LOS ANGELES (AP) — Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes fell in August to the slowest annual pace in nearly a year even as mortgage rates eased and the supply of properties on the market continued to rise.Existing home sales fell 2.5% last month, from July, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.86 million, the National Association of Realtors said Thursday.Sales fell 4.2% compared with August last year. The latest home sales were short of the 3.9 million pace economists were expecting, according to FactSet.Home prices increased on an annual basis for the 14th consecutive month. The national median...

A hiker was air-lifted from Glacier National Park on Thursday following a bear attack on one of the park's most popular trails. The 35-year-old man sustained non-life threating injuries from the bear encounter while hiking the Highline Trail early Thursday morning. The trail connects Logan Pass with Granite Park Chalet and The Loop on the west side of Going-to-the-Sun Road. According to park officials, the man's hiking party encountered the bear near the Grinnell Glacier Overlook trailhead.The man hiked to Granite Park Chalet with assistance from park rangers and other hikers, where he was met by the Two Bear Air rescue helicopter and flown to the Apgar horse corrals. He was then transported by Three Rivers Ambulance to Logan Health in Whitefish. Park rangers temporarily closed the Highline Trail from Haystack Butte to Granite Park Chalet following the incident. The closure will remain in place until further notice, officials said. Visitors should check the park’s trail status webpage for the latest information. The species of bear involved in the encounter is under investigation. Glacier Park is home to black and grizzly bears. Hikers are encouraged to hike in groups, make noise when hiking and have bear spray accessible and know how to use it.

From wild pine martens hitching rides to hoverboarders on the lake, Glacier National Park’s rangers have been busy. Join Daily Inter Lake reporter Taylor Inman as she dives into recent park dispatch reports that range from life-saving rescues to quirky wildlife encounters. It’s a glimpse into the unpredictable and often adventurous life inside the park. 

Project Winterland, a Whitefish-based nonprofit, is hosting the first-ever Winterland Impact Festival Sept. 26-29 in Whitefish. The organization produced the Winterland Solutionist Summit in March of 2024 in Whitefish.  Project Winterland describes the festival as a collision of film, music, innovation, science and immersive experiences inspiring and uniting people in the spirit of the greater good. The festival will tell stories through film, panels, music and keynote speakers to challenge preconceptions and stimulate fresh thinking and ignite collective action for an equitable and resilient planet.  “While that may sound like a high reach, being in service to our shared future is precisely...

Called “a beautiful, timely and urgent piece of art,” the Whitefish Theatre Company brings "Daniel's Husband" to the stage. The show by Michael McKeever is a Black Curtain production. It runs Saturday, Sept. 21, at 4 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. and on Sunday, Sept. 22, at 7:30 p.m. “I am so excited to share this story with our community,” said Director Kim Krueger. “It’s a touching story of family, friends and the friends we choose as family. The characters are well rounded and so flushed out in the script, yet we are still surprised by some of the choices made when there...

Ron Brandt, executive director of Flathead Area Mountain Bikers, prefers action to words, but he is excited to talk about two multi-year trail projects that are in the works.  FAMB is a local nonprofit that builds and maintains trails, conducts riding clinics and participates in mountain bike trail advocacy in the Flathead Valley. “We're doing some really cool things right now,” Brandt began. “I've been working on ... two big projects with the Forest Service at opposite ends of the valley.” The Taylor Hellroaring project is northwest of Whitefish and the other project is on Crane Mountain south of Bigfork. Currently, trail crews...

Merrie Ford’s quilting journey started in eighth grade sewing class in Kalispell. Now, after moving around the country and picking up different skills and styles along the way, she has returned to the Flathead to start her own studio, theArtBarnMT, in Bigfork.  It was under the patient guidance of Naomi Perry, who taught home economics at Kalispell’s junior high school for 22 years, that Ford first found her passion.  “I pretty much fell in love with fabric and sewed a lot of clothes during high school and college,” Ford said. A home economics major and art history minor, it seems natural...

Bigfork’s Leslie Budewitz is back with her 18th published book. While she may be known for her Spice Shop Mysteries or Food Lovers’ Village Mysteries, this time she has dipped her finger into Montana’s rich history and cooked up a collection of tales on one of its forgotten figures -- Stagecoach Mary Fields.Mary Fields was born into slavery in Tennessee. She headed West in 1885 as part of the Ursuline Sisters’ Montana Mission and lived the rest of her life out in Central Montana near Cascade. She is believed to be the first Black woman with a U.S. Postal Star Route,...

Join Ariel and her friends as they embark on a delightful journey filled with music, fun, and unforgettable moments for audiences of all ages. With an outstanding cast of young performers, vibrant costumes, and captivating music, “The Little Mermaid, Jr.” is sure to be a memorable experience that will leave you singing along and believing in the magic of theater. The show will be performed at the Bigfork Center for the Performing Arts at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 20, 21, 27 and 28, with a Sunday matinee at 2 p.m. on Sept. 29. Tickets are available online or at the box office one hour before the show.For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit https://bigforksummerplayhouse.com/childrens-theatre or contact the Bigfork Playhouse Children’s Theatre at 406-837-0701.  

Put the textbooks and lesson plans down and let off some steam with laughter when Bored Teachers brings their comedy tour, The Struggle is Real!, to Kalispell March 6, 2025. Bored Teachers was born from the sweat, tears, and a love-hate relationship with the teacher profession more than eight years ago. Founders James and Marilou Tarantino were classroom teachers and avid travelers where they met and shared stories with teachers from all over the world who went through the same struggles and frustrations. Through these shared sentiments, they began a community on social media sharing real experiences through humorous skits, memes...

The Wachholz College Center presents the third season of Changemaker Speaker Series, a platform designed to enlighten, inspire, educate and entertain audiences. The three-part series includes a line-up of speakers who have pushed the boundaries in their respective fields and whose work reveals fascinating insights about our planet, each other and what we can do to create a better future. Each event will feature stunning imagery and riveting video footage. Following each presentation, there will be a question-and-answer session and a meet and greet. Speaking on Oct.15 is futurist and author Jamie Metzl.  Metzl is one of the world’s leading technology and health...

The 29th annual Shriner’s Hospital Chili Cook-Off, Beerfest and Wiener Dog Races are slated to be in full swing at the Spinnaker Bar and Casino parking lot in Lakeside on Sept. 21.  The beerfest starts at 3 p.m., chili tasting competition at 4 p.m., and a 5 p.m. registration followed by the Parade of Dogs and Races will fill the day.  Whether a chili chef, Dachshund (“wiener dog”) owner or just looking for an entertaining way to spend the afternoon, come join in the fun.   Fees are $6 for children 10 and under, $8 buys spectators unlimited chili tasting and...

REzMaDe photographs by Salish Kootenai College and Two Eagle River School photographers from the Flathead Nation will be exhibited at the Bigfork library through Nov. 8. The exhibit opens with an artist reception from 3 to 5:30 p.m. Sept. 25 at the library,186 Bridge St., Bigfork. It is sponsored Art Vision & Outreach in Community Education (A VOICE), ImagineIF Library Foundation and Bigfork Arts and Cultural Center. The photographs were created in a hands-on learning environment, where Salish Kootenai College students explore, practice, and create analog and digital photos that are meaningful to them. Two Eagle River School students created their photographs as part of a collaborative project between the Pablo middle and high school students and photographer David Spear called Our Community Record. The collaborative project, which is a component of A VOICE, teaches students to explore and document their community, culture and history through storytelling and photographic studies. For more information about A VOICE and the REzMaDe project visit www.avoice-outreach.org.  

Kalispell Public Schools elementary district has $41.2 million and the high school district $42.6 million to operate with for the 2024-25 school year. The revenue, a combination of state and taxpayer money, falls short of covering district expenses, though. The expected shortfall is due to a combination of factors such as salary and health insurance increases, inflation, failed levies and the expiration of Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund money issued during the pandemic. There are two factors yet unaccounted for in finalizing expenditures, which could be in the range of $2 to $3 million. A collective bargaining agreement hasn’t been reached between...

Reject CI-128We are writing to strongly urge anyone reading this to vote no on the upcoming ballot initiative CI-128. First of all, this initiative is completely unnecessary, as abortion is already legal in Montana up to viability. Second, viability is actually a very poor standard, as the humanity of an unborn baby does not change regardless of age, as it is present at conception. Please vote no on CI-128.— Steve and Julie Martin, KalispellMontana’s legacyThe constitutional initiative on the ballot this election has huge implications for the future of Montana, as well as the obliteration of the future for untold thousands of Montanans....

We’ve all heard the age-old maxim, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” That applies to our state’s health care programs that ensure working Montanans stay healthy, hospitals thrive and windfall returns on investment for taxpayers and patients. One of my goals for the next state legislative session starting in January is to keep looking out for Montanans. An essential part of this is protecting the Medicaid program, which provides healthcare for lower income working families who often work two or more jobs. This program helps workers, the small businesses that employ them and is an essential part of health care for...

Jayson Watkins, 55, longtime funeral director and general manager of Buffalo Hill Funeral Home and Crematory passed away Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, at his home in Kalispell.He is survived by his wife, Danielle as well as his children, Jayson Watkins, Kayla Finlan, Kyleigh and Bayleigh Burgoyne. A visitation will be held for Jayson from 5-7 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 27, at Johnson-Gloschat Funeral Home and Crematory. Services will be held the following day Sept. 28, at noon, at Canvas Church in Kalispell. Burial will follow services at Bigfork Community Cemetery where he will be laid to rest next to his daughter, Feleshia Brabham. Johnson-Gloschat Funeral Home is caring for Jayson and his family.

A man wearing a black jumpsuit reportedly threatened to punch and “rip people’s faces off” in Kalispell when someone told him “No,” after he asked them for money. Kalispell Police Department confirmed the man had a warrant out and responded to the scene. A woman went to the Kalispell Police Department to follow up on a report about her stolen wallet. She reportedly said around 3 a.m. a man, who looked like the Zodiac Killer, had been in her home and left her door open. She thought he found her address on her ID, which was in her wallet. Officers offered...

Northern Pines didn’t allow for much separation Wednesday at the Kalispell Invitational golf tournament, but that doesn’t mean people didn’t score.Polson’s Max Milton shot a one-under 69 to lead the boys individual race after 18 holes — during which 21 players shot 75 or better and another 14 broke 80. Glacier takes a lead in both team races into Thursday’s final round, at Buffalo Hill. Hanna Boyd of Great Falls High fired a 73 to lead the girls individual tournament. For the boys, Glacier and Missoula Sentinel — not to mention Class A Whitefish —shot very well as a team Wednesday. With Tanyon...

The Western Carolina Catamounts, who visit Washington-Grizzly Stadium Saturday at 1 p.m. for a non-conference football game, are tough to figure.“They look really good on film,” Montana coach Bobby Hauck noted Monday, in his weekly press conference. “I thought they could’ve beat North Carolina State in their opener — they were up in the fourth quarter.” That 38-21 loss was followed by a 24-16 home loss to Campbell of the Colonial Athletic Conference, which then in turn lost its CAA league opener to Rhode Island. Meanwhile the Catamounts were dealing then No. 22 Elon a 24-17 home loss Saturday. Branson Adams’ 1-yard...