The Story Behind the "M"

The "M" is 620 feet above the Missoula Valley floor. It is 125' feet long and 100' feet wide. University of Montana forestry students cut the switchbacks into the side of the hill in the early 1900's. The first "M" was assembled out of whitewashed rocks in 1909, and given a fresh coat of paint by freshmen every year, until 1968, when all those rocks were cemented together with concrete.

Photo by Nelson Kenter, kenterphotography.com

Posts Tagged ‘Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks’

Hoot-Owl Restrictions Placed On Additional Rivers in Southwest Montana

A full angling closure and two new hoot-owl restrictions will go into effect on additional sections of the Madison River in southwest Montana.... more

Warm Water Prompts Full Fishing Closures and Hoot-Owl Restrictions on Some Streams

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is advising anglers that full fishing closures and hoot-owl restrictions will be in effect starting July 26 on portions of some rivers and creeks in western and southwestern Monta... more

FWP REMINDER: Be Bear Aware When Recreating Outdoors

As you make plans for the July 4th holiday, be sure to review these precautionary steps to “Be Bear Aware”:... more

City Asks Residents to Comply Witn Fireworks Laws

The City of Missoula, along with our partner agencies ask Missoula residents to refrain from the use of fireworks.... more

Dry, Hot Conditions Call For Special Consideration When Living With Wildlife

More than 70 percent of Montana is experiencing severe drought conditions. You can help avoid conflicts with wildlife by following these suggestions:... more

Wildlife Officials, Blackfoot Community Work Together on Fatal Bear Attack Details and Next Steps

Wildlife officials and the local Blackfoot Valley community are working together to wrap up details of the July 6 fatal grizzly bear attack of a camper in Ovando.... more

Hunting Permit Drawing Results Now Available

The wait is over as the deer and elk permit drawing is complete, just 12 days after the application deadline. ... more

Hunting and Fishing License Year Begins March 1st

The new license year opens March 1, which means that is the day you can buy your 2021 hunting and fishing licenses and begin applying for permits and special licenses.... more

Changes to Surplus License Process for 2020

To give residents and nonresidents a more equitable opportunity for surplus licenses, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks has developed a new system for issuing surplus licenses.... more

Orphaned Grizzly Cubs Going to Bearizona Wildlife Park

Working jointly, staff from Montana Fish Wildlife & Parks and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service found a home for three grizzly bear cubs that were orphaned last month. ... more

Trying Times

BRUCE AUCHLY - This month may be the discontent of our winter, as we keen to hike, hear meadowlarks, smell the earth after a rain. But life does go on in February, even if we don’t notice it.... more

Vandals Continue to Spray Paint Fish, Wildlife and Parks Region 4 Sites

Fish, Wildlife and Parks is seeking information on whomever is responsible for graffiti that continues to be spray painted on FWP sites and other public property near Great Falls.... more

Winter’s Tale

By BRUCE AUCHLY - Right now, it’s too late for hunting, too early for fishing and I’m too old for winter mountain climbing.... more

Montana WILD and VA Program Helps Veterans Recover From PTSD, Substance Abuse

A collaborative program between the Montana Veterans Affairs Residential Rehabilitation Treatment Program and Montana Fish, Wildlife & Park’s Montana WILD has earned national attention.... more

Bird Hunters Need to be Bear Aware

By BRUCE AUCHLY - With the Oct. 12 opening of pheasant season, bird hunters around western Montana should be prepared for an encounter with a grizzly bear.... more

Boaters: Remember to “Clean, Drain, Dry” This Summer

By JOLEEN TADEJ - The summer boating season in Montana has begun, and more than 24,000 watercraft have already been inspected at aquatic invasive species inspection stations around the state. ... more

Mount JumboNorth Zone to Remain Closed until May 15

By BECKY GOODRICH - Parks and Recreation, in consultation with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, has extended the winter wildlife closure for Mount Jumbo’s North Zone.... more

Shed Hunters Should Give Wildlife a Break

By BRUCE AUCHLY - Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks is asking shed hunters and other recreationists to give deer and elk their space until the snow melts.... more

Seven Deer Killed in Montana Test Positive for Wasting Disease

Officials say seven more deer killed by hunters in Montana have tested positive for a brain wasting disease.... more

An Essay on a Bird Feeder

By BRUCE AUCHLY - All animals that spend at least part of their lives in Montana have three strategies for coping with winter: leave, go to sleep or tough it out.... more

Feeling Strong?

By BRUCE AUCHLY - Technology gives us some advantages over wildlife. But when it comes to strength, agility and speed never bet against the animals.... more

Keeping Vigilant on Protecting Montana’s Waterways

With summer half over, more than 50,000 watercraft have been inspected at Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks aquatic invasive species inspection stations around the state.... more

Boat Carrying Zebra Mussels Stopped at Anaconda Inspection Station

By JOLEEN TADEJ - The Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Anaconda watercraft inspection station intercepted a boat carrying zebra mussels Friday. ... more

Grizzly Bears Reported Out on Rocky Mountain Front

Just in time for the beginning of spring, grizzly bears have been reported out on the Rocky Mountain Front.... more

Bird Hunter Shoots, Kills Charging Grizzly Near Front

By BRUCE AUCHLY - A pheasant hunter shot and killed a grizzly bear Nov. 4 near Pendroy along the Rocky Mountain Front that charged him.... more

Bird Hunters Need to be Bear Aware

By BRUCE AUCHLY - Upland bird hunting began Sept. 1 and hunters along the Rocky Mountain Front, especially in riparian areas, need to be aware they are in bear country.... more

Snake Season

By BRUCE AUCHLY - Not a hunting season, but a season to admire Montana’s snakes for what they are: a vital cog in the natural world.... more

No Fireworks on FWP Property Including Fishing Access Sites

By JOLEEN TADEJ - Visiting a Montana fishing access site on the July 4th is a great idea – just leave the fireworks at home.... more

U.S. Fish Wildlife Service Delists Grizzlies in the Yellowstone Ecosystem

By GREG LEMON - The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced Thursday that grizzly bears in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem will be removed from the Endangered Species List.... more

Montana’s Wolf Population Still Strong

By GREG LEMON - Wolf numbers in Montana remained healthy in 2016 and more than three times the federally-mandated minimums.... more

Mountain Biking in Grizzly Country, Be Prepared

By GREG LEMON - Imagine you’re riding hard down a mountain trail. As the trail you’re on weaves around a thicket of alder and huckleberries there’s a sow grizzly and two small cubs.... more

Hunters Must Expect to See Bears

By GREG LEMON - With hunting season upon us, it is important to remember that slow moving, quiet and camouflaged hunters are sharing the landscape with the state's even stealthier bears.... more

Hunting Elk in August

By BRUCE AUCHLY - Elk shoulder seasons this year will allow hunters in some hunting districts to go after antlerless elk starting Aug. 15.... more

How to Bear Proof Your Home, Cabin

By BRUCE AUCHLY-It’s summer; time for many folks to head to the mountains for vacation. That’s fine, just remember Montana’s mountains are home to black and grizzly bears.... more

Is Spring Early or Late?

By BRUCE AUCHLY - The warm weather of February and early March could lead one to believe in an early spring, which feels nice but is not necessarily a good thing.... more

2016 Hunting & Fishing Licenses On Sale Monday With Change In Fees

By JEANNE CONNOLLY - Montana's 2016 hunting and fishing licenses go on sale Monday, Feb. 1, under a new fee structure passed by the state legislature. ... more

Winter Survival is For the Birds

By BRUCE AUCHLY -At this time of year, If we humans go outside we dress for the weather.Birds that do not migrate, have evolved some ingenious ways to dress for the weather, to stay alive.... more

That Thing Called Elk Hunting

By BRUCE AUCHLY- To those who don’t hunt, it can be hard to understand the strength and depth of the passion known as Elk Hunting.... more

Elk Harvest at Augusta Check Station Best in 20 Years

By BRUCE AUCHLY-Hunters on a portion of the Rocky Mountain Front this fall took home more elk than any year in the past 20.... more

Five Region 4 Districts With Deer Hunting Changes in November

By BRUCE AUCHLY-Deer hunters need to be aware of changes taking place this month in five hunting districts in Fish, Wildlife and Parks Region 4, north central Montana.... more

Hunters Report Self Defense in Two Grizzly Bear Deaths

By JOLEEN TADEJ-Montana wildlife officials said today that two grizzly bears were killed last week in separate incidents reported by hunters in southwestern Montana.... more

Elk, Mule Deer Below Average Opener on Rocky Mountain Front

By BRUCE AUCHLY - Hunters hit the Rocky Mountain Front for the opening weekend of Montana’s general big game season, taking home fewer elk and mule deer compared to the past five years.... more

2015 Elk Hunting Outlook

By JOLENE TADEJ - These are good times for elk hunters as Montana elk populations continue to be strong across most of the state.... more

The Effects of Fire on Animals

By BRUCE AUCHLY - Summer’s fires are over, right? Or so we hope. To fish and wildlife fires can bring dire short-term and beneficial long-term consequences.... more

Reports of Swimmer’s Itch Prompts Fish, Wildlife and Parks Advisory

By BRUCE AUCHLY - Reports of swimmer’s itch in reservoirs on the Rocky Mountain Front have prompted Fish, Wildlife and Parks to issue an advisory. What is swimmer's itch anyway?... more

Summer Forecast has FWP Keeping Close Watch on Streams

By JOLEEN TADEJ - With high temperatures and depleted snowpack runoff, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks is gearing up now to protect fish from stress of low flows and elevated water temperatures.... more

Stop and Appreciate the Songbirds

By BRUCE AUCHLY - There is something about songbirds this time of year that can catch the ear, eye and heart of even the most preoccupied person.... more

Brisk Sales for Nonresident Big Game Combo Hunting Licenses

By TOM PALMER - Montana's surplus nonresident elk and deer combination hunting licenses for this fall are selling at a brisk pace.... more

Believe It, Spring is Here

By BRUCE AUCHLY - If your world collapses absent skiing, or snowmobiling, I’ll attend your pity party. That’s because spring is here, and the signs surround us. ... more

Tales and Trails: Love in the Time of Cold

By BRUCE AUCHLY - One day it’s warm and sunny, the next day cold and snowy. Welcome to that time on the calendar between winter and spring. ... more