Flathead Land Trust is excited to launch our new Junior Ranger Program at Harrell Forest near Bigfork! This free program invites children up to age 12 to explore and learn about nature outdoors.

Kids can complete the program during a visit to the 238-acre Harrell Forest on Swan Hill. This community forest, owned and managed by Flathead Land Trust, features several family-friendly trails.

To become a Junior Ranger, children complete place-based activities and tackle the challenges in a fun-filled booklet. Requirements include attending an event or hiking the trails. The booklet features a maze, connect-the-dots, word searches, crosswords, and bingo. These activities make learning about the forest’s birds, plants, wildlife, and geology fun and engaging.

Once finished, bring the completed booklet to the Flathead Land Trust office in Kalispell. Every participant will receive an official Junior Ranger certificate and an embroidered badge!

To Get Your Booklet:

• Pick up a copy: Visit us at 690 N. Meridian Rd., Suite #207/208, Kalispell.
• Download: Get the digital version HERE.

We’re excited to swear in our new Harrell Forest Junior Rangers and celebrate our valley’s newest land stewards!

Family legacies were permanently protected on Friday, September 20, 2025, with the establishment of a new conservation easement with Flathead Land Trust in the Star Meadows area. This land protection agreement secures the future of a 52-acre forested property with parcels pieced together since the mid-70s, as a result of a combined family conservation effort.

The land’s history stretches back to the 1920s, when it was part of a remote 160-acre homestead, settled along a clean, clear tributary to Logan Creek. Meandering through the land for a third of a mile, this stretch of creek and vital part of the Tally Lake watershed is safeguarded by the conservation easement.

The newly protected property’s diverse landscape—a mixture of upland forest and thick riparian forest —provides a variety of habitat for many wildlife species. Black bear, elk, white-tailed deer, beaver, coyotes, and occasionally grizzly bear and moose, find refuge on the property. It is also home to many bird species, including pileated woodpeckers, western tanagers, and chestnut-backed chickadees.

The property’s forested riparian vegetation is essential for maintaining the ecological integrity and water quality of a tributary to Logan Creek, which ultimately flows into Tally Lake. In spring and summer, the northern forested hillside comes alive with a carpet of beautiful pink orchids known as fairy slippers and abundant blooming bear grass beneath a canopy of subalpine fir, Douglas fir, lodgepole pine, and Engelmann spruce. In the fall, the western larch, which dominate the southern hillside, turn a brilliant yellow.

Protection of this remote forested property adds to an interconnected network of open space and quality habitat at a landscape scale. Adjacent to Flathead National Forest land on three sides, this conservation effort safeguards wildlife habitat and helps protect the natural integrity of the region for future generations.

Laura Katzman, Land Protection Specialist with Flathead Land Trust who spearheaded the project, remarked, “We really appreciate the foresight of landowners we work with to secure the future of their land and protect our abundant wildlife, exceptional water quality, and special places in northwest Montana.”