2016 Outdoors: Out & About

A list of happenings out & about in 2016.

Two Bear Air, a helicopter rescue service based in Whitefish, came into the spotlight throughout the region, using state of the art equipment and daring pilots to rescue snowmobilers, a kayaker on the Potlatch River and most dramatically, a backcountry skier with life-threatening injuries was plucked in stormy darkness from the rubble of an avalanche near Lookout Pass.

American bison designated “national mammal” of the USA.

Snake River dams meetings staged by federal agencies raise flood of public interest.

Snow geese perish by the thousands in Butte’s Berkeley Pit mine.

Little Snowy Top lookout in the Salmo-Priest Wilderness destroyed by fire.

Anti-trapping initiative turned down by Montana voters.

Six grizzly bear attacks on hunters recorded in Montana, including one fatality.

Roadkill becomes fair game in Washington. Public can collect freshly killed deer, elk by downloading permit.

Smartphone photo seekers hound wildlife, from moose in Spokane to mountain goats.

Shooting a grizzly in Montana campground nets Shalako Katzer of Spokane a bill for $5,000 in restitution and a rare six-month prison sentence for unlawful taking of a threatened species.

Nonprofit motive: While some outdoor retailers were turning their backs on one of the most profitable days of the year and telling their employees to go play outdoors, Patagonia pledged proceeds of Black Friday sales to conservation groups.