Whitefish Mountain Resort saw over 400,000 skier visits during the 2024-25 season. This is the fifth year in a row that the mountain has tallied more than 400,000 skier visits. The resort set a new record for skier visits between Christmas Day and New Year’s Day with this year’s almost 62,400 skier visits were counted. Next season’s passes are already on sale.

The Pine Hills Youth Correctionl Facility is doing something it hasn’t done in more than 90 years. The facility will return Pine Hills to its mission as a juvenile-only facility. The change was announced by the Montana Department of Corrections on March 21.

Paddlefish anglers will see a some changes to the regulations issued by the Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks 2025. Among the changes to this year’s paddlefish regulations are concerning hooks, one treble hook per line plus forward forward-facing sonar.

Princess and Buck is a new boutique which recently entered the downtown Kalispellmarket. The shop is owned by Beth Kornick and Kyle Waterman. The name, Princess and Buck, came from two historic businesses in downtown Kalispell.  The store features a range of items, gifts and clothes from the Flathead Valley.

Construction on a new fishing access site near Sportsman’s Bridge in Bigfork is expected to begin this spring. Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks have approved plans to construct a boat ramp, parking lot and pit latrines. Once complete the new facility will make way for the reconstruction of Sportsman’s Bridge.

A total of 30 breweries competed in 22 beer categories at the second Montana Beer Awards.

The Montana Folk Festival in Butte will be July 11-13. Admission is free to all performances during the three days of the festival, although organizers urge attendees to donate up to $35 for a family.

Federal agencies informed Missoula County officials recently that two of its grants have been discontinued, which could eliminate up to three positions and halt some work around energy efficiency and case management. The county lost a $1 million grant from the Environmental Protection Agency and Partnership Health Center lost the remainder of a $1.8 million grant from the Centers For Disease Control.

Emily Garza has opened a branch of Onyx + Ivory Boutique. a women’s clothing boutique, in Miles City.

Helena’s liquor distillery, Gulch Distillers, will be expanding into a location. The new spot will be at 4 W. Lawrence St., between Queen City Ballet and the Gold Bar. It will hav...