Wild and Scenic River Intern
Hungry Horse is located in Northwest Montana, near Canada and scenic Glacier National Park. The larger city of Kalispell is approximately 20 miles to the west, with the towns of Columbia Falls and Whitefish also nearby. Hungry Horse itself is a small town of approximately 1000 people, and includes a post office, gas stations, a small grocery store, several restaurants. Many people will travel to nearby Columbia Falls, Whitefish, or Kalispell to seek additional community services.
The Flathead National Forest:
The Flathead includes 2,300,000 acres in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem. The spectacular glacial mountains feature majestic peaks, lush forests, snowfields, lakes and alpine. Waters of the Forest flow from numerous mountain streams into the Swan, Stillwater, and 3-forks of the Flathead River downstream into Flathead Lake, largest freshwater lake west of the Great Lakes. World-class wild lands include the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex, three nationally designated Wild & Scenic Rivers, North, Middle, and South Forks of the Flathead River, and the adjacent Glacier National Park. As stewards of portions of both the BMWC and Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem, the Forest has a responsibility to provide educational opportunities to help sustain this incredible landscape for future generations.
Rivers and Lakes – Clear glacially fed streams offer a mix of white-water and quiet water in rocky and forested canyons with outstanding mountain views, and provide habitat for native Bull Trout and Westslope Cutthroat Trout. Although road access is nearby, floaters on the river often have a sense of solitude. Crystal clear mountain lakes have scenic backdrops offering solitude and places of social interaction.
The Bob – The Flathead is part of Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex, the largest contiguous Wilderness in the lower 48 and includes wild segments of Wild and Scenic Rivers. This area is habitat for grizzly bear, wolves, and large elk herds. Craggy peaks along the Continental Divide and vastness make this a remote and challenging Wilderness. Turn of the century Forest Service heritage is represented in the Wilderness Historic District.
Landscape Mosaic – Grizzly Bear travel corridors link the bear populations in the Mission and Swan Ranges. Scenic vistas of these ranges are seen from the Swan Highway, a major travel corridor between Glacier and Yellowstone National Parks and part of the Northern Continental Divide Scenic Loop.
Hungry Horse-Glacier View Ranger District’s Wild and Scenic River program. Work to include river patrolling, public contacts and surveys, facility maintenance, and river stewardship monitoring.Patrolling rivers using rafts, cleaning and maintaining launches and campsites (including bulletin boards, outhouses, and other facilities), providing information about and enforcing rules and regulations with the public, cooperating with Law Enforcement Officers, and performing public survey and data collection duties. Assist implementing Wild and Scenic River program elements. Working in a team environment, occasional overnight camping, weekend and holiday work. Required of applicants: Be a strong swimmer, enjoys water sports (indicates comfort with water based recreation and environments), drive manual transmission and confident trailer backing, ability to learn new skills from others over a long period of time (white water rafting technique and backcountry work training will be on going), and strong physical fitness (river crew is a lot of hard muscled work!!!)Training: Defensive driving, first aid, bear awareness, backcountry work techniques, on the job training for white water rafting technique, Limits of Acceptable Change monitoring, chainsaw and cross cut saw.Selected intern will gain knowledge of Wilderness Area management and Wild and Scenic River management through on the ground work and participation in management decisions. Additionally, intern will gain knowledge of Forest Service and National Park management policies. Participants must know how to proficiently drive a manual transmission before arriving for the work tour. We do not train on manual transmissions, and applicants need to learn on their own time before the work experience.
