Forest Service has made it easier for resorts to include summer activities.
Mountain West
Posted inArticles
How to fix exclusive resort towns
It’s time to rethink urbanization in mountain communities.
Posted inDecember 26, 2016: Obama and the West
Where species will find refuge
Nooks and crannies offer safe harbor from a changing climate.
Posted inArticles
American pika disappearing from Western regions
The pika is fading from historical habitat and a new study points to climate change.
Posted inJuly 25, 2016: Salmon Power
‘Keep It in the Ground’ prompts online oil and gas leasing auctions
Protests against drilling on public lands continue.
Posted inJune 13, 2016: Water to Dust
Taking water’s measure
A three-day trip to measure Montana’s snowpack follows a century of tradition.
Posted inMay 16, 2016: Grizzly Face-Off
As delisting looms, grizzly advocates prepare for a final face-off
The Yellowstone grizzly population is poised to lose its endangered status, leaving protection in the hands of the states.
Posted inApril 4, 2016: A Land Divided
Can a legal victory make Indian Country whole again?
For over a century, federal law has split Native American land holdings into tiny pieces. A settlement unites some of the splinters, but at a steep cost.
Posted inApril 4, 2016: A Land Divided
In bison recovery, scientists start small
A new approach to bison conservation focuses on many small herds on a patchwork of public and private land.
Posted inArticles
Interactive timeline: Fish & Wildlife Service proposes to delist Yellowstone grizzly
Decision marks the second time the grizzly has faced loss of federal protection.
Posted inFebruary 22, 2016: Fractured
How the wild Northern Rockies were saved — and who led the way
A new book looks at the ordinary citizens who fought for wilderness designations.
Posted inFebruary 22, 2016: Fractured
It’s been a deadly winter for backcountry fun
What would it take to keep snowmobilers and others safe in avalanche terrain?
Posted inArticles
New leader steps up for the American Lands Council
Montana lawmaker takes over lands transfer group, as a new tendril of the movement emerges.
Posted inFebruary 2, 2016: Sagebrush Insurgency
Cursing the mountain
An adventurer asks whether his failures in the alpine zone are caused by blasphemy.
Posted inDecember 7, 2015: Good Neighbors
Will the Little Shell Tribe finally be recognized?
The tribe’s complex history has slowed federal approval of the tribe. A new rule could change that.
Posted inArticles
What will become of the backcountry in Utah’s Wasatch?
In Park City, a decades-long battle against the resort industry may be all but over.
Posted inAugust 3, 2015: Outflanked
Tracing the Yampa River where it flows free
Review of “Colorado’s Yampa River” by John Fielder.
Posted inJuly 20, 2015: Shredded
Exploring “The Crown of the Continent” in photos
Photographer Steven Gnam takes readers into the one of the most remote stretches of wilderness, along the ridge of the Northern Rockies.
Posted inJuly 20, 2015: Shredded
Readers’ essays on favorite spots to recreate
Tell us where we can find you paddling, walking and hunting.
Posted inArticles
Why is Montana giving its bison specialist the boot?
The state blames budget cuts as it demotes a longtime wildlife biologist.