The Columbia Falls City Pool in Pinewood Park is leaking. Again. This seemingly annual event has kicked off the 2007 summer swim season with a leak of 77,000 gallons in the last 22 hours. Warm water out, cold water in – resulted in dragging the temperature down to a Whitefish Lake-esque 65 degrees as of […]

WASHINGTON (AP) – Montana’s two Democratic senators supported an unsuccessful Senate push to express “no confidence” in Attorney General Alberto Gonzales on Monday. Sens. Max Baucus and Jon Tester voted with other members of their party to proceed to a vote on the measure. But Republicans successfully blocked the resolution, with a 53-38 vote to […]

The first of four public workshop sessions to discuss Whitefish’s new growth policy will be held this Thursday at 7 p.m. Each workshop will focus on different components of the policy. The first meeting will look at natural resources and economic development. The Whitefish City-County Planning Board will conduct the meetings and former Whitefish Planning […]

When the rains of June hit the streets of Bigfork the water funnels into a pipe under the street, and runs into the bay. If the lake was lower, you could see the big pipe down by the public dock on Bigfork bay’s northeast corner. The current system doesn’t violate any Department of Environmental Quality […]

“It’s clean and green–the best time of year for floating the Whitefish River,” said Mike Block who canoed the route a few evenings ago with Ann Piersall. As high water washes winter’s accumulated detritus downstream and spring greenery spills down its banks, the waterway provides a quick river fix for those looking to let their […]

I’m not ashamed to say that I enjoy country music. But, my idea of country music and today’s standard of what country music is are probably two different things. I like Carl Perkins, Hank Williams Sr., Waylon Jennings … you know, “real” country music. I’m not a big fan of what country music has turned […]

The strangest thing my father ever brought home from an antique store was a casket. “Hey, it was a good deal,” was his only response to our dropped jaws. The coolest thing dad ever brought home was a coin-operated rocket ship. You can imagine how ecstatic I was as a 7-year-old when I saw our […]

Lake trout have worked their way into one of the only bodies of water in the nation where anglers are allowed to keep bull trout, and now biologists want to find out how big of a problem the intruders are. For three weeks in September, biologists will sample fish in Swan Lake to assess and […]

Though scarce in Flathead Valley, bitterroot is blooming now on Wild Horse Island State Park in Flathead Lake. “Unlike elsewhere in the valley where the habitat is too nice for bitterroot, Wild Horse is harsh enough that it thrives,” said frequent visitor Kjell Petersen. Accessed only via boat, the island’s 2,163 acres are best explored […]

She sleeps quietly, a mantel of white around her shoulders. Soon this beauty called Going-to-the-Sun Road will awaken from her winter sleep to the sounds of cars. Until then, however, the more than 20 miles of the Going-to-the-Sun Road currently open to the public provide a glimpse of the solitude and peace of Glacier National […]

Bob Harrington, state forester for the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation, spent much of last week briefing Gov. Brian Schweitzer and Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., along with several other state and federal agencies, on what to expect for Montana’s 2007 fire season. Next week the DNRC will hold its Wildland Fire Engine academy to […]

Sunday marked the final episode of the Sopranos, and really, what could I possibly say about this show that hasn’t already been said by people who are paid more money to weigh in on the cultural zeitgeist? The acting, the writing, the character development, the literary references, the music, and the violence: All are exquisite. […]

“As far as we know, it’s the only full block re-development project in Montana,” explained Lisa Jones, community outreach coordinator for the Block 46 project. It’s definitely the largest in downtown Whitefish. The 80,000-square-foot development will not only put a different face on downtown, but add a mixed-use building complex–the first of its kind in […]

There are certain corollary indicators of a thriving economy. When business is booming on Wall Street, ritzy steak houses in lower Manhattan enjoy an attendant rise in customers. So it only makes sense that when an outdoor mecca like the Flathead Valley grows like it has in recent years, there’s also an increase in the […]

Boaters on Swan and Echo lake will see an increase in Fish Wildlife and Parks officers. The higher visibility stems from a no-wake zone petition filed by several Swan Lake property owners. The area focused on includes the 1-mile stretch of lake where it narrows into the river channel. The “no wake” zone extends 200-feet […]