WASHINGTON (AP) – Canadian cattle over 30 months of age will be allowed into the U.S. market starting Nov. 19, the Agriculture Department said Friday in expanding its current policy on mad cow disease. In May 2003, the discovery of an Alberta cow with mad cow disease caused the United States to slam the border […]

HELENA (AP) – Firefighters are working to contain a small wildfire burning southwest of Helena. Fire officials say they’re getting a handle on the fire, which is burning near the Helena National Forest on state and private land. Authorities say the fire, which began shortly after 5 p.m., has burned between five and 10 acres […]

KALISPELL (AP) – An Evergreen man charged with shooting his girlfriend to death and then shooting himself in the face made his first court appearance. Ken Weimer was charged with murder Thursday in the May 1 death of 18-year-old Tarisia Caron. The 18-year-old Weimer was returned to Kalispell Wednesday, after receiving reconstructive surgery and treatment […]

The Kalispell Police and Flathead County Sheriff’s reports for Thursday and Friday morning included the following: 5:45 a.m. A window was broken at the Bigfork Veterans Center. Nothing was reported missing. 7:52 a.m. A bear and her cub were spotted on Lost Coon Trail near Whitefish. 10:38 p.m. A delinquent was reported rummaging through multiple […]

Greetings, Happy Friday and welcome to the inaugural edition of the Beacon News Buffet, a new daily addition to the Web site. The big brains here at the Beacon intend for the Buffet to be a quick, one-stop feature where I can guide you to our top stories here in the Flathead, link to some […]

I look for the Flathead Lake Monster now. Sometimes I see waves and, for a fleeting monster moment, I believe. But in actuality I haven’t seen anything. No sturgeon, no logs, no unexplainable wakes, no monsters. Other people, however, have seen something, and after my History of the Flathead Lake Monster was published, I began […]

WHITEFISH – Upon reaching the five-decade milestone, many people ease into less demanding activities – flipping channels on the remote, even knitting, perhaps. But not pint-sized Cindy Weaver. Instead, the naturally gray-locked, makeup-free 50-year-old seeks to run the 50-mile Le Grizz ultra-marathon. On a remote, golden larch tree-lined dirt road, the ultra-marathon from Spotted Bear […]

HELENA (AP) – The Montana Democratic Party’s executive director is resigning to work on the presidential campaign of New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson. Jim Farrell’s departure to work as the campaign’s deputy state director in Iowa, beginning Oct. 1, is one of three resignations by state party staff members. Communications director Jessica Rhoades left recently […]

As Jewish communities around the world gather for Rosh Hashana – the Jewish New Year – the small but vibrant Jewish congregation of Bet Harim in Whitefish will have something a little extra to celebrate. The congregation, headed by Montana’s only reform Rabbi, is reaching out with more community events, and aiming to partner with […]

It’s time for Dixon melon, corn on the cob, beans, onions, cabbage, and juicy tomatoes. At the peak of harvest, the Whitefish Downtown Farmer’s Market teems with fresh garden goodies as fall specialties line up in stalls. The downtown market in front of the O’Shaughnessy Center winds down this month with its final two Tuesday […]

The busy summer season is over and hotel operators have time to breathe deeply and look to the future – an ambiguous future that now includes the weighty presence of a Holiday Inn Express and Hilton Garden Inn, with another Hilton in the making. The question for hotel operators is whether Kalispell can support all […]

Whitefish Mountain Resort has taken a beating over the last two months. In the wake of its name change (from Big Mountain), the subsequent backlash has included vandalized and stolen signs and accusations of arrogance and indifference. The resort can be called many things – but not greedy. It may just be the best deal […]

The Kalispell Police and Flathead County Sheriff’s reports for Wednesday included the following: 7:47 a.m. A five-car pileup near Los Caporales in Evergreen caused minimal injuries and significant traffic delays. 8:03 a.m. A barking dog on Airport Road was proving to be an ongoing problem. 9:36 a.m. A person attempted to buy things at Wal-Mart […]

BIGFORK – Nobody on the Bigfork football team started this season thinking it would be easy. After the first couple weeks of practice, it only got harder. The Vikings are coming off a season in which they finished 0-8, giving them a 3-22 record over the past three years. They have a new coaching staff. […]

Now that the fires have temporarily relented to the efforts of the various fire services, we breathe a little easier. Literally so. And, we go about our lives thinking little about the next fire season or the one after that. Whether we were born here or moved here, we stay here because of the beautiful […]