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NBCMontana

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Deputies shoot armed man while serving felony warrant in Columbia Falls

COLUMBIA FALLS, Mont. — Flathead County Sheriff’s Office deputies shot and killed a man Tuesday night in Columbia Falls while attempting to serve an active felony arrest warrant, authorities said. Deputies responded at about 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2026, to the area of Sonic Way to arrest...

Columbia Falls, MT · 1d
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Whitefish Pilot

publisher · 1.1K followers

Whitefish Skijoring moves to county fairgrounds

Whitefish Skijoring is gearing up for its 20th anniversary celebration, take two, scheduled for Jan. 30–31, 2027 at its new home at the Flathead County Fairgrounds in Kalispell. The popular winter event brings together horses, riders, and skiers for two days of fast-paced competition. Teams race through a snow-covered course, navigating jumps and obstacles in a unique combination of horsemanship and ski racing. The move to the Flathead County Fairgrounds offers a new setting for the event, with covered grandstand seating overlooking the course, additional parking, food trucks, and a bar conveniently located near the spectator area. Whitefish Skijoring is a nonprofit, volunteer-run organization that relies on the generosity and dedication of local businesses, sponsors, volunteers, competitors, and supporters to bring this unique winter event to the Flathead Valley each year. The event's roots go back to the first renditions of the Whitefish Winter Carnival, when skijoring took place on Central Avenue in downtown Whitefish. The event later moved to the Mountain Trails Saddle Club on Wisconsin Avenue, where Stumptown Ice Den now stands, until it was discontinued in the 1970s. In 2003, skijoring returned. The original 20th anniversary of the event, per its 2003 revival, was planned for Feb.

Whitefish, MT · 2d

BroBible

publisher · 120.3K followers

Montana High School Football Teams Must Drive 1,000+ Miles In 18 Hours For Second-Round Playoff Game

The high school football playoffs are underway in the state of Montana. A second-round matchup between Sidney and Columbia Falls will require the visitors to travel more than 1,000 miles in less than 24 hours. It is not even the longest drive of the 2026 postseason! Because Montana is such a big state with such […] The post Montana High School Football Teams Must Drive 1,000+ Miles In 18 Hours For Second-Round Playoff Game appeared first on BroBible.

Montana · 3h
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Whitefish Pilot

publisher · 1.1K followers

Local pet care company expands across Montana

Happy Tails 406, a locally owned pet-care company, has seen exponential growth since Veronica Clarno started it five years ago. Clarno started Happy Tails 406 in hopes of offering a personal and trustworthy approach to pet care in the valley. “I just wanted to do something big for my community and I saw the lack of pet services,” Clarno said. Her main goal in starting the business was to be able to provide trustworthy, reliable services to the community, she said. Clarno admits the early days of the business were tough. She spent a lot of time finding a way to market that worked specifically for her and the company. She has since hired five additional staff members to help provide pet care services throughout the Flathead Valley. Happy Tails 406 offers a variety of at-home services for dogs and cats such as check-ins, administration of medication, walking and feeding. They also offer pet taxis to transport animals, as well as overnight care. Even though the Happy Tails 406 team has grown, Clarno is proud to continue working daily with the animals. Clients use a pet portal to easily schedule services and check in on their animals. “The ability for

Montana · 1d
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Bigfork Eagle

publisher · 565 followers

Echo Lake resident sues county over kayak tour decision

A property owner along Echo Lake is suing the Flathead County Board of Adjustment over its decision to approve a conditional use permit for a business that offers kayak tours from a private residence on Peterson Lake. Rowland and Jaimie Day, who own property along Echo Bay Trail, allege in the lawsuit that the permit approval will lead to more traffic on the narrow private road, increased vehicle conflicts, trespassing, noise and "interference with the use and enjoyment of their property." The lawsuit argues that the board's approval of the permit is illegal because the application failed to address concerns brought forth by other agencies and the public. Rocky Mountain Glass Kayaks offers guided sunset tours in LED-illuminated kayaks and operates tours throughout the Flathead Valley, including on Whitefish River and in Somers Bay. The company has guided kayakers through the string of lakes that includes Echo Lake, Peterson Lake and Abbott Lake since 2025, although it only applied for a conditional use permit this year. Property owner Maray Brinhurst previously told the county that the tour company received no complaints until the county sent letters to the adjoining property owners. In August, the Board of Adjustment voted unanimously to

Flathead County, MT · 1d

Whitefish Pilot

publisher · 1.1K followers

Guest opinion: Family farm taxed out

To the governor and legislators: I never thought it could happen, but our state is going to tax us to death with property taxes and price us completely out of our home and beloved farm that we built from scratch 21 years ago. We put that farm, with two homes on it, in a family trust where our family lives and works. We created that trust about six years ago. Because of our age, we had to retire and moved to Bigfork this year to be closer to necessary services. Our family now lives and works on that farm in Kila. We do not rent it or make any money off it. It is a family residence that has now doubled in price for taxes because Nell and Joni don’t have an address there anymore. Our Bigfork home, where we do live, is over double the taxes that were levied in the past. God knows why; I guess the state believes we don’t actually live in Bigfork either. I wonder where the state thinks we do live? We left for vacation for two weeks, and when we got back, the appeal form was in our mailbox. I attempted to appeal

Montana · 1d

Bigfork Eagle

publisher · 565 followers

Bigfork secures No. 2 seed at state volleyball tournament

The Valkyries may have been the Northwest's No. 1 seed, but Polson came out on top at the Western A volleyball divisional at Hamilton High School Saturday. The Pirates took their second victory over Bigfork in as many days with a four-set win in the championship match. McKenna Corley led the Pirates with 17 kills in the victory; she finished the tournament with 67 and hit .311 over the four games. Aleysia Black had five of Polson's 10 aces in the match. Raegan Waller tallied 17 kills for the Valkyries. Both teams claimed spots in the State A tournament in Bozeman starting Thursday. No. 2 seed Bigfork opens the state tourney against No. 3 Havre at 2 p.m. With a win, the Valkyries will face either No. 4 Columbia Falls or No. 1 Billings Central. As the top seed from the west, Polson gets Custer County in the opening round. Columbia Falls and Frenchtown also secured spots in the State tournament. At the Western A, Columbia Falls knocked out Whitefish in three sets, while Frenchtown bested Southwest No. 1 seed Dillon in four. Frenchtown downed Columbia Falls in five sets late Friday evening to lock the Wildkats into the West's

Bigfork, MT · 1d

Flathead Beacon

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For 50 Years, RMO Has Carved a Cultural Niche in the Flathead Valley

In 1976, after a young Don Scharfe was kicked out of the University of Montana for his lack of participation and after he worked for the U.S. Forest Service clearing Idaho’s trails, he showed up in downtown Kalispell with a $7,000 loan from his parents. He sold his truck and put a down payment on the 3,000-square-foot shop at 135 Main Street that had been housing Eagle Shoe Store since the building was erected at the turn of the 20th century.

Kalispell, MT · 1d

Hungry Horse News

publisher · 1.3K followers

Columbia Falls Ladies Night is coming up next week

Columbia Falls Ladies Night 2026 is Tuesday, Nov. 17 from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. in downtown. This event is an evening of cocktails, food, fun, music, sales, shopping and raffle giveaways of almost $10,000 combined with 110 participating businesses. Dress for the weather, you won’t want to miss this once a year event. Last year thousands came out to shop and walk around downtown Columbia Falls. Stop and visit each participating business and get one raffle ticket at each business. Earn extra raffle tickets when you bring all your receipts (digital or print) from the evening to the cashier’s booth located at the Monaco on Nucleus. This year will also feature a Gold Ticket Drawing and Photo Booth Poker Run. So now is the time to purchase any holiday gift items, gift cards, or book a service to earn extra raffle tickets for the drawings. Plan an evening with your co-workers, family, friends or favorite gal pals. Free shuttle service along the route with public parking at the Nite Owl/Back Room or the north end of Nucleus Avenue open lot on the east side.

Columbia Falls, MT · 1d

Hungry Horse News

publisher · 1.3K followers

Several logging projects OK’d on Flathead Forest

Nearly 5,000 acres of forestland along U.S. 2 have been cleared for a variety of treatments that Flathead National Forest officials say will reduce wildfire risk and improve ecological health. Officials described the stretch of forest between West Glacier and Summit as “overstocked, disease-prone and increasingly vulnerable to insects and wildfire” in a final decision notice signed Oct. 6. The Forest Service has prescribed a patchwork of commercial and precommercial thinning, clearcuts, whitebark pine restoration and prescribed burns to remedy the issue, which it has collectively titled the Granite-Moccasin Project. Commercial treatments make up 2,397 acres of the 4,930-acre treatment area, while noncommercial treatments account for 2,402 acres. Another 131 acres will be thinned to expand an existing utility corridor. About 8 miles of new Forest Service roads will be constructed during the project, most of which will be made impassable once activities cease. The Granite-Moccasin Project was first proposed in December 2025 and reviewed under an emergency action determination that the Trump administration introduced last year, which allows the Forest Service to forgo the typical objection period for projects in areas considered to be at high risk for catastrophic wildfire. A singular public comment period in January 2026 elicited

West Glacier, MT · 1d

Whitefish Pilot

publisher · 1.1K followers

Logging projects moving more quickly under new federal forest policy

Flathead National Forest announced the Big Mountain Fuels Reduction Project on Feb. 20. A mere two months later, machinery was rolling, and timber was being harvested from the slopes at Whitefish Mountain Resort. Now, the project is nearly wrapped up as snow starts to fall ahead of ski season. A two-week public comment period was provided ahead of the 200-acre project, intended to protect the ski resort's infrastructure from wildfire risk. Deemed by forest officials to not have significant environmental effects and seen as addressing a high-risk area, the project was categorically exempt and authorized as an emergency. It represents just one of many local timber projects that are moving forward more quicky and with a narrower opportunity for public scrutiny following policy changes at the federal level. Locally, foresters say the new rules are generally proving to be more efficient, while conservationists express concern over environmental effects and a rushed public participation process. In March 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the immediate expansion of timber production in national forests. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins followed the order with an April 2025 memorandum declaring a wildfire emergency across 59% of national forest land. Emergency authorizations were

Whitefish, MT · 1d

Hungry Horse News

publisher · 1.3K followers

City looks to tighten down short term rental regulations

The city of Columbia Falls will take a tougher stance toward short-term rentals that don’t comply with city regulations in 2027. The new short-term rental policy creates uniform permitting and operating standards across the city while maintaining applicable zoning requirements, City Manager Eric Hanks told council last week. Some of the key provisions include: Each eligible STR property needs to obtain an annual STR Special Provisions Permit, which include verification of property ownership and identification of the responsible property manager and local contact. The city is using third-party monitoring software to identify active listings, review permit status, and support Resort Tax compliance audits. Currently the city has identified about 150 short term rentals, but only about 87 are actually actively licensed. Hanks noted that disparity is skewed a bit, because some people might have a property with more than one STR on it. But even so, the city is taking a more affirmative stance on STRs, particularly toward those that don’t pay or are delinquent in paying resort taxes. STRs are subject to the city’s 3% resort tax. The city will consider payment plans for those that are delinquent, but for owners looking to simply skirt the law, they could

Columbia Falls, MT · 1d

Montana Outdoor Radio Show

partner publisher · 2.8K followers

Flathead National Forest Seeks Public Input on Proposed Skillet Fire Salvage Project

(Kalispell, MT, November 10, 2026) — The Flathead National Forest announced today that the Tally Lake Ranger District has released the […]

Olney, MT · 1d