Serving Southern Jefferson County in the Great State of Montana
Serving Southern Jefferson County in the Great State of Montana
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Nonresident and resident trapping licenses can now be purchased at a Fish, Wildlife & Parks office or online at https://ols.fwp.mt.gov. To purchase a Montana resident trapping license, residents must complete a Montana trapper education course or have purchased a trapping license in at least three prior years (in Montana or another state). Residents must be at least 12 years old to buy a trapping license. Youths 6 to 11 years old must purchase a trapping license. They are exempt from the requirement to take trapper education and are limited to...
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks announced today that 36 trail organizations, communities, and various land-managing agencies throughout Montana will receive Montana Trail Stewardship Program (TSP) grant awards for their projects in 2024. Forty TSP applications were received this year from various eligible applicants, including federal and state agencies, towns, cities, counties, recreational clubs, and nonprofit organizations. The TSP awards for this year’s cycle total approximately $2 million in state funds. Grants funds are allocated to the h...
As hunters prepare for the license year beginning March 1, they should be aware of some regulation changes to antelope licenses in FWP Region 7, as well as a new moose season. Changes to antelope licenses for Region 7: For hunters looking to pursue antelope in FWP's Region 7, either-sex and doe/fawn licenses are no longer valid regionwide. In December, the Fish and Wildlife Commission voted to divide Region 7 into a north and south unit using the Yellowstone River as the boundary for antelope hunting. The commission also passed a regulation to...
Landowners have until March 15 to apply for Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks' Unlocking Public Lands (UPL) Program or the Public Access Land Agreement (PALA) Program. These programs are designed to provide recreational public access to state (Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation) or federal (Bureau of Land Management or United States Forest Service) land where no or limited legal public access currently exists. For enrollment in UPL, landowners will receive an income tax...
The new license year opens March 1, which means that is the day you can buy your 2024 hunting, fishing, and conservation licenses and begin applying for permits and special licenses. The deadline to apply for deer and elk permits is April 1. Applications for most species – deer, elk, antelope, deer B licenses, elk B licenses, antelope B licenses, moose, sheep, goat, bison, bear, and turkey – can be made beginning March 1. A new online feature this year is the option for applicants to reapply for the same offerings as last year with just a simpl...
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks will implement changes this year to the reservation process for state park sites. The changes will create more opportunities for recreationists to enjoy state parks and comply with legislation passed by the 2023 Legislature. Starting this year, visitors will have up to three months prior to their planned arrival date to make campsite and lodging reservations or purchase tour tickets. This is a change from the six-month booking window in the past. Visitors need to be aware that the maximum stay per site changed...
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is reopening the public comment period for the 2024 Grizzly Bear Management Plan and Montana Gray Wolf Conservation and Management Plan to ensure Montana counties, Tribes, and state and federal agencies have a chance for input. The new deadline is March 9. The extension will ensure that the Montana statute requiring FWP to notify county commissioners of opportunities to comment on management plans for grizzly bears, wolves, and other large carnivores has been met. It will also allow for additional time for tribal...
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is seeking public comment on several draft environmental assessments (EA) and emergency closures. For more information, including how to submit comments, click on the link provided or visit fwp.mt.gov/public-notices. Manley Choke to Death Private Pond: A private landowner is applying for a Private Fish Pond License and proposes to stock Yellowstone cutthroat trout in an unnamed private pond. The pond is a 0.38 surface-acre pond located in the Crazy Mountains north of Springdale that is fed by a combination of grou...
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks has notified the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) of its intent to pursue legal action over the recent listing of wolverines as a threatened species. “In Montana, wolverines continue to do well and inhabit much, if not all, of their available habitat,” said Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Chief of Conservation Policy Quentin Kujala. “We work closely with our neighboring states to ensure the continued conservation of these iconic species. Federal protections in this case will only get in the way of good conserva...
Applications are being accepted for the 2024 pheasant release program through the Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Upland Game Bird Enhancement Program (UGBEP). As part of the program, pen-raised birds are released in areas suitable for ring-necked pheasants with the intent to enhance wild pheasant populations. Landowners interested in releasing pen-reared pheasants have until January 15 to apply. Projects must comprise at least 100 contiguous acres of land and contain a combination of suitable habitat components, including cover and food, that...
Several organizations have offered to contribute additional funding to raise the cash reward for information on a wolverine killed illegally northwest of Wisdom in November. Donating organizations include the Animal Defense Fund, Trap Free Montana, Skyline Sportsmen in Butte, the Center for Biological Diversity, and FWP’s TIP-MONT program. The combined reward offered from these organizations is $21,500. Game wardens received a report on Nov. 10 of a wolverine carcass found on U.S. Forest Service Road 7377 near Schultz Saddle and the C...
Wolf trapping and snaring in Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks administrative regions 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, and in Hill, Blaine, and Phillips counties won’t start until Jan. 1 and will run through Feb. 15, according to a federal court injunction issued Tuesday evening. In areas in eastern Montana outside FWP administrative regions 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, and Hill, Blaine, and Phillips counties the order does not apply, and the wolf trapping and snaring season will start November 27 and run through March 15 as described in the 2023 wolf regulations. The w...
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is accepting applications for more than $500,000 in recreation grants. Applications will be accepted for the Off-Highway Vehicle Grant Program and the Summer Motorized Trail Pass Grant Program. Applications can be submitted through the online system at funding.mt.gov. Application deadline is Feb.1, 2024. Off-Highway Vehicle Grant Program: This is a state-funded grant program. This program provides project funding with the goal of enhancing and maintaining OHV recreational opportunities for the benefit of OHV enthu...
The Montana Master Hunter Program (MHP) is accepting applications for the 2024 program. The deadline is Nov. 30. Led by One Montana, the MHP is for hunters who want to continue to improve and hone their skills, build relationships with landowners to aid their wildlife management goals and be an advocate for conservation and wildlife. Classes will be held in Bozeman (March), Missoula (April), and Kalispell (May). To apply or learn more, visit https://www.mtmasterhunter.com/how-to-apply [mtmasterhunter.com]....
Montana’s general hunting season has reached the midpoint this week with steady hunter numbers and mixed success rates as recorded at game check stations in southwestern Montana. Wildlife biologists with Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks use check stations to collect data on hunter participation and success, as well as the species, sex, and age class of the animals harvested. This supplements data collected through hunter-harvest phone surveys each year. On Nov. 4 and 5, biologists operated four check stations in the region and met with 995 h...
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks along with the Montana Department of Health and Human Services are advising hunters to have their deer, elk, and moose tested for chronic wasting disease (CWD). FWP strongly recommends that hunters receive a negative CWD test result before bringing their deer, elk, or moose to a meat processor or donating it to a foodbank. While it is not a requirement, FWP is asking hunters to have a negative CWD test result in hand before bringing their animal to a processor for donation. If the animal tests positive for CWD,...
Fishing will close starting Oct. 1 for sections of the Big Hole, Ruby and Beaverhead rivers to protect trout during spawning season. The Montana Fish and Wildlife Commission adopted emergency fishing regulations in June in response to struggling fish populations in the three rivers. These restrictions limit fall angling during the brown trout spawning season in some stretches of the rivers. Trout abundances in several areas of the three rivers have steadily declined since 2011 and are at or near historical lows. Meanwhile, fishing pressure in...
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks has recently received questions on Montana’s Stream Access Law and how it is applied across the state. For landowners and recreationists alike, it’s important to know about the law and understand how it applies to private land and water-based recreation. “The public has a right to enjoy water-based recreation on rivers and streams in Montana below the high-water mark,” said FWP Director Dustin Temple. “The public also has the right to access rivers and streams from the public road right of ways and easements...
Staff at Lewis & Clark Caverns State Park are seeking volunteers to help with a post-season cleaning of the caverns. Volunteers in this event will get the chance to see the park up close as they work to reduce some of the impacts from visitors in the cave and on outdoor trails. This includes removing lint and dust from the cave formations, steps, and pathways. Trail work will involve pulling noxious weeds and repairing rutted trails. The event will be on Saturday, October 7, from 9 AM to 12 PM. Volunteers will meet at the Main Visitor Center...
Bear specialists with Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks have concluded a field investigation into a grizzly bear encounter that injured a man south of Big Sky last week. The attack happened Friday, Sept. 8, in the Yellow Mule area of the Madison Range. During the encounter, one of the victim’s companions fired a pistol at the bear before the bear left. The victim suffered serious injuries from the bear and was flown to a hospital. FWP staff flew over the area Saturday to look for a bear that may have been wounded. No bears were found during the a...
On September 15, 2023, 9-year-old Sarah Simons of Texas was sworn in as Montana's first-ever honorary game warden. The ceremony occurred at the community center in West Yellowstone during a vacation to Yellowstone National Park with her family. Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Chief of Law Enforcement Ron Howell presided over the ceremony and administered the oath of office to Sarah in front of her family and several other Montana game wardens. Upon completing the oath of office, Sarah was...
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is seeking a current high school student to fill a two-year term on the Future Fisheries citizen review panel. FWP’s Future Fisheries Improvement Program grants approximately $1 million annually for projects to improve and restore Montana’s wild fish habitats. The 14-member citizen review panel meets twice a year to review proposals and recommend projects to the Fish & Wildlife Commission for funding. Review panel members are appointed by the governor, or his representative, and must represent a variety of int...
Westslope cutthroat trout and Arctic grayling passage will be improved in the Mount Haggin Wildlife Area when four culverts are removed or replaced in the French Creek watershed. A landowner’s streambank on the Musselshell River will be stabilized with natural materials to stop erosion while also creating fish habitat. These projects are two of eight that recently received funding by the Montana Fish and Wildlife Commission through the Future Fisheries Improvement Program (FFIP). Approximately $427,500 in funding was approved to improve M...
An angler killed a grizzly bear in self-defense this week in the Tom Miner Basin. The encounter happened on Aug. 30 on private land along Tom Miner Creek. Two anglers were walking through dense vegetation when they were charged by a grizzly bear. One of the anglers shot and killed the bear. No people were injured. The bear’s behavior was likely defensive in the surprise, close encounter. The bear was an adult male grizzly. This incident is still under investigation. Montana is bear country. Grizzly bear populations continue to become denser and...
A small portion of the Jefferson River will be closed to all recreation while construction of a new bridge on Meridian Road continues. The closure will extend from Williams’ Bridge Fishing Access Site to the bridge site on Meridian Road beginning Tuesday, Aug. 22. The closure will be lifted on Saturday, Aug. 26. For updated information on restrictions and closures of waterbodies and lands, visit fwp.mt.gov/news/current-closures-restrictions....
