Montana holds 33.8 million acres of public land, more than 170,000 miles of river, and 3,200+ lakes, generating $7.1 billion in outdoor recreation spending and 71,000 jobs statewide -- ranked the #1 state in the country for outdoor recreation. Access, grazing leases, timber sales, and who gets to use what land sit at the center of Montana politics. the406.news covers the agencies, advocates, and court fights that decide it.
Republican candidates Aaron Flint and an unnamed Senate hopeful drew sharp challenges from Democratic and Independent opponents who called GOP public-lands pledges hollow — even as Montanans broadly oppose any sale or transfer of federal lands.
A temporary closure from Avalanche to Jackson Glacier Overlook takes effect at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 9, as the park braces for dropping temperatures and possible weekend snowfall.
The Montana congressman was recognized for his support of hunting, public lands, and wildlife management — including a 2018 Interior Department order on elk habitat and his co-sponsorship of the Fix Our Forests Act.
A Mountain Journal analysis raises the question of whether overcrowding poses an existential threat to one of North America's most celebrated wild ecosystems.