Archives for July 2020

Kyle Duty Real Estate in Whitefish, August 2020

July 21, 2020 by Kyle Duty

Kyle was born and raised in the Flathead Valley with a younger brother and sister. Growing up in a small town setting with gorgeous mountains, Kyle has always had a passion for golfing and snowboarding. After living in South Tahoe for six years, Kyle moved back to the Flathead Valley and became involved with customer service and learned that he had a passion for helping people have the vacation of their dreams. Kyle strives to make others’ getaways as easy and relaxing as they can be. Now, his mission is to help those who want to plant roots in the Flathead Valley. Kyle is a hard worker, and is passionate about what he does. He promises to represent all clients honestly and ethically. Kyle’s knowledge of Real Estate in the Flathead Valley is backed by a true love for the outdoors and the area. He is passionate and well informed about the market, which allows him to guide his clients into their dream home or commercial real estate.

Building a Public Lands Legacy at Lost Trail

Fish and Wildlife Service proposes conservation easement on 100,000 acres of prime hunting and timberland owned largely by Southern Pine Plantations

BY TRISTAN SCOTT // JUL 13, 2020

If the sale of a prized swath of Northwest Montana forestland to an out-of-state investment firm was cause for consternation earlier this year, then a new proposal to conserve much of that land for public access, wildlife habitat and sustainable timber management ought to be cause for celebration.

That’s the consensus of federal and state land and wildlife resource managers leading the effort to place 100,000 acres of prime hunting and timberland into conservation easements, protecting parcels in Flathead and Lincoln counties from private development in perpetuity while also ensuring continued access for hunters, anglers, hikers, skiers, berry-pickers, and other recreational users, as well as allowing the property to be sustainably managed for timber production.

The proposed project lands form a sprawling checkerboard of ownership flanking the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (FWS) Lost Trail National Wildlife Refuge near Marion. The lion’s share of the project area was recently purchased by Georgia-based Southern Pine Plantations (SPP), a real estate and timberland investment firm that paid $145 million in cash to the previous owner, Weyerhaeuser Co., in exchange for 630,000 acres, touching off rampant speculation among public land users in the region about whether the new guard might chop up the parcels and sell them for private development, supplanting trophy bucks and bulls with gated trophy homes.

The newly proposed Lost Trail Conservation Area would authorize the federal FWS to work with willing sellers like SPP, as well as smaller private owners, to acquire conservation easements on up to 100,000 acres within the defined 116,000-acre conservation area boundary… read more

By Whitefish Pilot
| July 10, 2020 9:30 AM

Sun Road opens Monday to Rising Sun

The Going-to-the-Sun Road in Glacier National Park will open to motorized vehicles from the west entrance to Logan Pass and as far as Rising Sun on Monday, July 13, pending any last-minute changes due to weather, the park said late Thursday in a press release.

The east entrance at St. Mary remains closed, due to the Blackfeet Tribal Business Council’s resolution restricting non-essential travel on the reservation because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Visitors will need to enter and exit Going-to-the-Sun Road via the west entrance. Traffic will be allowed as far as Rising Sun on the east side.

This week, the park resumed collecting fees at the gate, and park officials encourage visitors to allow for extra time in case of long lines.

Park road crews have finished snow removal, assessed current snow conditions, removed rocks and other road debris, installed guard rails, prepared Logan Pass facilities and started the water system for visitor use.

There will be sporadic work zones on Going-to-the-Sun Road with traffic control and flaggers, the press release noted, including on-going spillway work along Lake McDonald, guard wall repair near Triple Arches, and seepage repair at Siyeh Bend.

Services at Logan Pass will include restroom facilities and potable water. Visitor information services will be provided outside of the Logan Pass Visitor Center from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily… read more