Journalism Story

Conservation group strives to keep Montana wild

The Rattlesnake Wilderness is bathed in a yellow-green glow from the late-morning sun. Ponderosa pines sway gently in the breeze, while a dozen deer sprawl in the shade of white spruce trees nearby.

The smell of manure mixes with leather and saddle oil, evoking a sense of ease and oneness with the surrounding nature.

Inside the rock-walled barn with bright red doors sits a 90-year-old man in his typical Wrangler jeans, button-up shirt with vest and an old white cowboy hat, browned from sweat.

The man’s name is Smoke Elser, a long-time Montana outfitter and founding member of Wild Montana, first known as The Montana Wilderness Association, in 1958.

Elser describes his nearly 70-year journey of working with Wild Montana to promote public spaces within our wilderness and get people in tune with nature.

“I attended some hearings on the Wilderness Bill before it was enacted in 1964,” Elser said. “Matter of fact, on the Lincoln Scapegoat, I testified several times on that.”

The Scapegoat Wilderness Area, located between Lincoln, Montana and the Bob Marshall Wilderness, spans nearly 240,000 acres.

“Cecil Garland, a good friend of mine, came up with the idea,” Elser said. “We worked out a deal, him and Wild Montana. That was one of our first major accomplishments.”

Wild Montana has attracted members devoted to Montana’s wilderness since its inception. Lee Boman served as the organization’s president and as president of the Shining Mountains chapter.

“Our early work was, ‘What do we want? Which areas do we want to declare as wilderness and get ready for the wilderness?’” Boman said. “Now we’re involved in drilling, forest planning and much broader things. It’s not just wilderness.”

Boman explains that, while people have an emotional attraction to the wilderness, it is also important to maintain a steady income for the state.

“There’s also an economic part of it, in outdoor recreation,” Boman said. “The demand is increasing while places to recreate in are shrinking. We’ve got to protect those wild places. That’s what this state is.”

“Roughly 20 years ago, many people saw wild places as an impediment to economic development,” Boman said. “Today, wild places have become an economic driver. It’s a huge change. Outdoor recreation is a pretty big deal.”

Along with the grueling task of lobbying, much of Wild Montana’s mission revolves around engaging people with the wilderness that surrounds them.

“I probably spend 50% of my time planning and leading hikes and 50% of my time working on legislative issues,” Boman said.

Wild Montana offers free educational field trips, such as a recent trip that taught about aquatic invertebrates in the Rock Creek area east of Missoula.

Mary Anderson, of Anaconda, Montana, describes taking every opportunity to learn about her natural environment. “Where else can you, as a grown-up, go on a field trip?” Anderson said.

Mary Roehr, a resident of Missoula, Montana, joined Wild Montana two months ago and is currently exploring the various opportunities offered by the organization.

“I’m volunteering for everything I can with them,” Roehr said. “To see what I want to end up doing. Right now, I’m meeting people and joining the hikes, but I really want to do advocacy.”

“My biggest thing is maintaining the wild country and I didn’t know, until recently, that there was a group that did that,” Roehr continued. “This group does it in grand style and I like that.”

Roehr recently moved to the state and immediately sought out an organization to volunteer for.

“I’ve been in plenty of advocacy groups, and this one really shines,” Roehr said. “They know what to do. You can count on their work and they get stuff done.”

Wild Montana has contributed to designating over 3.5 million acres of wilderness. Their current major initiative is called the Blackfoot Clearwater Stewardship Act (BCSA).

“It should be our top priority because it’s not a huge act,” Boman said. “But it ties in the Missions, the Swans, the Bob and Glacier National Park. It enhances the wildlife corridors between all those areas.”

“Wolves, wolverines, lynx and bull trout,” Boman continued. “All species that were here when Lewis and Clark and Sacagawea came through and still live in the Blackfoot Clearwater Steward.”

Boman is resolute in his conviction that the BCSA must be passed and is determined to see it through to the end. 

“I, myself, have had my share of failures in my life,” Boman said. “This is not going to be one.”

Boman’s dream is backed by recent surveys and he believes public support will help it come true.

“One came out that 83% of Montana voters support the act and the other was 84%,” Boman said. “That’s a pretty good indication that Montanans want to get the Blackfoot back.”

Elser, the 90-year-old outfitter and conservationist who, over 53 years has spent over 8,000 nights in the backcountry of the Bob Marshall Wilderness, expresses why this act should matter to the citizens.

“The thing about the Bob Marshall Wilderness is that it lets a person think about and learn about himself or herself,” Elser said. “The most important thing that we can capture out of the wilderness is the sanity of man.”

Learn more about Wild Montana at https://wildmontana.org/