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Newsletter from Montana
May 2006
We have a new listing just north of
Whitefish near Glacier Park in north-west Montana. It is a
3,000 sqft log home
on 10 acres bordering National Forest on two sides, two ponds and an 8,500 sqft shop with a 16' clearance - 4,300sqft are log enclosed. No visible neighbors, no covenants, not in a subdivision. $ 585,000
Whitefish was initially called "Stumptown." To make room for a town site, when the Great Northern Railway arrived in 1904, a huge number of trees had to be cut down, all of which left stumps behind. These stumps of course created traffic problems and hindered new construction. "Stumptown" became "Whitefish" after all the stumps were painfully removed. The first buildings sprang up mostly around the railroad - and for much of the next 40 years - the railroad would be one of the town's biggest employers. Additional industry in and around Whitefish consisted mainly of logging and trapping in the thickly forested mountains just outside of town. Whitefish for most of the 20th century remained a pretty quiet place, despite its scenic setting at the base of a big mountain and having a beautiful lake a stone throw away from downtown. While employment with the railroad declined a bit over the years, new industries to cater to tourists helped keep Whitefish relatively healthy economically. Now it is a popular spot for second homes, retirees and "Lone Eagles" - those people who can work from home and still make a good living.
The nearby Glacier National Park encompasses approximately 1.4 million acres of wilderness and some of the most fascinating mountain scenery in the western United States. A combination of diverse flora and fauna, and relative isolation from major population centers have combined to make Glacier National Park the center of one of the largest and most intact ecosystems in North America. The general park area was once the homeland of the Blackfoot and Kootenai Indian tribes and many sites in the park are sacred spiritual sites. There are more than 50 glaciers in the park, over 200 lakes and a good 730 miles of trails for hikers to enjoy. Part of this trail is the Going-to-the-Sun Road, visitors to the park marvel at how such a road could have ever been built. The final section of the Going-to-the-Sun Road, over Logan Pass, was completed in 1932 after 11 years of construction. The road is considered an engineering feat and is a National Historic Landmark.
Just across the border, in Canada, is Waterton Lakes National Park. In 1931, members of the Rotary Clubs of Alberta and Montana suggested joining the two parks as a symbol of the peace and friendship between our two countries. In 1932, the United States and Canadian governments voted to designate the parks as Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park, the world's first International Park. More recently the parks have received two other international honors. The parks are both Biosphere Reserves, and were named as a World Heritage Site in 1995. While much has changed since the first visitors came to Glacier, it is possible to relive some of Glacier's early history. You can take a horseback ride like an early visitor. Miles of hiking trails follow routes first used by trappers in the early 1800's. Several hotels and chalets were built by the Great Northern Railway in the early 1900's. A visit to Glacier National Park is still a great adventure!
Chief Mountain in the Park is an isolated remnant of the eastern edge of the upper plate of the Lewis Overthrust - a feature known as a Klippen, ranking with the Matterhorn as an example of this structural and erosional phenomenon. Most of the rocks exposed in the park are sedimentary rocks of Proterozoic age, which were deposited from 1,600 to 800 million years ago. Rocks of that age in other parts of the world have been greatly altered by mountain building processes and no longer exhibit their original characteristics, but these virtually unaltered Proterozoic rocks of Waterton/Glacier are unique in that they have preserved the subtle features of sedimentation such as ripple marks, mud cracks, salt-crystal casts, raindrop impressions, oolites (sand that looks like fish rogue), six species of fossil algae, mudchip breccias (a rock consisting of sharp fragments embedded in fine-grained sand or clay), and many other bedding characteristics. These features plus their chemical characteristics make the Proterozoic sediments of Glacier and Waterton National Parks unique for studying the physical and chemical conditions that existed on the Earth over a billion years ago. The recent glacial carving of these rocks has left them unusually fresh and beautifully exposed. The Park is filled with arêtes (forms when two glaciers work on opposite sides of the same wall), cirques (large bowl/lake formed at the head of a glacier), hanging valleys (tributary glaciers carved shallow canyons high in the mountains, many are now waterfalls), horns (steep mountain peak caused by several glaciers), and moraines; all landforms produced by the action of glaciers. The high mountains that bisect the park from north to south capture rainfall on the western slopes. This warm, moist Pacific-like environment produces dense forests and a spectacular display of wild flowers in spring.
Now back to the South of Montana, looking at the highest mountains in this state, we have the
Burgan Ranch
just north of Red Lodge - the price has been reduced to $1,500,000 for 320 acres. 160 are irrigated and a small fishing stream runs through it. The mountain views are spectacular while elk, moose, deer, and flocks of game birds parade in your front yard.
This would also make excellent development property. Billings is
expanding at a rapid rate. Walmart will build a store in Laurel (45 miles
north of Red Lodge) and "How to position Billings for continued
economic growth" was the topic of a Community Leadership Economic
Breakfast presented by the
"Celebrate Billings"
partners.
Three hundred people in the Granite Ballroom of the Sheraton Billings
Hotel heard that Billings is a relatively prosperous area and it needs a
development strategy to match. I posted an
unemployment map for Montana on my website, showing just how well south central Montana is doing economically.
Instead of blood, my husband has jet fuel running in his veins. Darrell has been around commercial jets for over 30 years, no wonder. So now he is in the time-share jet business, couldn't ask for a more competent guy. The modern light weight jets can land on even stubby landing strips as long as it is paved, pick you up and take you where you need to go. To own a share of a private jet is not only economical, but it saves the time and hassle of commercial airline services with their delays, canceled flights, missed connections and security issues. When you have your own plane, the air you breathe in the cabin is your own and is not recycled from hundreds of fellow passengers. Also you can fill your plane to capacity and it will cost the same. Darrell also switches the logo on the airplane's tail for each user so it looks like they own the whole thing. Great for the image and it turns the competition green with envy, which is always pleasant to watch :-) Depending on how fast or how far you need to travel, Darrell will match the user's needs with that of other travelers in the area to acquire the most suited airplane. He also coordinates pilots, insurance, financing, storage, and maintenance and can tailor a plan to suit anybody's needs. Give him a call 218/847 3233 maybe you can hash something out.
Darrell737@vcn.com
Some have asked me for land at $ 200 or so an acre. I found some in
North Dakota.
Of course farms in Minnesota are still affordable, also. I added a farm button to my websites, so you can find them easily again. To own a small farm so people can take care of themselves if need to be in these odd times is also a trend I have observed. And with the modern fertilizers and pesticides, small compact tractors which can do it all, you need very little land in an area with good ground and some rain to feed a large family, while one couple can take care of it all after they get home from a hard day at the computer :-) It is also fun to have some physical work to do in fresh air instead of the gym and producing something yummy to eat, to boot.
Not so affordable, but in a dry and sunshiny mountain setting is a new subdivision between Cody, Wyoming, and the Yellowstone Park, 30 minutes from either. The North Fork of the Shoshone River is running through it. 127 homesites will be offered ranging from 1 to 3 acres with prices from $ 170,000 to $ 300,000 each. There are 550 acres total in the subdivision, which will leave about 240 acres of open space. Send in $ 2,500 for a priority reservation and you can pick your lot in fall! All receipts are time stamped and you will have a certain day assigned when you can pick your lot in the exact order your reservation was received. I posted the
plat map. If you don't like the lots, you will get your money back of course.
Did you know if you make contact with a new client, after two weeks they have forgotten all about you? On the other hand, if you want to grow your business, send out thank you cards to whoever you meet, and your business will grew by leaps and bounds. Isn't it true, that when you receive a thank you card, you treasure it, show it off and will remember the sender for sure? I met Gracie Bowers and she introduced me to a web based program that sends out greeting cards, licks the envelope and pastes on a stamp! Way to go! They have hundreds of cards to choose from, or you can design your own, add a photo from your computer or have a card designed for you. Retail starts at $ 25 which includes cards and postage, but they have business programs where you can upload whole mailing lists, have it typed in your own handwriting and signature, etc. Gracie will give you a gift subscription so you can try it out, you might want to give her a call 517-781-4531 or send her an email. Gracie also advises
people about home based businesses and
she has a website.
But of course one of the reasons, I am sending out this newsletter is, so you remember me, and I am counting on you to be loyal and to use me as your buyer's agent when the time comes to get serious about real estate in Montana (I am still here!) or Minnesota. If your email doesn't work anymore, I will send you a postcard! :-)
I love candles and I think so do most people. Candles are great; they burn all the junk that is airborne in our house thanks to static electricity. Unfortunately our normal candles are made out of paraffin, which is a leftover product from oil refineries and they put some really
unhealthy fumes back into the air. It's almost like
burning diesel fuel in your living room, you can tell by the black soot and if they do not have a scent added, even by their smell.
Of course there are healthy alternatives, such as beeswax candles and soy candles. Beeswax, by law, only has to contain 10% actual beeswax, (with the remainder being paraffin or other toxic fillers) and still be legally sold as a 'beeswax candle'. Many conventional beeswax candles are made by melting down all parts of the bee honeycomb, not just the hair-thin seal on the top, the
the cappings wax, which is the most desirable, pure, air-cleansing wax, perfectly created by the honey bees.
Soy candles are somewhat new on the market, they are all natural, biodegradable, burn completely non-toxic and without soot. Also soy wax burns longer than paraffin and if you spill wax on cloth, it washes out with soap and water! You can buy them plain, if you are allergic to perfume, but Jack Beddall likes to make them with some really nice fragrances. Jack lives here in Montana and ships his candles all over the US, his email is jackbeddall@yahoo.com and his cell phone number is 406/861 4229. He'll give you a discount, if you tell him I sent you :-) Now, when you burn a candle you support the American farmer!
Since I will be on Public Television, they had asked me to write a "Specific Storyline or Educational Focus" - I did, and since I went through all that trouble, I also published that as an article on the Internet as well as in some magazines and newspapers. I put a link to the full version of it on my newsletter index page, but here is the direct link to "Relocating to Rural America - Tips, Tricks and Trends" as written by me. Now all of a sudden I am an "expert" in that field - ghee one never knows....
Click on the headline to read it all...
So now for the public appearance I need to get back in shape. Since I am not living on our small farm yet,
I bought a step. It was only $ 50 and it came with a beginner DVD from Cathe Friedrich. The first day I exercised for 3 minutes and announced that progress proudly to my daughter, who of course cracked up laughing. Nevertheless, minute by minute I sneaked up to 40-50 minutes a day, and I advanced to the
"Low Impact
Step" DVD from Cathe. Cathe is a lot of fun and challenges the mind as well as the body. If you need dumbbells and a mat (I will graduate from the bath towel myself in a week) I found some reasonably priced ones at Opentip
If your body is already being challenged, but your mind could use some
exercise, Tuula, my daughter, sent me a website listing the
top 100 universities in the world.
Just in time for all the graduation parties!
:-)
Best Regards,
Dorothea Lowe, Broker
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