Taunya Fagan Bozeman Real Estate Blog: Montana Real Estate Blogs

Bozeman, Montana's Morning Star Elementary School, the Bozeman School District's largest elementary school, is one of the 2009 National Blue Ribbon Schools. Morning Star Elementary, named for Cheyenne Indian Chief, Morning Star, who would often awaken early in the morning to view the planet Venus, was chosen as one of the top elementary schools in the United States because it helps Bozeman students close the "achievement gap," "the difference in academic performance between different ethnic groups," according to the U.S. Department of Education's definition.

Arne Duncan, U.S. Education Secretary, announced 314 schools have won the Blue Ribbon award, which includes 50 private schools and 264 public schools. Central School in Roundup, MT also was chosen. On Novemebr 3, 2009, all winners will be honored in Washington, D.C. For more try the Bozeman Daily Chronicle.

DRINKING HORSE MOUNTAIN

The Drinking Horse Mountain Trail is a new Bozeman hiking gem not just because it makes for a short, vigorous 1.6 mile (3.2 mile rt) early-morning or after-work hike but also because of the spectacular views along the way and from its summit.

Walk along the excellent, recently carved and compacted limestone hiking trail from about 4902 ft to the 5,522 ft Drinking Horse Mountain Summit for views of the Absarokas and many of the Gallatin Valley's mountain ranges.

The Drinking Horse Mountain Trail, north of Bozeman, MT, is great for kids because they can make the hike short by stopping to splash in Bridger Creek under the shade of mature Cottonwoods, or they can head for the top, stopping along the way to rest on one of the many memorial benches manufactored from recycled plastic. 

The Drinking Horse Mountain Trail is a great example of a federal, state, local, and private conservation collaboration, joining the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; Gallatin Valley Land Trust; Montana Outdoor Science School; Bozeman Fish Technology Center; and Friends of the Bozeman, Montana Fish Technology Center together to preserve more of Montana's Gallatin Valley land for future generations.

Drinking Horse Mountain Trail Directions: From Main Street, Bozeman, take Rouse, which becomes Bridger Canyon Drive (Highway 86), 3 miles to a right (S) at the Fish Hatchery turnoff just before the "M" Trail turnoff. (NOT Fish Hatchery Rd, though...you've gone too far.) (Sorry, no bikes or horses allowed and don't forget the camera, water, coat, sunscreen, and snacks...and stay off the summit during lightning.)

Taunya Fagan Prudential Montana Real Estate

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The 13,400 acre, private golf and ski enclave, Yellowstone Club (YC) sale to CrossHarbor Capital is finalized at a price of $115 million, according to Yellowstone Mountain Club's CB Richard Ellis. The Big Sky, Montana bankruptcy sale was finalized August 5, 2009, ending a long battle for control between Sam Byrne and Edra Blixseth.

The many Yellowstone Club real estate and Montana luxury home choices include large homesites on which to build your own, custom luxury estate; on-the-mountain chalets; single-family custom homes; private ranches, or condos in either The Enclave or at Sunrise Ridge. Many of this Yellowstone Club real estate offers golf course property or ski and snowboard access, too.

Dine at one of three rustic Yellowstone Mountain Club lodges; choose the Rainbow Lodge with its own outdoor, heated pool and views of Lone Peak; the Warren Miller Lodge at the base, offering the most elegant mountain dining in Montana; or the Timberline Café, right off the main lift for a quick, gourmet lunch before skiing undiscovered powder in the back-side trees.

The YC maintains a 24-hour professional security staff, public safety and traffic staff, Fire Department, and EMT - Emergency Medical Team.

At Pioneer Mountain's base, the 143,000-square-foot Warren Miller Lodge includes over 20 elegant condos; grand dining room; comfortable lounge; ski shop: retail and office space; business center; world-class spa; exercise room; casual café with games, TV,  tables, and bar; and teen center.

The Yellowstone Club boasts more than 2,700 vertical feet of skiing, 60 skiing and snowboarding trails, children's instruction area, Magic Carpet kids' lift, terrain snow park with rollers, jumps, rails, boxes and more, and all on the 2,200 acres of ski and snowboard terrain, boasting an over 300 inch average annual snowfall.

Taunya Fagan Prudential Big Sky, Montana Real Estate, Bozeman, MT

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Obama Coming to Bozeman...Again.

A City Commissioner for the City of Bozeman, MT confirmed on August 4, 2009 that President Barack Obama again will be visiting Bozeman, Montana; this time Obama will visit on Friday, August 14, 2009. President Obama is purported to be planning on holding a town hall meeting at one of Bozeman's Gallatin Field Airport hangers. Obama will discuss the plight of people dropped from their health insurance plans because of an illness.

It is purported that First Lady, Michelle Obama, and President Obama may also visit Big Sky, Montana after the August 14, 2009 Bozeman town meeting. The First Couple is staying at Big Sky's Summit Hotel.

According to Bozeman's Daily Chronicle, Mayor, Kaaren Jacobson, stated, "He's definitely coming, that much is clear." Avis Car Rental in Belgrade, MT states the US Secret Service has reserved approximately 30 cars for Obama's visit August 13-14, 2009.

The last President who planned to visit Bozeman was FDR in 1934, but he changed his plans and visited Fort Peck, Montana instead.

Taunya Fagan Prudential Montana Real Estate, Bozeman, MT

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According to Cowboy Magazine, Ennis, Montana is a top town to live in the west. "This area in the spectacular Madison River Valley was first explored by Lewis and Clark in 1805."

Ennis MT, named for freighter, William Ennis, is located in Montana's Madison Valley, along the Madison River, one of Montana's finest trout fishing streams. The Flathead, Bannock, and Shoshone Native American tribes called the Ennis Valley, "The Land of the Shining Mountains," an apt description of this Ennis, Montana real estate, known for excellent hunting and fishing. 

Though this may not sound like a high placement, Newsweek magazine voted Bozeman High School, in Bozeman, Montana, number 585 out of the top 1500 public high schools in the United States' top high schools list 2009. According to Newsweek, there were over 21,000 high schools in the U.S. in 2008.

About the formula for determining the top U.S. Schools list, Newsweek noted the method used to rank public schools is based on a ratio devised by Jay Mathews, which basically takes the number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and/or Cambridge tests all students took at a school in the 2008 school year and divides it by the number of graduating seniors.

_______________________________________________

"...We are committed to providing your child with a quality education in a safe and caring environment. We accomplish this with the involvement of skilled and caring professionals, high expectations both academically and behaviorally, and with the support of our parents and community...." Kirk Miller, Superintendent, Bozeman Public Schools

For more on Bozeman High School, Bozeman Schools, and Gallatin County Schools.

Is your high school on the top US high schools list?

Spectacular, rare, and very special Whitehall, Montana horse property with live water, water rights, Tobacco Root Mountain views; all in the rural Waterloo Valley, just outside the quaint town of Whitehall, Montana! Easy access to Interstate 90. End-of-road privacy, bordering the magnificent White Rock Ranch to the south and 480 acres of Montana State land to the east.

Private access to Montana State land; then access to US Forest Service. Ride, hunt, explore to your hearts content.

Complex consists of 4700 square foot home, barn, equipment shed, round pen, riding arena, mature trees, 20 acres with irrigation that's produced up to 80 tons.

A MUST SEE!!

30 +/- Irrigated Acres

$550,000 - MLS 161726

CALL 406.579.9683

This Montana Horse property is offered by Taunya Fagan Prudential Montana Real Estate

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All information contained herein is derived from sources deemed reliable, however, is not guaranteed by Prudential Montana Real Estate, Managing Broker, Agents or Sellers. Offering is subject to error, omissions, prior sales, price change or withdrawal without notice and approval of purchase by Seller. We urge independent verification of each and every item submitted, to the satisfaction of any prospective purchaser. 2008 - 2010 © Copyright Prudential Montana Real Estate. All rights reserved. An independently owned and operated member of the Prudential Real Estate Affiliates, Inc. The RockPrudential is a registered service mark of The Prudential Insurance Company of America. Equal Housing Opportunity.

Ushering in a new era for the Yellowstone Mountain Club, Sam Byrne's Boston-based Crossharbor Capital has won control of Big Sky, Montana's Yellowstone Club with a bid of $115 million.

Judge Ralph Kirscher ok'd the bid, which includes Sam Byrne's commitment to inject up to $75 million into the Club, with $19 million dedicated to pay unsecured creditors, most of whom are regional business owners.

The Yellowstone Club is a private 13,600 acre ski and golf community in Big Sky, MT.

The City of Bozeman, Montana begins its initial year of a three-year agreement to hold the Montana Special Olympics Games. In this year's Special Olympics 2009, the 72 visiting teams, comprised of about 1,000 athletes, will compete, coached by 450, in fourteen Olympic-type sports events during the three-day event.

The 2009 Montana Special Olympics', 14 competitions will include track and field, gymnastics, triathlon, bowling, kayaking, aquatics, bocce ball, cycling, golf, powerlifting, equestrian, soccer, and horseshoe pitching.

Also offered will be motor activities training for participating, lower-functioning athletes.

Annually, over 1,500 local Bozeman, MT locals are involved in the massive organizing and the actual hosting of the Montana Special Olympic Games, adding $1 million to the Bozeman community.

Special Olympics Montana
P.O. Box 3507
Great Falls, MT  59403
For General Info: 1.800.242.6876

Please consider supporting these Special Montana Olympic Games in Bozeman!

To Speak to Representative: Vicki Dunham
vdunham@somt.org
Call: 406.216.5327

On Tuesday, May 12, 2009, according to an article in NewWest.net, U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Ralph B. Kirscher declared, "that Credit Suisse actions in making a $375 million loan to the Yellowstone Club were "so far overreaching and self-serving that they shocked the conscience of this court," U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Ralph B. Kirscher on Tuesday ruled that Credit Suisse's secured claim to $232 million of the remaining $310 million loan balance would be "subordinated" to the claims of tradesmen, vendors and other unsecured creditors in the case."

According to the Bozeman, Montana Troutfitters, "Fishing has been good on the Upper Madison!"

Montana's famous, world-class trout fishing, Madison River, is born within Yellowstone National Park where the Firehole and Gibbon Rivers collide. The Upper Madison, as it is called at this point, then flows north about 20 miles to the United States' premier stillwater fishing and man-made, Hebgen Lake.

The Madison River then moves on to 1959 earthquake-formed Quake Lake, after which it flows roughly 50 miles to Montana Power's 1930's-built Ennis Lake. It continues 40 miles, now called the Lower Madison, to Three Forks, Montana, after having cut through Beartrap Canyon and the flat terrain south of Three Forks, MT, but enough history; now is the time to gear up for Montana fly-fishing season!

On April 23, 2009, United States Secretary of the Interior, Ken Salazar, announced that Yellowstone National Park, in both the states of Wyoming and Montana, will receive $14,735,000 from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

The largest of the Yellowstone projects is construction of a new, $9,000,000 wastewater treatment plant near Madison Junction's small log cabin museum and visitor center.

The Montana side of Yellowstone National Park will also get $1,650,000 to construct a micro-hydroelectric facility at Mammoth Hot Springs, which should eliminate close to 700 tons of greenhouse gas and save Yellowstone Park around $80,000/year in electric bills.

All funding is predicated upon addressing critical needs, introducing green technology, stimulating local economies, and bettering your park experience.

About the stimulus monies for Yellowstone National Park, Secretary Ken Salazar said, "They are also an investment in telling the story of America to future generations through our national parks by conserving our awe-inspiring landscapes, our rich culture and our great heritage."

In the sport of bike racing you've heard of the Tour de France, the Vuelta a España, and the Giro d'Italia ...now there's the Tour de Bozeman, Montana's Last Best Bike Race.

This Bozeman, Montana Bicycle Racing Event, slated for Saturday and Sunday, July 25 and 26, 2009, offers a $5,000 Cash Purse and fun for the entire family. Cycling Sprints down Main Street Bozeman; Bicycle Time Trials on Springhill Road; and a Bike Road Race in Bridger Canyon.

Watch male and female cyclists burn 1000's of calories and suffer oxygen-debt, pushing their bodies to super-human levels competing in...

• Saturday, July 25, morning: Springhill Road Cycling Time Trial on a straight, 20 kilometer out -and-back course, along Bozeman's Bridger Mountains.
• Saturday, July 25, evening: Downtown Bozeman Main Street Bike Sprints along five blocks of Historic Bozeman's Main Street, which will be closed for these brutal 300 meter cycling sprints.
• Sunday, July 26, morning: Bridger Canyon Road Bike Race on an unrelenting 70 mile course with long, steep climbs and petrifying descents through the Bridger and Bangtail Mountains.
  
• Sunday, July 26, afternoon Tour de Bozeman bike racing awards at Bridger Bowl Ski Area.

The Tour of Bozeman Bike Race is a collaboration of three Bozeman-area cycling teams: Bozeman Team Delphine, Gallatin Alpine Sports-Intrinsik Architecture, and Bozeman Masters Velo and is sponsored by both First Interstate Bank of Bozeman and Bridger Orthopedic and Sports Medicine. 

Races open to and capped at:
    * Men's Pro 1/2 - 100 entrants
    * Men's Cat 3 - 100 entrants
    * Men's Cat 4/5 - 75 entrants
    * Masters 40+ - 100 entrants
    * Women's 1-3 - 50 entrants
    * Women's 4 - 50 entrants

Register for the Tour de Bozeman  -  Photo Courtesy of Natasha Westphal

From blog.nileguide.com Top 10 Mountain Towns in North America  March 10, 2009

"Many of us cling to the dream of ditching the urban rat race and moving to a funky town in the mountains where we can hike, bike, climb, paddle, and ski to our heart's content."

# 3: Bozeman, Montana - Bozeman is an easy drive from Yellowstone [Park], and Big Sky sits just up the Madison Gallatin River. As a university town, it offers decent great local food and culture, where you can bone up on your literature in between jaunts to hit the hikable [and skiable] backcountry at Bridger Bowl.

Note: Killer mountain biking, kayaking, and fly fishing, too..

Taunya Fagan Prudential Bozeman Real Estate, giving you the advantage...®

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