Big Sky Blog

Wanna go for a helicopter ride over the Crazy Mountains in central Montana? Marnee Banks, a reporter for KXLH in Helena, did a story on the Montana National Guard, and she got to ride with them in a Blackhawk helicopter – and kept the camera rolling while airborne – cool!

The 639th Quartermaster Company returned home to Montana on New Year’s Eve after a long deployment to Iraq. Welcome home, troops – and thank you.

You may remember Shannen Rossmiller, the Montana woman who has helped capture terrorists, was the youngest municipal judge in the nation, profiled on Fox News, and various other amazing feats. She was first brought to the Montana blogosphere’s attention via MT Politics, when Craig did an interview with her (more here). She’s still fighting the good fight, and turned up on CNN last night to discuss what went wrong leading up the Fort Hood massacre. Check it out:

Learn more about Shannen at her website.

On Memorial Day, it is fitting to remember and pay tribute to those who died while serving America, while also acknowledging both those who have served and continue to wear the uniform.

Their service shall never be forgotten.

Mountain goats move into Yellowstone, for better or worse. The Good news is that they are establishing themselves very well in the higher reaches of Yellowstone. Uhmm, that’s the Bad news as well.

Mountain goats definitely fit into the category of “charismatic megafauna.” Beautiful, graceful and athletic, they survive on scant food in incredibly hostile environments. Plus, they’re exciting to watch.
The problem is, they aren’t native to the Yellowstone region.

Non-native species aren’t usually tolerated in Yellowstone, but an exception may be made in this case. Stay tuned as the story developes.

If you love maps as much as I do, then you’ll enjoy the Montana Map Library. You can view/dl maps according to Mountain Levels/Topography, Vegetation Levels, Geology, Highways, Legislative Districts, Lewis & Clark Trail, Mining Data, Population Density, Water Resources, and much more. Have fun!