To some, butte contradicts our stereotypes of montana as the “last best place.” although its rough and tumble origins were not unlike dozens of other mining camps in western montana, butte quickly transfigured into something completely different, and it has largely remained so ever since. in its profound mineral wealth and explosive metamorphosis to a gritty industrial city; in its ethnic diversity and labor radicalism; in its breathtaking roller coaster economy and now disreputable status as a large environmental wasteland; and in its still unbroken spirit, butte is incomparable with the rest of the treasure state.

Perched on a hill in eagle rock reserve, southeast of bozeman, is an 8,000-square-foot home that is exactly what the owners intended it to be – a house that looks like it has always been there, rather than a trophy house sitting obtrusively on a hilltop.
 Home on the Hill
Eagle Rock blends nature and comfort
Perched on a hill in Eagle Rock Reserve, southeast of Bozeman, is an 8,000-square-foot home that is exactly what the owners intended it to be – a house that looks like it has always been there, rather than a trophy house sitting obtrusively on a hilltop.

Peter fonda, actor, director, producer, screenwriter, educator, moved to montana 31 years ago and has made the paradise valley his principal residence ever since. he came here, he told me, for the love of a woman, the beautiful portia rebecca crockett mcguane, his wife since 1975, the mainstay of his life. sailing, surfing, and warm climes were more to fonda’s taste, but he gradually became accustomed to the vast beauty, ruggedness and isolation of montana. he has grown to appreciate all this state has to offer and to call it home.
Looking Forward
A Conversation with Peter Fonda
He came here, he told me, for the love of a woman, the beautiful Portia Rebecca Crockett McGuane, his wife since 1975, the mainstay of his life.  Sailing, surfing, and warm climes were more to Fonda’s taste, but he gradually became accustomed to the vast beauty, ruggedness and isolation of Montana.

Every piece of wood i am going to tell you about has a history; a story to tell. each story, as far as i can discern, is entirely true. they range from tales about brutal heat and extreme cold to the lonely passing of seasons and being completely ignored. many of them are incomplete. all of them are in process. grouped together they could be placed under the heading, “second chances,” or the more evocative, “lazarus.” a warning, however, i will only covey the most basic elements of these stories – the rest you must find out on your own – because these are stories that can not be heard, they can only be intuited, told (as they were to me) below the threshold of hearing.
 The Stories They Tell
Salvaged Wood's Persistent Beauty
Every piece of wood I am going to tell you about has a history; a story to tell. Each story, as far as I can discern, is entirely true. They range from tales about brutal heat and extreme cold to the lonely passing of seasons and being completely ignored. Many of them are incomplete. All of them are in process.


From a windswept bluff in southwestern montana verdant rolling hills and coulees meander to greet the madison river as it snakes through the valley. beyond the river’s flow, the land stretches wide. then, like children running wild in the summer, it takes off uphill to meet the snow-capped mountains of the madison and gravelly ranges. the landscape mesmerizes. virtually unnoticeable in the beauty of this valley, however, are the home sites at sun west ranch.
 Sun West Ranch
Nature at the Forefront
From a windswept bluff in southwestern Montana verdant rolling hills and coulees meander to greet the Madison River as it snakes through the valley. Beyond the river’s flow, the land stretches wide. Then, like children running wild in the summer, it takes off uphill to meet the snow-capped mountains of the Madison and Gravelly Ranges.


This spring, a joint radiology-surgery team performed the first-ever peripheral atherectomy at bozeman deaconess hospital. frank rembert, md, used a “silverhawk” catheter instrument with a rotating blade, to carve out and remove plaque from a patient with inoperable critical limb ischemia, a disease that causes sharply diminished blood flow to the legs. this is just one of the many catheter-based guided imaging interventions now available at bozeman deaconess.
 Ultra-Modern Medical Imaging Technology Provides More Choices At Bozeman Deaconess
This spring, a joint radiology-surgery team performed the first-ever peripheral atherectomy at Bozeman Deaconess Hospital.  Frank Rembert, MD, used a “Silverhawk” catheter instrument with a rotating blade, to carve out and remove plaque from a patient with inoperable critical limb ischemia...

Montana industry once meant miner’s helmets and cowboy hats, but a growing number of montana workers today are more likely to be found in lab coats or head-to-toe clean suits. the state’s biotech sector is growing quickly, attracting attention from national and international investors as well as the media.
 Biotech Invasion
A Rising Industry in Montana
Montana industry once meant  miner’s helmets and cowboy hats, but a growing number of Montana workers today are more likely to be found in lab coats or head-to-toe clean suits. The state’s biotech sector is growing quickly, attracting attention from national and international investors as well as the media.

I live in a land that burns and rots, i live in a land that is ancient and yet brand new. for twenty years i’ve been holed up in the most northwestern corner of the state, in the million-acre yaak valley, at the northern tip of the kootenai national forest – and for a long time, i’ve been working with a little local grassroots organization, the yaak valley forest council (yvfc), in support of community solutions that will help protect the special wild quality of this farthest and in some ways wildest valley in montana.
 An Unlikely Success Story
The Yaak Valley Forest Council’s  Model For Wilderness-Community Development
I live in a land that burns and rots, I live in a land that is ancient and yet brand new.  For twenty years I’ve been holed up in the most northwestern corner of the state, in the million-acre Yaak Valley, at the northern tip of the Kootenai National Forest...

Against a backdrop of unforgettable landscapes, a kaleidoscopic world unfolds where grasses grew tall, stars shone like diamonds, and people lived off the land and prospered. “neither empty nor unknown” is the most ambitious exhibit the montana historical society has undertaken. it marks a new direction, launching the society—the oldest historical organization west of the mississippi—definitively into the twenty-first century by offering the public a state-of-the-art museum experience.
 Neither Empty Nor Unknown
Montana before Lewis and Clark
Against a backdrop of unforgettable landscapes, a kaleidoscopic world unfolds where grasses grew tall, stars shone like diamonds, and people lived off the land and prospered. “Neither Empty Nor Unknown” is the most ambitious exhibit the Montana Historical Society has undertaken.


Part of the beauty of living the log home lifestyle is enjoying the natural surroundings of the area where you’ve elected to build. for noted log home architect dick neville, choosing the perfect setting to live out his log-home dream couldn’t have come any easier, and the results of his architectural aspirations couldn’t be any more attractive or strikingly expressive.
 The Neville’s Big Creek Home
Veteran Bitterroot Valley Log Home Builder Shares His Own Custom Abode
Part of the beauty of living the log home lifestyle is enjoying the natural surroundings of the area where you’ve elected to build. For noted log home architect Dick Neville, choosing the perfect setting to live out his log-home dream couldn’t have come any easier...

Dressed in white sweat pants and a matching “hoodie,” eddie spears is getting ready to go to the gym for a rigorous workout. he stands in his living room on the lower brule reservation of fort george, south dakota, where his family has lived for generations. the walls are brightly colored, and filled with what the award-winning actor calls his “kodak moments”: pictures of sunsets, family, friends, and film memories—his “stories on the wall.” nearby shelves are lined with books and movies. his cd collection contains blues, rock and roll, bluegrass, funk and, “hip-hop of course.” it’s a true haven, one he deeply appreciates. “lots of people ask me why i don’t live in l.a. when i’m in the entertainment business; i tell them to ‘come see where i live once and you won’t ask twice.’”
Native Stars
Michael and Eddie Spears
Dressed in white sweat pants and a matching “hoodie,” Eddie Spears is getting ready to go to the gym for a rigorous workout. He stands in his living room on the Lower Brule Reservation of Fort George, South Dakota, where his family has lived for generations.











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