LOLO -- High above the floor of the Bitterroot Valley, a team of workers planted 24,000 ponderosa pine seedlings in just two days this week to restore areas on the slopes of Lolo Peak and improve wildlife habitat.
From almost any vantage point in Missoula, a viewer can see the marks on the peak where a previous landowner cut ski runs in 2006 for a ski resort that never materialized. The scars from the 54,000-acre Lolo Peak fire, which burned the same area in 2017, are also still visible.
It's those areas where the ponderosa pine, which were robust and thriving before 2006, have struggled to naturally replenish themselves. The new seedlings, combined with additional phases of western larch on upper elevations, will improve habitat for elk and other species.
It's all being done through a partnership between a Missoula company, Montana Forest Consultants, the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation, the nonprofit American Forests and the current local landowners.
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"This project is a publicly visible example of the power of partnership," said Zachary Bashoor, CEO of Montana Forest Consultants. "Our company is delighted to bring together the vision of a national nonprofit organization dedicated to healthy forests with trees grown at our local Missoula Conservation Seedling Nursery and the logistics and reforestation skills of our team to restore the beauty of the northern Bitterroot Valley. We know that Lolo and Missoula residents have been hoping this reforestation project would come to fruition for more than a decade."
American Forests donated the seedlings, which were grown in Missoula and genetically selected for Bitterroot Valley conditions. Then, the DNRC allowed the current landowners to use Forest Action Funds designated for post-wildfire restoration. Much of the lower slopes of Lolo Peak are privately-held parcels, but the upper portions are National Forest and there's a big chunk of state land.
The seedlings grow slowly, but within a decade they should be tall enough to visibly transform the appearance of the peak.
"American Forests is excited to play a role in enabling local landowners to restore forested lands, and we are grateful for partners like Montana Forest Consultants, Montana DNRC, and a committed landowner for making this project happen," said Wes Swaffer, the Northern Rockies director for American Forests.
A subcontracted crew of 11 forestry workers did the hard work of getting the seedlings in the ground. Moving through steep, brush-covered terrain in the rain, each worker put in between 1,500 and 2,000 seedlings a day. Besides 24,000 ponderosa seedlings, several thousand other seedlings were planted in the general area, for a total of 32,000, according to Bashoor. The majority of them should survive and eventually become much taller trees.
The project is part of a larger effort administered by Montana Forest Consultants to plant nearly 500,000 ponderosa pine seedlings this spring in the Missoula, Bitterroot, and Flathead valleys. The company is looking for landowners who want to purchase trees at a "very discounted rate," Bashoor said.
In 2006, a previous landowner named Tom Maclay caused a stir by announcing plans for a ski resort and cut ski runs into the slopes of the peak. The U.S. Forest Service repeatedly denied his proposal to use federal lands for his destination resort, which never materialized.
Maclay was sued in 2006 by the U.S. Attorney's Office for cutting down 400 trees on public land to make way for a snow groomer area. Maclay's 3,000-acre chunk of land was foreclosed on by a holding company and in 2009, it was auctioned off on the steps of the Missoula County Courthouse for $22.5 million.
David Erickson is the business reporter for the Missoulian.
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