PureWest - Gallatin

Warming Center at Gallatin County Fairgrounds Served about 5 Homeless a Night reposted by Jason Frey

Jason Frey — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 20:43:00 GMT

About five homeless people a night stayed at temporary warming site at the Gallatin County Fairgrounds last weekend, said Jeff Rupp, president and CEO of the Human Resources Development Council.

Mostly, the people who used the warming center were single homeless people in town, Rupp said Monday night. If the center was a more permanent space and there had been more time to spread the word about its location, more homeless families likely would have come, he said.

The temporary warming center, in Exhibit Hall 3, on the north end of the fairgrounds, opened Thursday and is expected to stay open until the middle of this week, Rupp said. The site was set up as a last resort to help homeless people get out of the bitter cold snap last week.

"We're hoping to get something at the fairgrounds that's more permanent," Rupp said.

The temporary warming center is open from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. Blankets and cots will be available, but food will not be provided.

The Bozeman City Commission was slated on Monday night to consider contributing $6,000 from the city's general fund to the Human Resources Development Council to help pay to open a more permanent warming center.

As of press time, the commission hadn't yet taken up the issue because of a lengthy agenda.

The center that HRDC, and its partners in the Greater Gallatin Homeless Action Coalition, hope to open is initially only intended to be open every night for three months to provide shelter for the homeless this winter. The space would be used to gather information about what kind of a shelter the community needs in the long-term.

The Greater Gallatin Homeless Action Coalition decided in December to take action to make sure the homeless don't freeze to death this winter. In January 2007, a homeless man froze to death in a U-Haul truck.

The coalition is a group of agencies that includes the HRDC, Greater Gallatin United Way, the Salvation Army, the Methodist Church and individual volunteers.

By Amanda Ricker, Bozeman Daily Chronicle

Wolverines Warrant Endangered Species Protection

Jason Frey — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 17:12:00 GMT

The wolverine, the elusive mammal that biologists believe was wiped out in the continental United States before re-establishing itself in the northern Rocky Mountains, warrants protection on the endangered species list, the U.S. Wildlife Service said Monday.

However, the service said it is "precluded" from actually listing the animal because of more pressing wildlife issues in the United States.

The announcement was met with measured celebration from conservation groups that sued FWS to re-examine the wolverine's status last year after the agency had previously found it did not warrant protection under the Endangered Species Act. A Montana state biologist was more wary of a move to list the species.

In its finding, the FWS cited global warming as the major threat to the wolverines. Specifically, wolverines need deep snow to reproduce. Female wolverines dig elaborate dens in the snow to protect their offspring from predators and the elements, according to the wildlife service. Current data trends suggest the wolverines' cold and snowy habitat could be reduced 63 percent by 2099.

Around Bozeman, wolverines have been seen in the Bridger Mountains to the north and the Gallatin and Madison mountains to the south, according to data from the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. FWP data shows the highest density of wolverines in the area has been observed in the Bridgers and Gallatins.

However, the animal is famously reclusive and difficult to study. Scientists believe fewer than 300 wolverines live in the contiguous 48 states.

In 2008, the FWS ruled the wolverine did not warrant protection, stating the population in the United States was not distinct from the more robust population in Canada. That prompted a lawsuit.

"We're quite relieved that a correction was made so that the Fish and Wildlife Service does find the wolverine to warrant protection," said David Gaillard, a Rocky Mountain region representative for the Defenders of Wildlife in Bozeman. "We're happy we corrected that. We're disappointed that it's not yet listed. We feel time is running out."

But FWS officials say the effects of climate change on the wolverine "are not imminent."

"As a result, the agency's limited resources must be devoted to work on listing determinations for species at greater risk of extinction," the service said in a news release.

Montana allows five wolverines to be trapped every year and has the most extensive data set on the animals of any state, said Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks biologist Kurt Alt.

He said wolverines by their nature disperse widely, but genetic studies have shown that wolverines from the Central Idaho, Greater Yellowstone and northwest Montana ecosystems interact and said the population is sustainable at current levels.

He said listing the species could frustrate efforts to relocate wolverines to states where they have been exterminated.

"I don't know what (listing) buys but shifting authority," he said.

Realtors and Builders ask Bozeman City to Lower Impact Fees

Stan Feagler — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 16:30:00 GMT

Like many areas of the country, new building of residential real estate has fallen off a cliff in 2008 and as not yet recovered. Once viewed as an easy source of increasing revenue, Bozeman, like many cities in Montana and through out the nation raised impact fees to shore up expanding city budgets. In addition, Bozeman home builders were required to pick up the tab for much of the new infrastructure associated with new developments. During the early 2000's, there was enought cushion in project plans to accomodate the increased costs, but when the market started to soften, many of the projects went bust leaving the infrastructure not complete and the city budgets in deficit.

To kickstart building, Montana builders and realtors are asking cities like Bozeman to lower their impact fees.

Posted: Friday, October 15, 2010 12:15 am | Updated: 5:55 pm, Thu Oct 14, 2010.

Realtors, homebuilders associations asking city to lower impact fees AMANDA RICKER, Chronicle Staff Writer The Bozeman Daily Chronicle | 18 comments

Local realtor and builder associations have asked the city of Bozeman to reduce impact fees charged on new homes and businesses.

Both the Gallatin Association of Realtors and Southwest Montana Building Industry Association have asked the Bozeman City Commission to cut the amount of street impact fees the city charges. The associations argue such a reduction would help stimulate the local housing market.

"We realize that the impact fee schedule will be revisited in the near future, but that could take as long as two years to complete," states a Sept. 20 letter to the commission from SWMBIA President Anders Lewendal and Governmental Affairs Chairman David Graham.

"In the meantime, Bozeman's impact fees will continue to remain in the top 5 percent of the entire nation and continue to cripple any chance of a reversal in home prices within our city," the letter said.

The city uses impact fees to pay for growth and keep existing residents from paying those costs through higher taxes.

Bozeman currently charges impact fees for streets, fire services, water and sewers.

Together, the fees come to $11,117 for a single-family home.

The Gallatin Association of Realtors and Southwest Montana Building Industry Association say they're only asking to reduce street impact fees because they're some of the highest impact fees the city charges and they're some of the most difficult to quantify.

Street impact fees pay to increase the capacity of local roads, such as widening a street or adding a traffic light. It can be difficult to put a number to how much a new building will increase traffic.

Currently, the city charges 60 percent of the maximum allowed by law for street impact fees. When commissioners chose that percentage in December 2007, they opted not to go for the full 100 percent in hopes of helping the already struggling building economy.

At 60 percent, street impact fees on a 1,500- to 2,499-square-foot single family home are $3,432. The street impact fees for a bank with a drive-thru are $20,164 per 1,000 square feet. And fees for a small retail space are $5,964.

Both GAR and SWMBIA that's still too high.

GAR has specifically asked city officials to cut street impact fees to 30 percent of the maximum allowed.

"We really need the city to start to do something to help spur the economy," said Wendy Wilson, president of the Gallatin Association of Realtors. "We take the city's word on it when they say Bozeman is business-friendly so I think their actions need to support what they say they do."

GAR, which represents some 650 real estate agents in Gallatin County and the surrounding area, is asking for temporary relief from street impact fees.

"Clearly we know we need to pay for services," Wilson said. "We're saying, ‘Hey, give people a break, given them the opportunity and watch (the housing industry) turn around.'"

SWMBIA, which represents more than 350 homebuilding and remodeling industry members, wants street impact fees permanently reduced.

Its letter to the city commission argues that the 2007 study that set street impact fees doesn't apply anymore because it was based on a 5 percent growth rate for the city.

"Currently that rate is approaching negative," states SWMBIA's Sept. 20 letter.

Every three years, the city hires outside consultants to study how much it should charge in impact fees and it's time for the city to look into the issue again, Assistant Planning Director Chris Saunders said. State law requires local governments to justify the impact fees they charge through studies.

Bozeman Mayor Jeff Krauss said this week that city officials will consider GAR and SWMBIA's requests.

"I think they had some reasonable requests in there and we're considering some of those on the planning board," Krauss said. "And as they make their way through the planning board, I'm sure they'll come before the city commission."

The Bozeman City Commission on Monday plans to review how the city's impact fees were created in order to prepare for the upcoming studies.

Amanda Ricker can be reached at aricker@dailychronicle.com or 582-2628

Stan Feagler

PureWest - Christie's Great Estates

Big Sky and Spanish Peaks Resort in Fight over Lone Peak

Stan Feagler — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 15:49:00 GMT

Land disputes in the Gallatin Valley, Montana going back the formation of Yellostone Club, Spanish Peaks and Big Sky Resort in the early 1990's. While the 15 acres of Lone Peak are a small percentage of the land swaps that gave rise the Big Sky's biggest resorts, Lone Peak is a land mark for the Big Sky area making it more than just a mountain.

Article from Bozeman Chronicle: A Madison County jury has ruled in favor of Big Sky Resort in a lawsuit that pitted some of the biggest names in Big Sky against each other in a bout over who should own a Lone Mountain at 11,000 feet high.

A jury ruled that Boyne USA, the Michigan company that owns and operates Big Sky Resort, is the rightful owner of the 15-acre parcel of land on Lone Mountain.

As it stands, owners of the upscale Club at Spanish Peaks hold title to the land that skiers would recognize as the upper portion of Liberty Bowl, a popular destination and scenic location for Montana's expert skiers.

During a weeklong trial in Virginia City in November, lawyers for Boyne argued that Spanish Peaks Development was trying to use the small piece of land as a bargaining chip as it negotiated and litigated with Boyne.

"This is a piece of property they have no access to," David Wagner, the lawyer representing Boyne, explained this week. "There's got to be another motive to make this an issue."

Boyne's lawyers argued that the land should have come into Boyne's possession years ago. The jury agreed.

A lawyer for Spanish Peaks Development declined to comment on the case, because there are still some aspects of the case that Madison County District Judge Loren Tucker must rule on.

The dispute dates back to 1998, when Big Sky Resort and Tim Blixseth's Big Sky Lumber negotiated a deal in conjunction with the timber company's large land swap with the Gallatin National Forest.

The land swap gave Blixseth the real estate that would become the Yellowstone Club and developer James Dolan the land where he would build the Club at Spanish Peaks. But the swap also gave Dolan and Blixseth the 15 acres on Lone Mountain.

In the 1998 agreement, Boyne agreed not to object to the deal as long as Big Sky Lumber turned around and sold the 15 acres to the resort company in exchange for land and cash.

But while the land swap occurred and both the Yellowstone Club and the Club and Spanish Peaks sprouted up, Boyne was never given a chance to buy the peak property, the company's lawyers argued in court.

In the meantime, Spanish Peaks Development took full control of the property and argued that Boyne had not held up its end of the agreement, thus releasing Spanish Peaks from the contract.

However, the jury ruled that Spanish Peaks Development was in breach of contract and recommended that it pay Boyne $600,000 in damage

Stan Feagler

PureWest - Christie's Great Estates

Bozeman Cost of Living Catching Up with National Average reposted by Jason Frey

Jason Frey — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 21:21:00 GMT

Bozeman - Gateway to SW Montana

By KARIN RONNOW, Chronicle Staff Writer

The latest Bozeman cost-of-living report puts the city almost on par with national averages for the first time in four years, according to Prospera Business Network.

The third-quarter 2010 report shows Bozeman's composite cost-of-living score at 100.4.

"The last time the city reported average consumer expenses this close to national ones was the second quarter of 2006," said Stuart Leidner, Prospera's executive director.

The decline in the cost of living here is attributed to "even lower housing costs," which dropped to 3.4 percent below the national average after years of being well above average, Leidner said.

In other categories for the third-quarter

= Energy prices posted well below national averages, as they have all year.

= Health care costs were 4.7 percent above the national average.

= Groceries posted at 7.6 percent above the national average, "well within historic trends," Leidner said.

= The cost of miscellaneous goods (dry cleaning, veterinarian bills and movie tickets, among other things) was 2 percent above national averages, but "they have been dropping all year," he said.

= Transportation costs were about 2 percent above the national average for the second quarter in a row.

"Bozeman residents pay similar prices for transportation costs, such as gas and tire rotations, to residents in Twin Falls, Idaho, a city of similar size and composition," Leidner said.

By comparison, the cost of living in Missoula was one-tenth of a percentage point closer to the national average, at 11.3 percent, with lower housing prices compared to the national average, but higher utility and healthcare costs than in Bozeman.

The cost of living fell just below the national average in Kalispell and Laramie, Wyo., at 97.6 and 97.3 percent respectively.

Prospera, Gallatin Valley's nonprofit economic development organization, compiles its quarterly report using the ACCRA Cost of Living Index, a national comparison of prices in 314 urban areas. The index tallies the prices of more than 90,000 items in each community. In Bozeman, Prospera collects the information and submits it to ACCRA.

Comments by Jason Frey: With the cost of living in Bozeman adjusting closer to the national average coupled with our combination of outdoor amenities, the area continues to be a highly sought after destination for relocating professionals and those looking for investment or vacation properties. For more information on real estate in the Bozeman area, contact me and I will assist you in finding property that meets your specific and unique criteria.

All best,
______________________

Jason Frey

Agent

PureWest, Inc.

jason.frey@purewestproperties.com

http://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonfreylifewideopen

www.PureWestProperties.com

Big Sky Real Estate – Part of an Inflation Hedge Portfolio

Stan Feagler — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 21:44:00 GMT

The affluent have traditionally viewed real estate, even personal use real estate, as part of their overall wealth building strategy. During the past couple of decades, second home properties in Big Sky locations such as Spanish Peaks, Moonlight Basin and The Yellowstone Club have been purchased as much for their investment value as for their recreational benefits. Second home properties have been viewed as a way to leverage one of the most volatile categories of real estate, the luxury resort home or lot. This leverage was a hands-down winner when new ski\golf communities were selling out in an evening “launch event” and, after going through a gut wrenching for the past two years, resort real estate, and especially Big Sky homes and land may be part of a sensible investment strategy.

Capital is now flowing into inflation hedges as concerns about the dollar and euro currency push investors to seek wealth preservation. Commodity prices are booming and stock prices are even rising as investors seek safety from a falling dollar and bond market bubble.

The smart money is now looking at the great deals in real estate and if one wants to combine great current value and upside potential with a fantastic recreational deal, there is no better place than a home in Big Sky, Montana. Big Sky has thousands of acres of vacant land at the base with a huge potential to grow. The three luxury developments of Yellowstone Club, Moonlight Basin and Spanish Peaks provide a solid foundation of existing upscale homes and available lots upon which to build in the future. The ski mountain and base are at generally lower elevations than their Colorado counterparts making Big Sky that much more appealing to aging boomers and the mountain is top rated for size and terrain diversity among North American ski resorts.

As for deals, PureWest – Christie’s agents never thought we would see ski-in ski-out bargains like we are witnessing today. Because many second homes were purchased as investments with maximum leverage in the early to mid 2000’s, those owners must now sell for personal reasons creating home prices which are below build cost. This situation tends to right itself quickly through rising prices, and hence the current opportunity may not be long lived.

Finally, the Fed is printing money to spur inflation and six hundred billion says they will succeed… maybe more than they want. What better place to be than by the crackling fire in your Moonlight Mountain home when inflation hits 8% and your mortgage is at 5%.

Stan Feagler

CEO, PureWest Christie's Great Estates

Federal Reserve - The Home Value Improvement Act

Stan Feagler — Thu, 04 Nov 2010 16:10:00 GMT

The asset inflation now being promoted by the Fed's QE2 will have an especially favorable impact on the value of real estate in Big Sky, Montana

New single-dog play areas opened Monday reposted by Jason Frey

Jason Frey — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 17:55:00 GMT

Opening Day!

Bozeman's newest dog park opened Monday to a line of four-legged fans.

Dogs, along with their owners, queued up for their turn to run in two new single-dog play areas - meant for one person and their dog at a time - on the northwest side of the Softball Complex off of Highland Boulevard.

The play areas serve as an alternative to typical off-leash dog parks in Bozeman. People can exercise their dog alone in the 110-foot-long, 70-foot-wide exercise pens without the "free-for-all" atmosphere at other dog parks, Terry Cunningham said at an opening ceremony for the play areas.

Cunningham and Run Dog Run, a nonprofit he and other local dog owners started, collected donations and got discounted materials from Murdoch's Ranch & Home Supply to build the single-dog play areas for the city. The group plans to pay to maintain them as well.

"We want to make this a place the city is proud of and never regrets letting us build," Cunningham said.

The idea behind the city's newest dog play areas is that many dog owners in Bozeman don't have fenced-in yards to run their dogs and many dogs don't do well in crowded dog parks. Puppies, small breeds and old dogs may have trouble in packs. Elderly folks and young children may not be comfortable around groups of strange dogs.

Jeanne Knox and her 5-year-old chocolate lab Elliot were among at least a dozen people and their pets who took a turn in the single-dog play areas Monday. Users are limited to about 15 to 20 minutes in the pen at a time.

Elliot doesn't always play well with others, Knox said, so the play areas are perfect for him.

"When I adopted him from the shelter, I was his fifth owner in three years," she said.

Elliot hadn't had a lot of structure and training and tends to believe every other dog is out to steal his ball, Knox said.

Christian Richins brought Lulu, a 7-month-old shepherd-pit bull mix, to the play areas.

Richins provides a foster home for Lulu because she wouldn't come out of her kennel at the shelter and wouldn't let anyone approach her. At the single-dog run, she can play fetch without fear. And, Richins can be sure Lulu won't harm any other dogs and they won't harm her.

If the play areas work, Cunningham has said he'd like to see them installed in every major neighborhood around town.

"The purpose is to provide Bozeman dog owners another tool in their dog-owning tool box," he said. "A tired dog is a well-behaved dog."

Reposted from Bozeman Daily Chronicle, Photo Credit - Erik Peterson, Bozeman Daily Chronicle

______________________

Jason Frey

Agent

PureWest, Inc.

jason.frey@purewestproperties.com

http://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonfreylifewideopen

www.PureWestProperties.com

Bozeman Leaders Support Community College reposted by Jason Frey

Jason Frey — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 17:27:00 GMT

Montana State University

The Bozeman area is ready to put its money where its mouth is and support a local tax hike if that's what it would take to create a two-year community college here, community leaders said Monday.

Bozeman needs a full-fledged community college, Mayor Jeff Krauss said at a "listening session" held by Sheila Stearns, Montana commissioner of higher education, and Montana State University President Waded Cruzado. About 50 people attended the meeting at the GranTree Inn.

Krauss said he really appreciates the progress made this year with the two-year Gallatin College Programs at MSU, but more needs to be done.

The program has a new name, a new home in MSU's Hamilton Hall with more space and visibility, and a clearer mission, now that it's being run from Bozeman instead of Great Falls.

Bozeman is "the fastest growing urban area in the state," Krauss said, and it needs a community college that can offer night and weekend classes, training in medical and many other fields, and offer an alternative for high school students who don't fit the four-year university model.

Krauss said that he personally was ready to find 1.5 property tax mills in the city's budget and write a check to Gallatin College Programs Dean Bob Hietala, if that's what it would take.

"I think this community is hugely supportive," Krauss said. "I'm willing the lead the effort any way you choose."

Yet it won't be that easy.

Stearns said a committee has been brainstorming since last summer to figure out how to craft a state law that would allow Gallatin County to vote on a community college tax.

Five other counties already have a local 1.5 mill tax to support their two-year colleges in Missoula, Helena, Butte, Billings and Great Falls.

One problem is that the money raised by those 1.5 mill taxes does not go directly to the community colleges but to the state's general fund. That made sense historically, but would make it harder to pass a mill levy in Gallatin County, Stearns said.

She said she expects some kind of solution will be introduced as a bill in the 2011 Legislature, which meets in January.

Chris Kukulski, Bozeman's city manager, pointed out that when the Montana Board of Regents voted in May to move control of MSU Great Falls' satellite classes in Bozeman to MSU Bozeman, they stated that Bozeman's programs couldn't expand until there's an equitable local mill levy. Kukulski asked how the Bozeman community, where more than half the population has a college degree, can show the state it's ready to step up and contribute.

Hietala said he'd like to add new job-training programs to the four already offered by the Gallatin College Programs, but can't do much until the funding issue is resolved.

Also supporting the Gallatin College Programs was Bozeman Schools Superintendent Kirk Miller. He said Bozeman High and Gallatin College Programs are collaborating to offer their first "dual enrollment" class, which this fall is giving 30 high school students the chance to earn three college credits in math and get a head start on college.

Wendy Lewis, former Bozeman Public Library fundraiser, said this community supports lifelong learning. As a career counselor, Lewis said, she knows many people over age 40 who would love to return to school, and a community college would be perfect place for those who want to change careers.

Pam Fisher, who worked for 30 years with California community colleges, also supported the Gallatin College Programs.

"A community college can turn around, not just people's lives, but a county, a region," Fisher said. "What can we do to make it happen?"

Mike Simmonds, a physicist and founder of high-tech companies in California and Montana, said this area "needs a little help" so its engineers aren't "half a step behind." He said a community college could offer mini-courses and workshops where engineers could broaden or update their skills.

Monday's meeting was one of 18 community listening sessions Stearns is holding around the state as part of an effort, supported by a $1.7 million grant from the Lumina Foundation, to get more Montanans to earn a college education and to upgrade the image of Montana's two-year colleges.

Reposted from the Bozeman Daily Chronicle

______________________

Jason Frey

Agent

PureWest, Inc.

jason.frey@purewestproperties.com

http://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonfreylifewideopen

www.PureWestProperties.com

Rat Lake – the “Eight of Spades” by Jason Frey

Jason Frey — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 21:54:00 GMT

Shores of Rat Lake Looking to Gallatin Nat'l Forest

The changing seasons of southwestern Montana all have a very different and specific personality. Many enjoy the summers in this country, and as many revel in the “cold smoke” that charges our winters, but many find it is the Montana fall that captures their hearts. When the mornings begin to cool and the aspens transition from their summer greens into their autumn blondes and gold’s, there is a special awakening of the soul in those who are fortunate enough to spend time out of doors. The bugle of bull elk rings across the mountain glades, bears are beginning to prepare for their impending slumber, chipmunks and squirrels are topping off their winter stockpiles and preparing for season spent under snow. Fall even has its own smell. It hangs in the woods, indescribable and unique, crisp and invigorating, heavy with earth and unlike any other time of year. Spring has its own scent also, but I have always preferred the perfume of fall.

Crossing Storm Castle Creek

Knowing the beauties of fall in the mountains, it is difficult to let pastoral autumn days pass without a foray into nature. I had my son, Connor, draw a card from our deck of hikes this past weekend and he drew the eight of spades, Rat Lake. Nestled into the expanses of the Gallatin National Forest, about 20 miles south and west of Bozeman, Rat Lake is a very accessible hike that is generally level, gaining only 160 ft during the 1.5 mile journey. The drive to the trailhead is an experience in itself, accessing off of Hwy 191 at Storm Castle you follow the Gallatin River and its natural courses upstream where the road branches and follows Storm Castle Creek, ultimately crossing it and continuing a few miles further on well maintained Forest Service Roads to the beginning of the trail for Rat Lake and the Garnet Mountain Fire Lookout.

Trail Junction with Garnet Mountain Lookout

The afternoon was mostly sunny and 61*, a proper fall temperature for a walk in the woods. With a full afternoon of enthusiasm ahead of us we set out from the roadside parking area along a well marked and traveled trail. The road was formerly used to harvest timber, and although mountain bike, ATV and dirt bike traffic is permitted we saw only foot-traffic one our outing. The hike follows a logging cut for the first third of the journey and the sounds of cascading water can be detected from several locations along the trail. As we passed the junction for the Garnet Mountain Lookout, we greeted a young couple from Vermont on their way back to the parking area. They had been to the lookout, had a picnic lunch and were headed back down for an evening in Big Sky.

Portion of Gallatin National Forest from Rat Lake Trail

Connor and I reached the shores of the lake a short time later and the area really deserves a more attractive name than the beady-eyed rodent moniker conveys. The lake is nestled in a natural opening in the forest canopy with grassy expanses on the eastern and southern shores. We had the area to ourselves save a couple fishing the shores with their grandson. The grandmother, a woman named Barbara, quickly engaged Connor in a running dialogue about his hiking prowess and rewarded his exaggerations with a small candy bar. We visit with Barbara and her grandson Chase for a good spell before setting off to circle the lake. On our attempt to circumnavigate the area, we found frogs in a shallow pond which were cause to pause and question daddy about all things amphibian before continuing on.

Calm Waters and Clear Skies - Montana in Fall

As the afternoon shadows began to lengthen, we started back down the trail with muddy shoes, our new walking stick and a pocket full of Old Man’s Beard from the surrounding pines. The Storm Castle trailhead also serves as the starting point for a series of other popular hikes in this area of the Gallatin Valley and due to the short length of the hike to Rat Lake; it is an area where it is possible to complete 2-3 shorter excursions in one day while in the area.

For information on properties within close proximity to this or other hiking trails in the Gallatin Valley, contact Jason Frey.

All best,
______________________

Jason Frey

Agent

PureWest, Inc.

406-579-4582

jason.frey@purewestproperties.com

http://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonfreylifewideopen