Independently owned since 1905
Independently owned since 1905
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4 YEARS AGO • AUGUST 6, 1981 MULES STILL PERFORM VITAL WORK FOR FS By Pat Sullivan Over the last 70 years the Forest Service has replaced telephone cables with wireless radios, cut back on lookout towers due to the range of fire finding airplanes, and stacked two-handled crosscut saws away in favor of pull-start chainsaws. Foresters have even redesigned the shovel. But, with all the modern technology and equipment that has altered and expanded the duties of Forest Service personnel, no one has...
SHAWNNA McKINNEY, Town Pump - “Honesty and integrity. Just be truthful.” SANDRA GUBEL, Sanders County Tobacco Prevention Specialist - “Willingness to learn.” RAY BROWN, SCCDC Executive Director - “Accountability.” LORI DALKE, Professional Travelers Inc. - “Honesty, ethics and morals.” MIKAYLA HALONE, Blackfoot Communications - “Willingness to learn. I can teach anything to someone who is willing to learn." WILLIAM SCOTT, MT Army National Guard - “The most important quality in a job candidate boils down to integrity and taking ownership. W...
I took a trip to Kalispell last weekend to watch a documentary called “The Pollinators.” Flathead Conservation District hosted the event, which they called Pollinators in the Park. While it served to be a fun Friday evening, sitting on the grass in Woodland Park watching a documentary on honey bees, it was also an eye-opening experience. “The Pollinators” focuses on the billions of honey bees that are transported around the country each year pollinating commercial crops. It is a meticulous documentary detailing the trials and tribulations of th...
A summer job can sometimes be a bridge to more permanent employment, and that could certainly be the case for members of the Youth Conservation Corps, which made an actual bridge in Lolo National Forest last week about 15 miles west of Plains. Two boys and two girls - Jody Detlaff, 18, Faith Palmer, 15, and Tyler Battles, 17, all of Thompson Falls, and Jim Hanson, 15 of Plains - were the only YCC participants this year, a much smaller group than usual, according to Marie Errecart, who headed the...
Fire restrictions, road closures and hot smoky weather may have put a damper on the weekend, but not for Coyote Days at the Wild Coyote Saloon. Despite several barriers and last year's cancellation due to COVID-19, owner Karen Ferguson believes the weekend was very successful. "With the road being closed through the Coeur d'Alene corridor, people still came and just went through St. Regis," Ferguson said. Stage 2 fire restrictions caused a shift in Saturday's schedule but the lawn mower races...
It looks like motocross is coming back to Plains. It’s been nearly 10 years since the rumble of cycles could be heard rounding the fairgrounds arena, but now an organization from Kalispell is looking to put on a motocross competition in August. On Friday, the Sanders County Fair Commission voted unanimously in favor of allowing Top Dawg Arena Cross to have motocross racing Friday and Saturday, August 20 and 21, in the fairgrounds main arena. Fair board members discussed Top Dawg Arena Cross’ request at its regular meeting last Wednesday, but...
5 YEARS AGO • AUGUST 4, 2016 OVER 400 CALLED TO FIGHT BIG BLAZE Copper King Fire balloons to over 700 acres in big run At a public meeting Monday, District Ranger Dave Hattis said that he and a crew from the Passport in Time program were on Big Hole Peak Sunday when they noticed a smoke plume rising to the west near Thompson River drainage. A short time later a helicopter flew the area and reported back that there was no real concern yet, it didn’t appear to be going anywhere. Hattis then told the audience at the information meeting that 30 min...
PATRICK ANDERSON, Thompson Falls - “Yes, it does because you can’t see the beautiful mountains and stuff.” JOHN KAUFMANN, Thompson Falls - “It’s not having a whole lot of effect on the people coming into the area. In the past I have seen fire danger run people off, but now they are trying to get away from the insanity in the cities.” CALEB BERD, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - “I think it absolutely affects tourism because it is a quality of life kind of thing.” CHRIS HAYNES, Thompson Falls - “Yes, I hope so. It will show people coming in what ca...
The annual Trout Creek Huckleberry Festival is getting ready for a full weekend of fun Friday and Saturday, August 14 and 15. More than 90 vendors have signed up to be at the festival, according to Carrie Greene. who is in charge of vendors this year. “We are almost full. I have a feeling I am going to need a waiting list,” said Greene. She explained they usually have a few spots open a day before the event, but this year three weeks prior, she already has only a couple slots left. Of those vendors, Greene said that 25 are brand new. “I think...
Montana is well known for its vast flat prairies, great towering mountains and gurgling creeks and rivers. As beautiful as these are, part of experiencing nature is experiencing the seclusion from technology, the rush of life and other persons. These places people go to get away are often places others have told them about. Most of the time, however, the best places are the ones found alone. The experience of discovery, especially of a place unseen before, is for many, several times the experience that visiting a place recommended can be....
HI MOM – A fawn looks to its mother for a little attention. The doe, which some residents on McCrea Road west of Plains named "Feather," was reluctant at the moment to allow her baby to milk, even though the fawn kept trying. After giving her mother the look, it started munching on grass....
4 YEARS AGO • July 16, 1981 EDDY PEAK GETTING NEW LOOKOUT TOWER by Pat Sullivan Crews from the Lolo National Forest at Thompson Falls and Plains began construction Monday on a combination lookout tower and electronic site on Eddy Peak, with two helicopters carrying over 20,000 pounds of concrete up the 6,957-foot mountain. The idea to build a fire lookout station atop a concrete basement on Eddy Peak, 20 miles southeast of Thompson Falls, has existed for almost 10 years. But it wasn't until 1...
Bernice Meredith, Quartzsite, Arizona - “I think more people in the community brings more people in who are more apt to do more for the community.” Kaitlyn Manning, Thompson Falls - “I think it is good for the economy, but I think it puts pressure on the locals.” Chuck Owens, Thompson Falls - “I guess there is good and bad. Myself, I don’t like a lot of people, but I think it will help more than it will hurt.” Paula Nelson, Thompson Falls - “I think population growth could be really good for this community if the people moving in contribute t...
The boys of Hogslop String Band from Nashville entertained a crowd of about 100 people at The Rex Theater last Thursday. The five-member band had the crowd clapping, dancing and toe tapping for much of their two-hour set. The band went on to play at the Under the Big Sky festival in Whitefish over the weekend....
Sanders County 4-H clubs were represented at the state congress event in Bozeman last week. Juli Thurston, MSU Extension Agent for Sanders County, said seven club members attended the state Congress, with three earning a trip to nationals, which is set for November 26-30 in Atlanta. 4-H members earn a trip to congress with their presentations at Communication Days, held each spring. The three Sanders County 4-H members who advanced to nationals all gave illustrated talks. Thurston said this was...
Wild Coyote Days at the Wild Coyote Saloon in Thompson Falls are back. After COVID-19 canceled last year’s event, owner Karen Ferguson says they are gearing up for an exciting couple of days. “The whole event is pretty popular, but people especially love the lawnmower races,” Ferguson said. “Everyone is pretty stoked to come back.” The fun kicks off Friday, July 30, with steak night, vendors and live music from The Night Life, who will take the stage at 8 p.m. and play until midnight. Due to Stage 2 fire restrictions, there will be no bonfir...
6 YEARS AGO • JULY 21, 1916 NO SPEEDING WITHIN CITY LIMITS At the regular monthly meeting of the town council held Monday evening a discussion came up regarding the speeding of automobiles through the streets of our town and a resolution was passed that three large signs be ordered and erected, one at the extreme eastern railroad crossing, one at the extreme western railroad crossing and one at the south approach of the county bridge (now the Gallatin Street bridge). These signs will caution all chauffeurs and automobile owners that they m...
Donna Vild, Seattle, Washington - “I would be taking my family, my pets, water, firearms, tent, food, and my Bible.” Ellyonna Vild, Seattle, Washington - “I would bring my pets. And a Bible and a gun.” Allyeska Vild, Seattle, Washington - “I would bring my pets, a few general necessities and a tent. And my Bible and a gun.” Melissa Totzauer, Trout Creek - “I would bring water, clean underwear, my dog and my family.” Breyton Luckow, Pocatello, Idaho - “I would grab my suitcase and my phone.” Peter Rhoades, Trout Creek- “I would bring my Bible,...
by Nils Rosdahl In a dream last night, I relived an event that actually happened in 1954 when I was 9 years old. Consciously, I can't remember much of it, but this is the way it happened in my dream – as if I was watching it in a movie. We lived in Thompson Falls. This late-summer evening, like many others, Dad took me fishing. My interest in fishing was pretty slim, but I often went with Dad. Being the town's only doctor, he didn't often have time to be part of my activities so this was our spe...
Nestled at the base of the Cabinet mountains and quietly tucked away in the remote hills of Trout Creek sits The Shire of Montana, home to the Hobbit House. For lovers of J.R.R Tolkien, the 1,000 square foot house built into the hillside allows fans of "The Hobbit" and "The Lord of the Rings" to completely immerse themselves into Tolkien's world. Proprietor Steve Michaels has now expanded his love for fairy tales and fantasy by diving into the world of J.K. Rowling's "Harry Potter." A tour on...
Abigail Dellinger and Drew Simkins welcomed a daughter, Evelyn Alice Simkins, on June 17 at Clark Fork Valley Hospital. She was born weighing 7 pounds, 11 ounces and measuring 21 inches long. She joins sibling Emric, 2. Maternal grandparents are Shann and Tiffany Dellinger. Paternal grandparent is Syleena Simkins. Welcome, Evelyn!...
Gabrielle and Adam Bache of Plains welcomed a son, Briggs Matthew Bache, on June 15 at Clark Fork Valley Hospital. Briggs measured 19.5 inches long and weighed 8 pounds, 3.9 ounces. He joins a brother, Rafe. Maternal grandparents are Jim and Robin Hamilton of Novi, Michigan. Paternal grandparents are Joe and LeeAnn Bache of Libby. Welcome, Briggs!...
The Rex Community Theater in Thompson Falls is getting a new roof. According to Deb Wilson, the roof has been leaking for quite a while. They have awarded the contract to a local company and were given a total of $15,000 to fix the damages. “A new roof allows us to start working on the back of the theater which needs a lot of love after years of water damage,” Wilson said. Work needed in the back of the theater includes plumbing, electrical, new insulation and drywall. “As well as everything else that comes with a full remodel, including the ki...
The Trout Creek Farmers Market kicked off last Wednesday with an assortment of vendors. Booths featured homemade jellies and artwork, and the Trout Creek Adventist School offered baked goods and produce. The market is open 4-6 p.m. Wednesdays at the Trout Creek Park....
Photo by Ed Moreth Not exactly camouflaged, but a white satin moth takes a break on a batch of bright red flowers near Plains....
