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Kerry R. Hubble March 22, 2011 |
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Page 9 |
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Stillwater River Subdivided for many years now the Wildlife struggle trying to use it as migration route and winter range
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Drive 3 to 7 miles west of Whitefish on US 93 and you’re entering the Stillwater River basin area. You can turn left off Highway at the end of Spencer Lake onto the Tally Lake road, the river is about a mile down this paved road. Homes, farms, ranches and double wides, its private land. Left side is Montana State Forest scheduled to be logged or thinned this is what's left of the winter range in upper Flathead Valley. Continual down this road winding right, onto the Farmer to Market Road and Bissell Area, my Mother Anna J. Hubble wrote the “Bissell Notes” and “talk of the town” for the Whitefish Pilot for years here. Anyway Tally Lake is several miles up into the Salish Mountains. As you drive North and return to US 93 about 5 miles. Nice Country Flat land in fields and Ranches, Homes and Businesses. Highway 93 will bring you back to Whitefish, Watch for deer. When you see the “Lonely Barn “ your dead center proposed “Salish Mountains Wildlife Corridor” |
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Page 9 April 14 2012 |
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The mature forest here is full of wildlife, Whitetail Deer feeding at night in fields, river bottoms and parked out forests surrounding this. Many Elk and Deer grazing the crop lands in the Stillwater River Valley, bedding and giving birth then protecting their young in these hills. Indigenous species Eagles, Owls, Martin Bear, Moose, Wolf, Lions, Lynx, Fisher, Wolverine, Mink, Martin and also Grizzly are spotted and trapped here. In winter the animals use the south westerly slopes with doug fir to feed and shelter. Deer, Lion, Lynx travel use the river bottoms in winter and when dogs pressure them they use the thick forest mountain to escape. When Spencer Lake Mountain is logger off and gone where will they go? The Sensitive Species. Eagles, Lynx, Fammulated Owl, Black Back and Pileated Woodpeckers, Fisher, Pine Martin, Peregrine Falcon, and Great Grey Owl. There's two places you cant see natural wildlife activity in this area, Round Meadows x-country trails and now Beaver Lake Bike Trails ...keep up the good work. The more you open up the backwoods the more the wildlife leave! |
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Rick Hubble photo |
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Rick Hubble photo |
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Stillwater River |
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Stillwater River high water 2011 |
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Stillwater River 2011 upper valley bridge |
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Salish Mountain Wildlife Corridor |
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Northern Stillwater River of Corridor |
