Fork Patrol had its spring board meeting on Wednesday, May 24. Here are two main highlights:

Currently there are 130 properties on our list; all have been checked and 10 were notified concerning damage or other issues.
The board voted to give an individual a monetary award for the reporting of a poaching up north.

The North Fork Patrol, with the written permission of a landowner, checks North Fork properties for evidence of trespass, poaching and external physical damage. For more information about the North Fork Patrol and who to contact if you are interested in signing up, see the North Fork Patrol page.

2016 Winter North Fork Patrol Meeting Update

Mark Heaphy reports that the North Fork Patrol recently held their annual winter meeting. Here are some highlights: The North Fork Patrol has about 150 properties signed up and almost all have been physically checked at least once this winter. The good news is that out of all of those checked only one had any problem, a damaged vent stack. They plan to get business cards that say “North Fork Patrol” that they may opt to leave at places checked, writing notes on the back with the date, etc. And the Patrol is getting close to putting up the new sign near the southern end of the Home Ranch Bottoms pavement, replacing the old one that’s falling down.

The Patrol has also recently made several updates. They have a new email…. northforkpatrol@hotmail.com that folks can use to get in touch with them. They have also updated their signup form (click here to get the new form). Finally, the Patrol has updated the Emergency Services on the North Fork information sheet (click here to see the new sheet). It is strongly recommended that you print out this new version of the form, fill in your GPS coordinates, and have it handy in case of an emergency.

A patrol member will be making a complete report at the first NFLA meeting scheduled for Saturday, June 4. And you can get more information about the North Fork Patrol by going to their web page.