“It’s the nutrients, stupid.” That’s a paraphrase of the now-classic campaign line by James Carville, but when it comes to improving water quality in the Big Sky area, the solution is almost that simple. If we want cleaner water, we must reduce the concentration of...
Recently, I stopped along the Gallatin to enjoy a peaceful moment at the river’s edge. Pulling into the access site adjacent to the Hwy. 191 stoplight, I expected an idyllic scene of slow-moving, crystal clear water. What I got was the opposite. Originating from...
Big Sky has a poop problem. Rapid growth and decentralized infrastructure have led to three streams flowing through our community below state standards for water quality. Higher-than-ideal levels of certain nutrients qualify the streams as impaired, and these...
Recently, winter stormed back onto the southwest Montana landscape. A March 24 storm left almost a foot of snow on the slopes high above Big Sky, with a few inches dusting the meadows and canyons closer to the Gallatin River. On the morning of March 25, our...
Though Big Sky’s full-time population is rapidly growing, this is still a tourist town. As such, there are a variety of inns, lodges, hotels and motels, all catering to visitors itching to enjoy southwest Montana’s natural beauty. While AirBnB-style rentals are...
So far, this season has been a mild one. While the Natural Resources Conservation Service is reporting a Gallatin watershed snowpack that’s 121 percent of normal, it didn’t feel much like winter until the last week of storms. Even with snowfall, temps have...
