I’m a little late in posting this, but here is the June/July/August Wildland Fire Potential Outlook.
July, August and September are looking dry for extreme Northwest Montana. The shaded areas are actually west of the Whitefish Divide, but lines mean nothing at that scale.
And this is merely an outlook based on global weather. What we get is what we get. What we do know is that we are dry for June now, even with the moisture that has come. Mountain snowpack is low, which is more of an issue for river floating than it is for fire season.
We should all hope for nice wetting rains spaced weekly through July and August, and the fall rains coming in after Labor Day. Works for me!
Regardless, now is a great time to do your trimming and grass mowing and get prepared for fire season. The July 1 update will give us a better forecast, but we all know we have fire season in July and August, sometimes carrying into September and October. Let’s hope for a short and quiet fire season.
June 21 Summer Solstice Hike to Cyclone Lookout has been cancelled. The hike in Covey Meadow is on, meet at the Ranger Station at 6.30 pm. This is approximately 2.5 miles and is mostly flat.
Changes to the Square Dance Schedule: July 8th, July 29th cancelled , Aug 19th has been rescheduled for Aug 20th and will be hosted by Debo Powers
Aug 12th Annual Pie and Ice Cream Social and Square Dance will be hosted by Kevin and Beth Ulrichsen and Debo Powers.
New addition to the calendar: June 24th Welcome to the Summer Dance and Social, 7.30 pm at Sonderson Hall, Hosted by Dan and Dawn Jacobsen. You don’t have to dance but Debo Powers will lead us with some dancing suitable for all ages and abilities, Come and Meet your neighbors celebrate summer and the crowning of the 2023 Ms Polebridge. Bring along your favorite finger foods and drinks to share.
Printed Versions of the North Fork Calendar can be picked up at the top of Vance Hill. There is a small black mail box for calendars on the side of the Rittenburg Mail Box. Heading North this is the first mail box on the left in the group of 6 at the top of Vance Hill. These will be available later in the week. Tell your neighbors.
WEST GLACIER, Mont. [June 13, 2023] – Going-to-the-Sun Road officially opened this morning for the 2023 summer season. The road may now be accessed by motorized vehicles all the way through from both the West Glacier and St. Mary entrances. This is the earliest the road has opened since 2005.
Vehicle reservations are required May 26 through September 10, 2023, for those entering the park by vehicle or motorcycle from 6 am to 3 pm at west side entrances including the North Fork, Camas, and West entrances.
With Going-to-the-Sun Road fully open, the number of vehicle reservations available will be increased in the corridor. This increase will be executed through a series of additional reservation releases made available each morning starting today, June 13 at 8 am MDT. For opening day, a one-time release for additional Going-to-the-Sun Road vehicle reservations will also take place today at 6 am.
Kurt Steele, Flathead National Forest Supervisor has moved to a position with Region 1 Forest Headquarters. In the meantime, Deputy Flathead Forest Supervisor Tami McKenzie is holding the fort…
Flathead National Forest Supervisor Kurt Steele has accepted a new position at the U.S. Forest Service’s Northern Region headquarters in Missoula, capping a three-and-a-half-year stint overseeing 2.4 million forested acres in northwest Montana that in the past year had become beset in controversy.
Tami MacKenzie
According to an agency spokesperson, Steele “was offered and accepted” a new post as deputy director at the regional office that involves “environmental planning,” although the details of the position are still being worked out.
“I think it’s just a lateral move to a position at the regional office level,” Dan Hottle, the federal agency’s northern region public information officer, said Friday afternoon, when details about the transition were still scant. “It’s a new role and he will work closely with the regional leadership team on a number of different projects across the region as deputy director. His start date is still being negotiated right now.”
Greetings all!! Here is the Agenda for the North Fork Basic Fire Training Day on June 22nd…
We’ll start at Sondreson Community Hall at 0930. We’ll have coffee, bottled water, and light refreshments available. Molly will open with brief introductions, then turn it over to Richard Hildner to brief the exercise at the Hildner Cabin.
The Group will travel to the Hildner residence at 350 Moose Creek Rd. Structure Assessment forms will be passed out, the group split into teams, and the teams will be tasked with assessing the structures and the fuels modifications surrounding the structures. We would appreciate Lincoln Chute, Todd Lando and Gary Mahugh forming the oversight group to put together the “book answers” and to debrief the teams as they report out on their findings.
At noon, the Group will return to the Community Hall for their brown bag lunch. During this time, we’d appreciate it if Gary Mahugh would have some of his standard firefighting tools and supplies available to display and sell. And Sean Johnson, if you could brief the Wedge Canyon TIP application process, there is time for that. We don’t have plans to have a projector or laptop available for this event, but if you need a projector, the NFLA has one we can use. You’ll either need to bring a laptop or let us know you need one.
After lunch, Kevin Ulrichsen will lead a discussion about how to suppress fires within the Structure. We have asked Kevin or Lynn to lead a moment of silence in memory of Doug Barnes who passed away in a house fire. We would like Gary Mahugh and Lynn Ogle to also participate in the discussion on fire suppression inside the structure.
Molly can wrap up whenever things are done – no later than 3:30.
June’s NFLA meeting will feature a presentation at 7:00pm by Clint Muhlfeld, the Fisheries Biologist with the USGS in Glacier Park. Clint has been heading up the work on preserving native west slope cutthroat and bull trout. His recent work has been in Quartz and Gunsight Lakes. (BONUS item from Clint: “Here is a story that came out in National Geographic last year that features our work on native trout in the North Fork. Thought folks may be interested in case they haven’t seen it.”
The North Fork lost a valued member of the community on May 29, 2023, with the passing of Becky Braunig, 68.
A native of Texas, Becky was a master gardener and a great source of knowledge on all things botanical. She earned a degree in horticulture from Texas A&M University in the 1970s. She began her career working for San Antonio Botanical Gardens. In 1979, she accepted a job with the San Antonio parks department. She worked there for 25 years, rising to the position of Horticultural Services Superintendent for the City of San Antonio. At the height of her career, she was responsible for more than 300 employees.
In the early 1990s, she married Stanley Haag. They came to the North Fork on their honeymoon, staying at the North Fork Hostel. It was love at first sight. Shortly afterward, they purchased property on Trail Creek Road and over several years built a retirement home there. Becky had been a full-time North Fork resident since 2004.
In addition to contributing to local gardening activities, she was an avid wildlife photographer, a member of the North Fork Landowners Association and the North Fork Preservation Association, and a volunteer with North Valley Search and Rescue.
Becky was a sensitive, kind, and generous soul. She will be fondly remembered by her many friends for her love of plants, animals, and the North Fork. And, as many would note, for the delicious stuffed jalapeño peppers she created and brought to many a North Fork potluck dinner.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Carl and Sissy Braunig and her husband Von Stanley Haag. Columbia Mortuary is handling arrangements. A memorial will be planned later this summer.
Here’s a photo of the the mountain of millings generated by a Glacier Park road resurfacing project and subsequently hauled to the DeMers Ridge gravel pit. Beginning July 10, Flathead County will be reusing this material to repair and upgrade the roughly one-mile section of Glacier Drive between the Polebridge Mercantile and the nearby entrance to Glacier Park.
Millings at DeMers Ridge, May 25, 2023 – Lois Walker
Oh, joy… and just in time for the long holiday weekend . . .
GNP Vehicle Reservation System Begins May 26
24-hour advance reservations released on a rolling basis starting May 25 at 8 am MDT
Glacier NP Vehicle Reservation Areas 2023
WEST GLACIER, Mont. [May 24, 2023] – Glacier National Park reminds visitors that vehicle reservations are required May 26 through September 10, 2023 for those entering the park by vehicle or motorcycle from 6 am to 3 pm at west side entrances including the North Fork, Camas and West entrances.
For the east side of the park, vehicle reservations will not be required at Many Glacier, Two Medicine and St. Mary (at Rising Sun) entrances until July 1, 2023.
Visitors with lodging, camping, or commercial activity reservations (e.g., boat tours and horseback rides) do not need a vehicle reservation and can use their confirmation email to access the portion of the park for which their activity is booked.
Visitors who do not already possess a vehicle reservation can book 24-hour advance reservations at 8 am MDT on Recreation.gov the day before their visit. Vehicle reservations are only available at Recreation.gov.
The park is open 24/7 and visitors may enter the park before 6 am or after 3 pm without a vehicle reservation; however, entry to Going-to-the-Sun Road from the west side is restricted before 6 am due to construction activities requiring nightly closures.
For the east side of Going-to-the-Sun Road Corridor, vehicle reservations will be checked at the Rising Sun check point (located 6 miles west of the St. Mary Entrance) beginning on July 1, 2023. Park shuttles at St. Mary Visitor Center are located outside of the vehicle reservation area and accessible without a vehicle reservation.
Additional vehicle reservation information and frequently asked questions are available on the park’s Vehicle Reservation page.
Glacier National Park is surrounded by a vast amount of additional recreational opportunities, including local tribal lands and national forests. Recreational activities on tribal lands such as hiking, boating, fishing, camping, etc. requires a permit through each tribe. Visitors can find more information on the Blackfeet Nation and Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes (CSKT) websites. Information for recreation in the Flathead National Forest and Bob Marshall Wilderness can be found on the Forest Services’ website. Visitors should research and plan before visiting these areas.
Need help planning your trip? Visitors looking for travel guidance can visit the Glacier Country Tourism website for additional information about the areas and businesses surrounding Glacier National Park.
Sondreson Hall interior after clean-up, May 14, 2022 – Tami Stone
The Sondreson Hall spring cleanup is fast approaching. This year, it will be on Saturday, May 20 at 10:00am.
Dan Jacobson is in charge of hall maintenance and needs to ensure that enough people will be present to accomplish the various outside and inside tasks. If you can come, please contact his wife, Dawn, and let her know: dawnmjacobson@gmail.com or 406-730-1263. She’ll pass the word on to Dan.
Oh, did I not mention lunch? There will definitely be lunch. I believe Dawn has a lot to do with that part, too.
I’m a little late in posting this, but here is the June/July/August Wildland Fire Potential Outlook.
