Independently owned since 1905
Independently owned since 1905
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With fall just a few weeks away, Sanders County saw increased wildfire activity last week. On Wednesday, the human-caused Mile Marker 104 ignited five miles west of Dixon. Highway 200 was briefly closed as area firefighters worked to control the blaze. As of Tuesday, the fire was estimated to have burned 468 acres and was at 10% containment. The fire is being managed by the CSKT Division of Fire. No structures were threatened and no evacuations were ordered. Resources on scene included 10 smokej...
For about 40 years, Mel Jones of Manhattan, Montana, has been on a quest to float the rivers of Montana. Last week, Jones traveled through Sanders County on the Clark Fork River from Paradise to the Montana-Idaho border. "I just did things. There was no goal in mind. I fished, I whitewater rafted a lot," Jones said. He said he quit fishing about 15 years ago. "About 11 years ago, the idea came to me to be able to say that I had floated some of these rivers and whitewater rafted and that I had...
The Veterans of Foreign Wars Auxiliary recognized an art student from Plains for her work in the 3 Dimensional Patriotic Art Contest. The 16-year-old Ireland Corbin took third place in the VFW Young American Creative Patriotic Art Contest in the 3-Dimensional category with her clay and ceramic art entitled "In Honor," earning her a $1,000 scholarship award. Corbin said she was excited when she received the news that she placed so high in the contest, which was sponsored by VFW Horse Plains...
Voters in the Hot Springs School District will be mailed ballots this week as they once again are asked to decide on a proposed levy. The election is being rerun after results from a May 7 election - in which the $183,000 levy passed by three votes - were invalidated by a District Court judge when it was discovered that more than 125 absentee ballots were not mailed to registered voters. Residents sponsored two separate forums for the public to learn more about the proposed levy. The final...
As the smoke started rolling in last week, it reminded me that it's still technically summer for a few more weeks, and that it's still really dry out there. Last week we had two human-caused wildfires in Sanders County. The Mile Marker 104 fire near Dixon is nearing containment after burning nearly 500 acres. Then on Saturday there was a small fire outside Thompson Falls in the Cherry Creek area, near a popular swimming hole at the mouth of Prospect Creek. Fall is just around the corner and the nights are getting cooler. However, driving...
Mass deportation sounds like a pretty good deal to some people I know, but then they would like a sort of retroactive date going back to about 1620 when the native American lack of resolve on immigration wound up dooming them as a people. Remember the stories of Massasoit and Samoset, bigwigs of the Wampanoag tribe teaching the greenhorn Europeans how to plant corn and other crops so the Pilgrims could survive. Pretty good of them. But you see how it turned out for them later—bad immigration p...
To Whom It May Concern, People can have differences of opinion about anything. It is our right and privilege. What people do not have the right to do is trespass on private property to deface a sign which represents a choice or viewpoint they do not agree with. Last week, I put up signs in Heron which were on private land with permission from the owners. Within a few days, vandals spray painted graffiti on the signs and ruined them. This is illegal on a couple of levels, from trespassing to destruction of private property. If these sick acts...
After attending the Master Gardeners class last spring, 2024, put on by Wendy Carr, with the local MSU. Ext office, our class members need to put in twenty hours of community service, to receive our certifications. I finally had an opportunity to start that with Beth Riffle, at Waterway, CSA. Starting at 7 a.m. to beat the heat, Beth was able to plant three rows to my one row of 75 bell peppers, exhibiting her experience as a gardener. She’s in her sixth season on the same property she grew up on, with the now Waterway, CSA, Community S...
10 YEARS AGO • AUGUST 11, 1960 SANDERS COUNTY FARM STATISTICS Sanders County now has 493 farms compared to 591 five years ago according to the 1959 census of agriculture statistics released yesterday by the Bureau of the Census. The average size farm in the county is 830.1 acres and the average value of farms, including land and buildings, is $32,133. The number of acres of farmland dropped from 495,740 in 1954 to 409,219. Of the county’s farm operators, 262 own their farms, 187 own part of the land and rented additional acreage, and 40 are... Full story
Ambulance: Plains, 10; Hot Springs, 6; Noxon, 4; Dixon, 3; T. Falls, 3. Monday, September 2 Suspicious activity, Plains. Other law violations, Plains. Business contact. Search warrant, T. Falls. Suspicious activity, T. Falls. Automated alarm call, Dixon. USFS campground check, Heron. USFS campground check, Trout Creek. Intoxicated subject, Plains. Animal other, T. Falls. Property damage/criminal mischief, Plains. Motor vehicle crash, Trout Creek. Suicide attempts/threats, Plains. Body found/coroner, Noxon. Child welfare/abuse, Plains. Tuesday,...
SHARON RUSSELL, Spokane - “My two dogs, Joyful Noise, a Schitsu, and Beauregard, my Bichon Frise.” ANGIE BROTHERTON, Paradise - “Thinking about my late husband Richard being alive and young picks me up.” JAMES ARNOLD, Trout Creek - “My four grandkids. Two live in Trout Creek.” STEPHANIE SAINT, Thompson Falls - “Besides my family, a good cup of coffee, any day of the week.” LILY SWATOSH, Dixon - “My one month old baby daughter always cheers me up.” CHARLENE KRONE, Dixon - “My neighbors and coming to the bakery on the weekends. It is a gre...
The Plains Town Council approved the annual budget and added two new committee members, but much of the time at last week's meeting seemed to be discussing a non-agenda item. John Sheridan, the council chairman, filled in for Mayor Joel Banham. Last Monday evening's meeting was coming to a close and the council had just appointed Bambi Wright to the Plains Planning Board, which prompted Commissioner Dan Rowan to suggest that the town update its subdivision regulations, particularly when a...
She has put in four years of serving the Town of Plains, but now she's heading south. Councilwoman Connie Foust announced at last week's council meeting that it would be her last. She's moving to Mesquite, Nevada, where she used to live and where she still has friends. She's enjoyed her time in Plains and her time on council. She said she's a fighter and liked the challenge of working on council. However, she said her balance is not what it used to be and getting firewood into the house is...
During summer months, Sanders County residents may notice plants with attractive blue flowers along roads and disturbed sites. These flowers can fool people into overlooking an aggressive, invasive plant: Blueweed. Blueweed's appealing flowers often lead people to consider it a desirable plant, and it is sometimes mistaken for lupine, chicory, or penstemon. Far from being desirable, this invasive species is toxic to livestock, is a skin irritant for people, and out-competes native plants that ar...
The Community Ambulance Service of Western Sanders County is planning a meet and greet at the Noxon ambulance barn this weekend. On Sunday, Spetember 15, from 2-6 p.m., the service will have hot dogs and hamburgers for the community. Guests can tour the newest ambulance and get a free blood pressure check. "Come visit with the crew members who are here to serve you, should you need us to respond," said Carolyn Carter, board chairperson for the ambulance service. The ambulance barn is located at 401 Railroad Road in Noxon....
Lyndsie Crawford of Noxon captured a photo of lightning hitting Ibex Peak during a recent summer thunderstorm. Crawford, 13, is an eighth grader at Noxon School, and took the photo from her deck....
In Loving Memory Joan Bybee Freed Nov. 19, 1926 - July 27, 2024 Joan (Bybee) Freed was born to Dween and June Bybee in Parker, Idaho. When Joan was 10 their family moved to Moiese, Montana. She had four brothers: Gerald Bybee, Bernard Bybee, Joe Bybee, George Bybee, and one sister Tani (Bybee) Wyman. When she was age 16 they moved to Thompson Falls. Mom started working at the Black Bear Cafe as a waitress. Soon she would meet her future husband of 69 years, Marvin (Mike) Freed. They married May... Full story
It is that time of year again. Parents and students have said goodbye to summer vacation. The schools of Sanders County have done the same with the added responsibility of making sure they are up and running and fully staffed. Across the county each school has reported that they are in need of substitute teachers. Noxon school relies on their teaching staff to help out with other needs such as driving the bus and coaching. Some teachers volunteer as emergency medical technicians. “This takes them out of the classroom, often unexpectedly,” sai...
From the production and size of the plants, the Watchdog Winery appears to have been in operation for several years. But in truth, it is in its fourth year of operation, located along Highway 200 west of Dixon. Ben and Alyssa Griffith began prepping the land for grape growing in 2017 on Alyssa's parents' property before they moved to Dixon. "We planted our first grapes in 2017, then moved to Montana in 2019," Ben explained. He said the grapes grew very fast. They opened for business in 2022...
Noxon's first home football game came down to the last play on Friday as they beat the Valier Panthers 32-26. With less than a minute left in the game, the Panthers were within 10 yards of the goal line, but the Noxon defense boosted their efforts and forced a turnover on downs to stop the visitors. The Red Devils had the ball for the first drive but were unable to score early in the game. Valier returned their first possession for a touchdown and took a 6-0 lead. When Noxon got the ball a...
The Blue Hawk volleyball team got their first action on their home court last Thursday as they welcomed the Florence Falcons to Thompson Falls. Though the Hawks lost in three sets, Coach Sandra Kazmierczak is excited to see what the team accomplishes this season. The Hawks opened the season the week before at the Choteau tournament. "They did great there," Kazmierczak said. "We took seventh out of 15 teams and they played really good volleyball there." Coach Kazmierczak said that last week they...
The Plains High School cross country team had a good showing at the Flathead Invitational, talking first place of the four Class B schools. Several Plains runners had personal bests, including Trotter Marina Tulloch, a sophomore, who finished first in Class B with a time of 19:41.93 and fourth overall out of 127 girls from 18 schools from across Montana. The first Horseman across the finish line was freshman Owen Jermyn, who finished fifth in his class at 17:17.63, also a personal best. The...
JOLIET 23, THOMPSON FALLS 14 The Blue Hawk football team hit the road taking on the Joliet JHawks sinking 23-14. The JHawks were able to break past Thompsons defense to score the first touchdown, while the Blue Hawks tried but were unable to answer with their own touchdown. This would be the only score in the first quarter. Headed into the second quarter Thompson was able to gain a swift two yard run to tie up the game early. The Hawks defense was able to keep Joliet from finding the end zone for much of the second quarter. But with minutes...
It looked as though the Plains Horsemen football team was going to have their second consecutive victory of the season, but the second half of the game said otherwise. The Horsemen had a 20-point lead going into the third quarter, but with three key players injured - two out for the game - and a pumped up and revitalized Darby team, the Tigers clawed themselves to a 36-34 conquest. Both teams were undefeated at the beginning of Friday's game. The Horsemen had claimed a 51-8 triumph over the...
The Thompson Falls cross country team crossed state lines last weekend to compete at Farragut State Park in Idaho. “We ran JV at this meet. There were LOTS of teams there, so the competition was great in all the races,” head coach Sarah Naegeli said. Blue Hawk Weston Block had a time of 20 minutes, 10 seconds, with teammate Balke Shusterman coming in at 20:54.Nathan Baxter crossed the finish line in 21:46, while Tuff Ryder (21:48) came in seconds behind. Luke Pastorius had a time of 22:21, and Jakob Molina came in at 25:02. Aubrey Baxter too...
