Independently owned since 1905
Independently owned since 1905
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Due to the hot, dry weather conditions, Sanders County moved to Stage I fire restrictions on Monday. Commissioners signed a resolution last week imposing the restrictions, which went into effect at 12:01 a.m. Monday. Under Stage I, campfires are prohibited except in a developed recreation site or improved site. Smoking is also prohibited, except within an enclosed vehicle or building, or developed recreation site, or while stopped in an area at least three feet in diameter that is barren or cleared of all flammable materials. Certain...
Each year, more and more people flock to the small town of Trout Creek to celebrate the purple goodness that grows on local mountainsides. The 42nd Annual Huckleberry Festival was held last weekend, packing the Trout Creek Park with thousands of residents and visitors. Saturday started with the huckleberry pancake breakfast put on by the volunteer fire department, followed by the parade down Highway 200. Spectators said the parade was one of the biggest and best yet for the festival. After the...
Trouble with cellular service in the Thompson Falls area has prompted questions and comments from readers. Several readers have reported not being able to make a call or not having service. The Ledger has heard from Verizon Wireless customers unhappy with their service and reached out to the company. First, The Ledger contacted Verizon customer service from our Verizon phones. On a call last week, we were told by a representative that there were no open service calls in the area. The Ledger then reached out to media representatives for the...
The sounds of gunshots and screams for help echoed through the hall of Thompson Falls High School last week, but no one was in danger. Local law enforcement and first responders received training on how to respond when there is an active threat. After two days of classroom work, lectures and going through scenarios, last Thursday the 29 police officers, fire department and volunteer ambulance staff enacted four scenarios in the Active Threat Integrated Response Course (ATIRC). The course is put...
The Sanders County Fairgrounds caretaker and assistant have been working on the nearly 10 acres of lawns since April, getting them as green as possible. Kim McNeil, the fairgrounds caretaker for 30 years, helped by his wife, Margaret, have been mowing the lawn for months and for the last few weeks have been running the sprinklers 24 hours a day, seven days a week. That all comes to a temporary halt in the near future when thousands of people get to enjoy the grassy fairgrounds for the 2022 fair, starting on Aug. 1, and at the same time...
The Greek philosopher Heraclitus said “the only constant in life is change.” He sure was right. Everything changes, as history has proven. Sanders County is in a unique situation this fall. All but two of our elected officials are up for election this November. Commissioner Tony Cox’s term is up in 2026. Clerk of District Court is also not up for election until 2024, but the commissioners are selecting a new clerk as Candy Fisher, who was elected in 2020, resigned effective August 15. This fall, voters will elect for the following posit...
Editor: I agree totally with Jim Elliott’s suggestion that voters be given the option to choose “None of the Above Candidates.” I’m guessing a fair number of those who vote in each election find none of the candidates for a position to their liking. When a few candidates lose to “None of the Above Candidates,” the message would be clear that the quality of candidates voters will vote for needs, on occasion, to improve. So often I hear, I voted for the candidate I disliked the least. I have been in that position more often than I like to rem...
This is an open letter to all community members suffering from the deplorable service provided by Verizon throughout Sanders County. As a resident of Thompson Falls and as a longtime customer of Verizon, I, along with numerous other customers are fed up! We need our phones to work. I pay approximately $200 a month for 1990’s service. Businesses in the area have no service half of the time; and come summer and the influx of tourists, there is nothing but dead air all of the time. We should not tolerate this any longer. It is my understanding tha...
Of all the horrors Republicans see in the Democrats’ grossly misnamed “Inflation Reduction Act,” the biggest bogeyman is that the Internal Revenue Service is going to get funding to hire new employees to boost their auditing efforts. Tax auditing, in case you don’t know, is a multifaceted approach to taxpayer compliance; some involve simple individual returns, but the complexity skyrockets when it comes to corporate and millionaire’s returns. Mike Crapo, a Senator from Idaho, complains...
7 YEARS AGO • AUGUST 13, 1952 NEW ROAD BEING BUILT A railroad grade and trucking road, planned for future use by ACM Co. operations up Thompson River, is in its initial stages of construction. About three miles of clearing has already been done on the east side of the river where the road is going in. Construction man, Bud King of Missoula and a crew of men are moving in heavy road equipment and in a few weeks now it is possible that 30 or 40 men will be employed on the project. Many of these men will find accommodations at Snider near the p...
JADE STEVENS, Thompson Falls - “The overwhelming sense of community and the positive attitudes all the way around.” COLLIN KOFFLER, Thompson Falls - “The variety of booths and the different vendors from all around the country.” ABIGAIL JONES, Thompson Falls - “All of the dogs, I like how so many people brought their dogs with them this year.” KAMBER TORTI, Thompson Falls - “All of the food and all of the dogs!” JENNIFER GRISSOM, Orange, California - “So far I would have to say the ice cream as well as the community and the inviting environm...
Ambulance: Plains, 11; T. Falls, 4; Hot Springs, 3; Noxon, 2; Trout Creek, 1; Paradise, 1; Dixon, 1. Monday, August 8 Motor vehicle crash, Plains. Civil attempts, T. Falls. Motor vehicle crash, Paradise. Trespass, Trout Creek. Property damage/criminal mischief, Plains. Trespass, T. Falls. Property damage/criminal mischief, T. Falls. Search and rescue call, Trout Creek. Nuisance complaints, Hot Springs. Fire, Trout Creek. Assault, Dixon. Intoxicated subject, Dixon. Suspicious activity, Plains. Tuesday, August 9 Suspicious activity, Dixon. Civil...
Montana Highway Patrol Aaron Kruse, 34, operating without liability insurance, 4th or subsequent offense, $585; driving while privilege suspended/revoked, 1st offense, $275. Brent Jameson, 38, operating non-commercial vehicle with 0.08% BAC or greater, 1st offense, $935. Dora Papay, 50, speeding in a restricted zone, $55. Marvin Harrison, 77, seatbelt violation, $20. Joshua Lang, 27, operating without liability insurance, 1st offense, $85; seatbelt violation, $20. Blake McDonald, 20, day speeding, $20. Michael Boys, 25, seatbelt violation,...
For decades, crowds have been lining up the second weekend in August for a taste of huckleberry heaven. The Trout Creek Rural Fire District pancake breakfast has had the same menu for more than 40 years: huckleberry pancakes, sliced ham and scrambled eggs. The volunteer firemen and women have it down to a science, and not much has changed through the years. Fire chief Dave Anderson said he has been with the department for 26 years. This year they had 25 helpers cooking, serving and cleaning...
A yearly highlight of the Huckleberry Festival is the pie eating contest. Twenty-five contestants competed in four age groups. The youngest age group, which included contestants ages 7 and under, were each given a quarter of a pie to try and finish. Aria Komarec, age 5, and Luca Komarec, age 5, both of Otsego, Minnesota, tied for first place. The second round, ages 8to 12, had six contestants. Emcee Ray Brown asked contestant Christian Peterson, age 10 of Missoula, if he was hungry prior to the contest starting. A solid “no” was given as his...
Archery demonstrations put on by Trout Creek School community archery team were a new addition to this year's Huckleberry Festival. Jerry and Becky Doyle, who help coach the archery team, were at the festival to help over the weekend with the students' demonstrations. Lucas Summers, Riley Reum, ShayLyn Stein, Cameron Eaton and Eithan Chambers were some of the students at the festival putting on demonstrations as they shot at targets, balloons and plastic archery animals. "We have 20-plus years...
Thompson Falls native, Rick Hensyel (68), son of Richard and Louise Hensyel, passed away August 6, 2022, after a long illness. His children were by his side as he made his way home. Rick was a musician. He basically brought Rock N' Roll to Thompson Falls, starting his first band, "The Henchmen" in junior high. He would go on to play throughout the Northwest, including Canada. "Survival" was a local favorite, providing many dances that had you on your feet at the JC Center and The Ranch, to name... Full story
Megan and Andy Hardenbrook of Thompson Falls announce the birth of their daughter, Charlette Ray Hardenbrook. Charlette was birth at 8:23 a.m. on Tuesday, August 2, at Clark Fork Valley Hospital in Plains. She weighed 6 pounds, 13 ounces. She joins a sister, Alexandria. Maternal grandparents are Dan and Sheri Volk of La Grande, Oregon. Maternal great-grandparent is Dave Round of Dayville, Oregon. Paternal grandparents are Nona and Wayne Cunningham of Rufe, Oklahoma. Paternal great-grandparents... Full story
It really is a small world. Two Sanders County men have crossed paths once again after attending boot camp together nearly four decades ago. Ed Moreth is a reporter for The Sanders County Ledger. You've probably seen him at various events. He primarily covers the Plains area, but ventures all over the county for stories. Moreth is a curious guy, and will ask any person any question. Earlier this summer, Moreth covered a ham radio field day event at Power Park in Thompson Falls. He spent the...
The Cancer Network of Sanders County (CNSC) is once again helping people in need and is doing so by selling luminaries and placing them on the streets of towns in Sanders County for their CNSC Luminaria event. "Every year our non-profit organization holds this fundraiser that helps contribute to the financial needs of patients and families suffering from a diagnosis of cancer," commented volunteer and CNSC Vice President Sherryl Wachob. "The event also helps to serve as a reminder that many of...
Tom Hoiland lives in Washington, but every August he comes to Trout Creek for one of his favorite traditions, the Huckleberry Run For Fun. This year the run was special for Hoiland, who is 90 years old. He was surprised with a small reunion of family members who walked the 5K with him. "This won't go on forever," Hoiland said last week as he was preparing to head to Trout Creek from Connell, Washington. He said he'll keep coming back as long as he can, but doesn't know when it will be his last...
During Thursday play at River’s Bend last week Jeanne Holleran and Tina Wheeler shot the low team gross of 102 and Liz Morkert and Lana Nolen posted the low team net of 69. Wheeler snatched up the low individual gross with a 45 and Morkert pocketed the low individual net with a 32. In other Thursday action, Doree Thilmony played a calculated game and went closest to the pin in four on No. 2 and Barb Petteys closed the long putt on No. 3. Kim Sparks sent out the longest drive during the round on No. 9 and landed a successful chip-in on No. 9. S...
The Over the Hill Gang competed in a a special three club game at River's Bend. During play each golfer was afforded the use of only two clubs and one putter this past sunny Monday. Playing the three club format the best, Will Mitchell and Scott Garr captured the men’s low gross and low net. Mitchell took the low gross with a 45 and Garr the low net with a 36. The women's low net was claimed with ease by Liz Morkert with a score of 54. In other play of the day, Dave Garr claimed closest to the pin in two on No. 10, closest to the pin on No. 1...
The Feed-N-Fuel team rallied to take the low team gross of 180 and the Noxon Quik Stop team captured the low team net of 144. Nathan Snead kept the ball in the short grass and took the low individual gross of 38 and Shawn Wilkinson claimed the low individual net with a score of 32 during Tuesday night men’s league play at River’s Bend last week. Wilkinson hit closest to the pin in three on No. 2 and Carter Meyer dropped in the long putt on No. 3. Steve Clark inched the ball along and was the closest to the pin on No. 5 and Bruce Haflich locked...
The Highlead team pulled together to take the low team gross of 173 and the Big Eddy’s/Limberlost Brewery team claimed the low team net of 144. RT Brown kept the ball moving right along and took the low individual gross of 40 and John Mosher claimed the low individual net with a score of 32 during Wednesday night men’s league play at River’s Bend last week. Steve Fairbank went closest to the pin in three on No. 2 and Dan Kier eased in the long putt on No. 3. Ron Beaty worked the ball along and was the closest to the pin on No. 5 and Berni...
