Eastern Montana

Badlands near Jordan: Formations such as these near Jordan are fairly common in the badlands of eastern Montana. (Photo by Rick and Susie Graetz) French trappers working the Missouri and Yellowstone rivers and their tributaries well before Lewis and Clark made their epic journey, called the dry land formations they encountered “mauvais terres” (badlands). Painter Karl Bodmer, who accompanied...

Feature photo: Castle Rock Lake provides a staple recreational area for Colstrip residents and others from the area. Filled with water pumped in from the Yellowstone River, located thirty miles north, the man-made lake allows people to fish, swim, and relax on the water. Left in the dark, Colstrip residents worry, still enjoy an idyllic life LEFT IN THE DARK,COLSTRIP RESIDENTS WORRY, STILL ENJOY...

Drew McNally, center, along with her faculty advisor, Kirsten Matteson, right, and project partner Kirby Hancock look at a sample of hempcrete, a building material made mostly of byproduct hemp stalks. MSU Photo by Adrian Sanchez-Gonzalez BOZEMAN — The leftovers of the tall industrial hemp plant often languish on Montana farms because they're difficult to till back into fields or otherwise...

bison skull on prairie near chester, mt Lay of the Land: A series of essays on the spirit of Montana The Big Hole Valley is inextricably part of the family heritage — a distant relative ran his horses in its upper reaches; grandparents raised cattle on its lower stretches for decades. A high, wide riff that drains the snowpack from the peaks separating Montana and Idaho, it sources the longest...

By Norm Clarke Special to the Terry Tribune from Yellowstone Newspapers      Have you ever wondered about the story behind a Terry street name?       It would be hard to find one that embodies a more colorful character than Montague Street.      Located on the northernmost outskirts of Terry, the east-west was named after John W. Montague, who is generally believed to be Terry’s...

Feature photo of Savannah Sparrow and cow is World Wildlife Fund-US/Clay Bolt. Beef and Birds: Grazing Cattle Benefits Grassland Birds By Laura Nowlin - Prairie Populist Some of the highest densities of grassland birds make the Northern Great Plains (NGP) their home. “You all are stewards of some of the best of the best,” Bob Ford, coordinator for the Partners in Flight program told a...

On a recent trip to Miles City, Montana, we overheard a conversation that went something like this: “He works because he can’t cowboy anymore.” Translation: The gentleman being discussed was a former cowboy and spent his days (and likely some nights) working cattle. Out here that means roping, driving, feeding, doctoring, herding and just plain being around bovines. He made his living as a cowboy...