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Pennsylvania woman drowns in Virginia Creek below Virginia Falls in Glacier National Park
Hungry Horse NewsA 26-year-old woman drowned Sunday in Virginia Creek in Glacier National Park downstream from Virginia Falls.She was identified by park officials as Gillian Tones from North Apollo, Pennsylvania. It was first reported that Tones went into the water above St. Mary Falls but witnesses later clarified that she slipped on wet, slick rocks and fell into Virginia Creek between St. Mary and Virginia Falls, about 200 yards above the trail bridge. Tones was quickly swept up by the cold, fast moving water and went over a series of smaller waterfalls, then was pinned underwater by a log for several minutes until efforts by other park visitors led to pulling her from the creek. Park streams are running high and fast from runoff. The hike is one of the most popular in the park. Despite resuscitation efforts by bystanders, park rangers, ambulance personnel and ALERT helicopter medics, Tones never regained consciousness and was pronounced deceased by ALERT personnel at about 7 p.m. The initial calls came in about 5:20 p.m. and rangers were on the scene about 20 minutes later as they had to hike to get to the scene of the accident.
Woman apparently drowns at St. Mary Falls in Glacier National Park
A 26-year-old Pennsylvania woman apparently drowned at St. Mary Falls in Glacier National Park Sunday afternoon. Her name was not immediately released. Witnesses said the woman was washed over the falls and trapped under water for several minutes, according to a park press release. Bystanders pulled her from the water below the falls and administered CPR until emergency responders arrived. The first 911 call came in about 5:20 p.m. Park rangers arrived about 15 minutes later, as it’s a 1.2-mile hike to get to the falls from the Going-to-the-Sun Road on Glacier’s east side. Park rangers and Babb ambulance personnel took over...
Glacier National Park's Going-to-the-Sun Road opens over Logan Pass to vehicles
Glacier National Park’s Going-to-the-Sun Road is now open for vehicles up and over Logan Pass for the summer season.The road opened about 6 a.m. June 22, which is close to the average opening for the highway.Folks are reminded that they need a reservation to enter the road from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. through the west entrance. But they do not need a reservation to enter the highway from the east side at St. Mary. Reservations are available at Recreation.govAs typical for this time of year, folks should be mindful of snow hazards at the higher elevations. The Highline Trail is closed at Logan Pass to Granite Park due to snow and the Hidden Lake Trail beyond the overlook is also closed due to snow.Logan Pass saw several inches of snow earlier this week. But the chance of snow this weekend is nil, with highs in the 80s. The next chance of rain isn’t until Wednesday.
Joyce E. Baumgartner 87
Joyce E. Baumgartner, 87 of Columbia Falls went peacefully home to be with her heavenly Father on June 12, 2024 surrounded by her family. She was born on Sept. 12, 1936 in Stanley, North Dakota, daughter of Orville and Gwen Thronson.She was baptized, confirmed, and active in the Missouri Synod Lutheran Church her whole life.Joyce was raised in Ross, North Dakota. After completion of college she taught school in North Dakota and on June 5, 1955 she married Orville Baumgartner. After living in California and Utah they moved to Montana in 1967 with their five children enjoying life on their...
They support Freedom to Vote
Having proudly served as former Secretaries of State in Montana, we understand how important democracy is to the people of our state. It’s not a matter of what side of the aisle you stand on – it’s a matter of what you value.Recently our state’s Supreme Court reaffirmed that Montanan’s right to cast a ballot is not a mere privilege – it is a right guaranteed by our Constitution. A coalition of lawmakers in Congress, including Montana’s Senator Tester, are working to uphold the integrity of our democracy through the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights...
Charles “Chuck” Baker, 76
Chuck Baker died June 14, 2024 in Columbia Falls at Hidden Meadow Memory Care. Chuck is survived by his wife Mary Baker. A motorcycle honor ride is being scheduled. Columbia Mortuary in Columbia Falls is caring for Chuck’s family.
Dick Markham, 65
Dick Markham passed away on June 10, 2024, with his sweet wife by his side. Dick battled stage 4 cancer for the past year. Dick was born in San Francisco, California on January 29, 1959, to his parents Elvin and Sue Markham. Dick met his sweetheart, Sharleen Morden, on June 26, 1990. After almost 34 years of marriage, they were an example of love, commitment, support, and sacrifice. They built their home in Columbia Falls, Montana and Dick worked for Shepherds Glass. Together they raised their six children, David, Brad, Kyle, Adam, Nick and Crystal. They taught their children hard...
Kathryn Anna Herman, 87
Kathryn Anna Herman, lovingly known as Kathy, passed away peacefully on June 8, 2024, at Logan Health Whitefish Hospital. She was a resident at The Springs of Whitefish at the time of her passing. Born on September 13, 1936, in Ogallala, Nebraska, to Peter Lehl and Margaret Elizabeth Van Dorsten, Kathy’s life was marked by her deep connections with family and her enduring spirit.In the early 1940s, Kathy moved with her family to Montana, eventually settling in Missoula, where she attended and graduated from high school. She shared a special bond with her grandmother, Anna Van Dorsten, who held a...
Columbia Falls summer swim team wins title at Choteau
The Columbia Falls Swim team took the first-place title at Choteau last weekend. The Wildcats brought 42 swimmers to the meet and won with a score of 1,005 points (361 points above second place). “We had so many very tough swims and great races this weekend. The sportsmanship of our team was obvious to both me and the coaches of other teams and for that I’m really proud. “Everyone has collectively raised the intensity and performance level of this team and we are now really starting to feel the impact of executing the process. “We are showing up for our...
Howe Lake and beyond ... Biological diversity abounds on this relatively short journey
Sometimes you do a hike in Glacier National Park for the fun of it and other times they become an exploratory mission. Sunday’s hike on the Howe Lake Fire Trail was the latter. To get to the Howe Lake Fire Trail you simply hike to Howe Lake off Glacier National Park’s Inside North Fork Road and then keep going.The trail will get quite a bit fainter once you leave Howe Lake proper as it winds up the side of Howe Ridge. Having said that, the views open up quite a bit and while the trail itself is pretty brushy there...
St. Mary Canal system near Babb suffers a big leak
Hungry Horse NewsThe St. Mary Canal at Babb suffered a major leak Monday at its siphon, flooding some structures and businesses nearby.No one was injured but video on social media Monday showed water coursing down the hillside and inundating structures.The town of Babb is just outside the Many Glacier Entrance to the park. The leak did not impact the town itself.’The canal was shut down prior to the leak, but the hillside above the leak, Hook’s-Hideaway-Bar, hotel and roping arena all look to have flooded according to a video posted on the Glacier Country Disaster and Emergency Preparedness Facebook page.The...
Millions of years ago, great beasts roamed the Earth ...And local dinosaur enthusiasts are on the hunt
By AVERY HOWEBigfork EagleAamon Jaeger’s friends and family tried to dissuade him when he started buying land in Arizona, site-unseen, off of eBay in the hopes of finding petrified wood.“It was cheap kind of desert land, but there’s fossils. So for someone like us, it could be a gold mine, it could be really fun,” Jaeger said.Jaeger started out as a tattoo artist at Tree of Life Tattoo in Whitefish with a fossil-hunting passion. A decade ago, he started with 10 acres of unfarmable, dry land with hardly a road to it in Arizona. Now, after years of digging and...
Kennedy responds to Glimm
Senator Glimm,We have not met yet, but we will, as we are both candidates for Montana Senate District 3. I was surprised to see your opinion article on “Dealing with Chinese Aggression” from a legislator from Montana especially with the myriad of local issues that face the citizens of Montana, the Flathead Valley and your district. I have experience and worked in cutting edge Biomedical, Pharmaceutical and High Technology Industries for over 35 years. I see in each of these arenas, U.S. corporations are partnered with Chinese innovators and leaders in technology development and manufacturing. It makes no sense that with...
A perfect storm of catastrophes
By Dave MarstonWesterners have begun looking at their homes differently these days. Are those trees too close? Should I move all that firewood stacked up next to the deck? Meanwhile, in California, some fire insurers have lost so much money they’ve pulled out of the state. Overall, fire insurance is becoming as expensive and unpredictable as the natural disasters — not just wildfires but also hail and windstorms — that are driving up rate increases. In some places, increases are as much as 1,000% for houses and condos nestled close to trees. In Colorado, Tiffany Lockwood said she was dropped...
Folks still skeptical of CFAC cleanup after tour
By CHRIS PETERSONHungry Horse NewsBusloads of folks toured the Columbia Falls Aluminum Co. Superfund site on June 12 as the company and government officials explained how a slurry wall containment system might work at the site.They’re fields of grass now, but years ago, the wet scrubber sludge ponds and the west landfill were dumps for tons of waste potliner and water from about 1965 to 1990.The two sites are joined at the hip. About 50 acres total, the west landfill is perched just above the sludge ponds.“They are a source of contamination of ground water,” Dick Sloan of the Montana...
The Blotter: Dead pizza in the road
June 10A woman was angry after some water spilled on her, so she got out of a truck and the driver took off. A man was punching a machine at a business on Nucleus Avenue and also defecated in a trash can. A woman with dementia reportedly wandered off.June 11Someone called concerned that some large trees might come down on their house. Wreck on Highway 2 after two trucks collided near the Truck Route. A small bear reported near Ruder Elementary School.June 12A person who was fired was being aggressive and wouldn’t leave a business. Police were pursuing an Audi...
Yesterdays: Belton Bridge pressed into service as entrance to Glacier Park
70 years agoJune 18, 1954A new nature trail at Swiftcurrent Lake in Glacier National Park was now open. The self-guided 1-mile hike featured 28 stakes that people could stop at and read about aspects of the park at each stop from a provided booklet.60 years agoJune 19, 1964Rebuilding after the flood of ‘64 was underway. One major reconstruction was the Great Northern Railway Line along the Middle Fork of the Flathead. Editor Mel Ruder said he was able to drive to Essex on Highway 2 without too many problems. The arch of the old Belton Bridge withstood the flood at...
Thinking of climbing Chief Mountain? Think again as Blackfeet enforcing closure
Tribal leaders are again enforcing a decades-old closure of Chief Mountain after recent tourist activity disturbed cultural and spiritual practices there. The Blackfeet Tribal Historic Preservation Office is enforcing Tribal Resolution 251-92, passed in the early 1980s and amended in 1992, according to Deputy Compliance Officer Gheri Hall. She said the original resolution was passed by Chief Earl Old Person and put in place after tourists interested in climbing the mountain disturbed traditional Blackfeet spiritual practices at the site. Hall said the restrictions have been loosened in the years since. Chief Mountain holds great significance for the Blackfeet people. In...
Police Chief Clint Peters named interim Columbia Falls city manager
By CHRIS PETERSONHungry Horse News A familiar face in city government will run the day-to-day operations of Columbia Falls – at least for a little while.The Columbia Falls City Council Monday night appointed Police Chief Clint Peters as the interim city manager beginning July 1. Peters will fill in as current city manager Susan Nicosia will retire June 30 after a distinguished career with the city.The city is currently undergoing its second search for a city manager after initial finalist Dennis Stark did not pass a background check to the city council’s satisfaction.Stark had a previous ethics violation when he was...
Badrock baseball playing at Glacier Bank Park
Badrock 15U Baseball, which is made up of Whitefish, Columbia Falls and Eureka youth baseball players, is hosting the first annual Badrock Invitational at Glacier Bank Park, the home of the Glacier Range Riders June 27-June 30th. The tournament is a double elimination with a four-game guarantee. Teams that are attending are The 406 Flyers out of Billings, Federal Way out of Seattle, Mission Valley Mariners, Libby Loggers, Kalispell Sluggers, Flathead A’s and host Badrock Baseball. “We wanted to make this first year mostly a local tournament so everyone can come watch local athletes compete in the nation’s top minor...
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The Hungry Horse News has been in publication since 1946. It is the only weekly newspaper in Montana to win a Pulitzer Prize and has a reputation for fine photography of the Flathead Valley and Glacier National Park. It is housed in a log cabin in Columbia Falls. Visitors with story ideas are always welcome to stop by.
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