New daycare option comes to Big Sky
DINO DROP-IN
Dino Drop-In, providing care for infants 6 weeks and up, toddlers, preschoolers and school-aged children up to 13 years old, at four locations in Bozeman, Belgrade and Kennewick, Washington, is expanding to serve the Big Sky community. Their newest and fifth location will be at 123 Lone Peak Drive, adjacent to the Hungry Moose Market & Deli.
Dino Drop-In centers utilize creative classrooms designed to inspire imaginative play. Each center follows a schedule of planned group activities and projects throughout the day.
Dino Drop-In offer services to families that need as little as an hour of care up to three weeks of full time care grounded in activities that are educational, engaging and fun. Hours for the Big Sky location will be 7:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. with additional hours available by reservation, for special events, and date nights.
Dino Drop-In combines aspects of traditional preschool with skilled teachers, curated classrooms and an educational curriculum, while offering the flexibility of drop-in care by the hour.
Visit dinodropin.com for more information.
Task force to host 7th annual Upper Gallatin River Cleanup
GALLATIN RIVER TASK FORCE
The Gallatin River Task Force will host the seventh annual Upper Gallatin River Cleanup on Aug. 30 at 2 p.m.
Volunteers will pick up trash from the banks of the Gallatin River between the Yellowstone National Park boundary and the mouth of Gallatin Canyon, as well as cleaning up streams in the Big Sky area. Last year, over 100 volunteers removed 1,000 pounds of trash from the watershed.
Volunteers will meet at the Big Sky Community Park river pavilion to receive cleanup assignments and supplies, disperse to cleanup sites throughout the watershed, and pick up trash. The group will return with their trash to the community park at approximately 5 p.m. for a complimentary barbecue and beer courtesy of Lone Peak Brewery.
The Task Force is seeking volunteer leaders to commit in advance to attending the river cleanup. Leaders will be responsible for recruiting teams of four to six people to focus on high-traffic river access points. Volunteers can choose their favorite river access point, and will be accommodated on a first come, first serve basis.
“The river cleanup is a signature Task Force event that brings a community of river lovers
together to give back to the Gallatin,” explained Kristin Gardner, executive director of
GRTF. “This year, all volunteers will be eligible to win an RTIC cooler donated by Rick Donaldson. In addition, the individual that finds the most unique item will receive a Task Force hat or t-shirt.
To RSVP email stephanie@gallatinrivertaskforce.org or call (406) 993-2519. Visit gallatinrivertaskforce.org for more information.
East Rosebud Creek declared ‘Wild and Scenic’
EBS STAFF
On Aug. 2, President Donald Trump signed into law a bill that protects Montana’s East Rosebud Creek as a wild and scenic river.
The designation for the Stillwater River tributary that runs through the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness is the first for a state waterway in 42 years.
The new law will protect 20 miles of East Rosebud Creek from future dam development. Landowners and conservation groups pressed for protections after a company proposed building a hydroelectric dam in 2009.
“Today marks an important day for conservation in Montana and for the dedicated community around East Rosebud Creek,” Republican U.S. Rep. Greg Gianforte told the Billings Gazette in an Aug. 2 article. “I am proud that my first bill signed into law is one that protects one of our national treasures and our Montana way of life.”
U.S. Sens. Steve Daines, R-Mont., and Jon Tester, D-Mont., sponsored similar legislation that passed the Senate last month.
“Today is the culmination of nearly a decade’s worth of tireless work from Montanans who want to protect the East Rosebud for their kids and grandkids,” Tester said in the same article.
“East Rosebud is a true national treasure in our state, and is a place that brings families together and supports our outdoor economy,” Daines added.
The Wild and Scenic Rivers Act was passed 50 years ago, and parts of the Flathead and Missouri river systems were protected under the law in 1976.
Biologists to begin grizzly and black bear trapping for research
YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK
As part of ongoing efforts to monitor the population of grizzly bears and black bears in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, Yellowstone National Park and the U.S. Geological Survey announced that biologists with the National Park Service and Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team (IGBST) will be conducting scientific grizzly bear and black bear research operations in Yellowstone National Park from Aug. 21 through Oct. 31.
Team members will bait and capture bears at several remote sites within the park. Once captured, the bears are anesthetized to allow wildlife biologists to radio-collar and collect scientific samples for study. All captures and handling are done in accordance with strict protocols developed by the IGBST.
None of the capture sites in the park will be located near any established hiking trails or backcountry campsites, and all sites will have posted warnings for the closure perimeter. Potential access points will also be posted with warning signs for the closure area. Backcountry users who come upon any of these posted areas need to heed the warnings and stay out of the area.
The Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team was established in 1973 to collaboratively monitor and manage ecosystem bears on an interagency basis. The gathering of critical data on bears is part of a long-term research and monitoring effort to help wildlife managers devise and implement programs to support the ongoing conservation of Yellowstone’s grizzly bear and black bear populations.
The IGBST is composed of representatives of the U.S. Geological Survey, the National Park Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Forest Service, the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho Tribal Fish and Game Department, and the states of Idaho, Montana and Wyoming.
For more information regarding grizzly bear research efforts call (406) 994-6675.
