Artist Wilderness Connection applications are open now! This collaborative, wilderness-based artist residency is a unique opportunity for artists of all kinds to immerse themselves in one of the wildest places left in the lower-48. All disciplines, media and styles are invited to apply! Each summer, two artists are selected to spend 1-2 weeks in a remote Forest Service administrative cabin in the Great Bear or Bob Marshall Wildernesses. Learn much more and see how to apply at bmwf.org/awc ⛰🖼 AWC is a partnership between the Flathead National Forest, @hockadaymuseum, Bob Marshall Wilderness Foundation, and @swanvalley.connections. #lovethebob #bobmarshallwilderness #greatbearwilderness #artistresidency #montana

Calling all groups, clubs, businesses, non-profits, or fishing buddies who are interested in a partner project with us next summer – we're accepting partner trip inquiries now! If you have a minimum of six people ready to exchange some hard work for an unforgettable time in the Bob, we'd love to team up. We can work with you to create a custom project that works for your group. Every summer we work with folks from all skill levels, demographics, and identities. Never used a crosscut saw or camped in bear country before? That’s okay – we’ll teach you. Learn more at bmwf.org/partner and reach out to Ian at ian@bmwf.org to see if we can accomodate your group in 2025! #lovethebob #bobmarshallwilderness #volunteervacations #montana

WOW!! We are still beyond blown away by all the love and support at our second-annual BobFest. We had such a great night full of fun and friends of the Bob. So many folks contribute to making this event a success that we just can’t than enough. The always wonderful @montana.craft.kitchen who catered the amazing meal, @ceresbakerymt and @mtcoffeetraders who supplied the desert and coffee. @sacredwatersbrewing 🍻 made sure we had plenty of beer on hand and the @thepackstrings kept the party vibes going with some awesome tunes. All of our table sponsors, business partners and everyone who donated an item to our auctions and raffle, we couldn’t have done it without you! And to all of you who bought tickets, placed your bids, raised your paddles and helped us keep our work going by showing up - a huge THANK YOU! We love the Bob and we are so glad you do to! 🥰#lovethebob #bobmarshallwilderness

It's #NationalMuleDay! A little ode to some of our favorite volunteers in the Bob. (No offense to our human volunteers – we love you guys too!) ❤️🫏❤️ #lovethebob #bobmarshallwilderness #longears

TOMORROW! Join us for a rip roarin' good time celebrating this spectacular wild place at The BobFest 🔥🥳🎻🎶🍻🫏 Online ticket sales will close Friday, October 25th at 3PM before doors open at 6PM. Last year we sold out at the door, so make sure to grab yours early to save your spot! 🎟bmwf.org/bobfest Whether you can join us in person or from afar, make sure to check out our online Silent Auction that's open for bidding now! Outdoor gear, wild adventures, handcrafted goods and art – so much good stuff to bid on at bmwf.org/bobfest 🤩 SEE YOU THERE!! #lovethebob

Ever wonder what a BMWF Volunteer Adventure looks like? Here are some moments captured from our 2024 season to give you an idea 😍 We’re so excited to celebrate another incredible year at The BobFest THIS FRIDAY, October 25th! There’s still time to grab your tickets to join us: bmwf.org/bobfest Thanks so much again to all of who you spent time with us in the Bob this summer. Want to join us next year? Learn more at bmwf.org/volunteer #lovethebob #bobmarshallwilderness #volunteervacations #montana #wilderness

This week is also your last chance to stop by the @hockadaymuseum to see our Artist Wilderness Connection exhibit before it closes this Saturday, October 26th! This is a rare chance to see the full collection of artwork from all twenty years of artist residencies in the Bob Marshall and Great Bear Wildernesses. We're excited to announce that applications for the AWC residency for 2025 will open on Friday, November 1st! If you're an artist interested in spending 1-2 weeks in a remote Forest Service cabin in the Bob, learn more at bmwf.org/awc 🏔🖼 📷 of painting by @nevernotnine #lovethebob #bobmarshallwilderness #artistresidency #montana

The BobFest Silent Auction is live online NOW!!🔥🔥🔥 You can pre-register and even start bidding now so that you're ready to go once the event kicks off on Friday. Check out our incredible selection of outdoor gear, wild adventures, handcrafted goods and art now at bmwf.org/bobfest 🤩 The BobFest is coming up THIS FRIDAY, October 25th at 6 PM at the Flathead Co. Fairgrounds. Online ticket sales will end Friday at 3 PM. Last year we sold out at the door, so make sure to grab yours now to save your spot! Don't miss our biggest party of the year! 🥳🎻🍻🫏 Mules, crosscuts, live music, delicious food and drinks, incredible auction and raffle prizes – plus the best folks around. We hope to see you there! Learn more and tickets: bmwf.org/bobfest #lovethebob

We had a great time celebrating with some of our 2024 volunteers! At the end of every season, we get together around a campfire and choose one volunteer and one packer that we think deserve an extra special shout out, and we got to give those folks a big round of applause on Thursday night! This year our Volunteer of the year is Steven Mahan. This past summer Steven started with National Trails day. After that he signed up and attended a weekend long trip, joined the Great Bear Trail Posse, Flathead River clean up day and our Big River trails weekend. Steven was highly regarded by the crew leaders as someone who had a great attitude, jumped in to help with kitchen chores, supported fellow volunteers and quickly became a favorite volunteer to have along. We are excited to have Steven as part of the BMWF volunteer family and look forward to having him join for years to come. Our Packer of the Year is Boone Jones. While certainly not new to packing, Boone was a ‘new’ packer for the BMWF last season after he retired as the lead packer for Olympic National Park. After volunteering a few times to pack in 2023, Boone reached out to see how he can get more involved. In 2024 Boone became one of our ‘Master Packers’ who mentor our Packer Apprentices and Journeyman Packer all season. This year Boone did 13 one way pack trips for the foundation, always with a smile on his face and a laid back, can do attitude. When Boone is packing a project, there is no need to worry, he will get it done. He even spent his birthday in The Bob with our volunteers! Cheers to all of our amazing volunteers, packers and friends of The Bob far and wide! 🥳🍻 And a big thank you to @sacredwatersbrewing for hosting us!

We're so excited to have @thepackstrings join us at The BobFest this year! Hailing from Missoula, the Pack Strings are a dashing acoustic trio with Americana roots who find inspiration in the mountains and wild places of the Northern Rockies. Join us next Friday, October 25th at the Flathead Co. Fairgrounds to boogie to their unique originals and spirited covers – we can't wait to see you on the dancefloor! Learn more and tickets: bmwf.org/bobfest 🎻🎶🏔✨ #lovethebob

Our live auction items are SO GOOD this year, y'all 😍 The BobFest Live Auction will only be available to bid on AT the event – so make sure to grab your tickets and get your paddle raising arm ready!! 💪❤️🏔 bmwf.org/bobfest 🚣 The super versatile XPD Packraft from @kokopelli PLUS an @onx_maps Elite Membership 🖼 Reclaimed wood sculture of Dean Lake in the Bob by Amanda Krolczyk of @plaidbeaverco 🍔 A YETI Tundra 25 cooler filled with ground local Yak meat from Spring Brook Yak Ranch 🪚 An antique two-man crosscut saw, polished up and freshly sharpened by our very own Ian Bartling ❤️ A BMWF Insider Bundle filled with stuff normally reserved for our staff and interns, including our super limited first edition of The Bob Marshall Field Guide #lovethebob

Tomorrow! We'll be at @sacredwatersbrewing celebrating all of our INCREDIBLE volunteers at our Volunteer Appreciation Party! All are welcome to join us and cheers to another great summer in the Bob. If you volunteered this summer, we hope you'll let us buy you your first round to say thank you!! 🍻 5-8 PM on Wednesday, October 16th at Sacred Waters Brewing Co. Hope to see you there! #lovethebob

Today we celebrate Indigenous Peoples' Day! The area we now call "the Bob" has a rich history of indigenous communities who remain as active stewards of this landscape, working in harmony with nature to preserve and protect it for generations to come. This summer we were happy to work with two groups from the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes: the Mission Mountains Youth Crew on Long Creek, and the Upward Bound program at @skcollege on Essex Creek. Thanks so much to these young folks for joining us to give back to these trails! And, thank you to @nationalforests for supporting both of these projects through their grant programs 🌲❤️ #lovethebob #bobmarshallwilderness

We're bringing a taste of the backcountry to Kalispell with The BobFest, coming up Friday, October 25th! Along with live music by @thepackstrings and dinner by @montana.craft.kitchen, check out our lineup of wild activities for the whole family: 🫏 Meet the mules who help us in the Bob 🎁 Learn how to wrap a manty to load on a mule 🪚 Try your hand on the end of a crosscut saw 🔥 Take a load off at our campfire corner 🐻 Let the kiddos explore games and activities at the kid's corner Kids 10 and under get in free! Get your tickets now at bmwf.org/bobfest 🥳🏔❤️ #lovethebob #bobmarshallwilderness #kalispell #flatheadevents

Here's another sneak peak at more of the auction and raffle items that will be at the BobFest 😍😍😍 We're super excited to offer our silent auction online this year to simplify our in-person process and allow folks to bid from a distance. The live auction and raffle items will ONLY be availabe in person – so grab your tickets to join us, if you can! ⛺️ Friday, October 25th at the Flathead County Fairgrounds. Learn more and tickets: bmwf.org/bobfest Big thanks to these businesses who gave so generously! @littlebirdpainting @corvidaedd @sportsmanskihaus @rei Kalispell Hungry Horse Liquor Store @clydesdale_outpost @rightontrek @backslopebrewing @lodgeatwhitefishlake @field.guide.designs @larysfly @hbkranchmt @homeranchbottoms @firebrandwhitefish @barb.schelling @lookout.gal @wild.lupine.folkcraft @blacktailmountain @handmadegrowlers @dapperwooddesign @americanprairie @tareksprints #lovethebob

Don't forget to join us next Wednesday, October 16th at @sacredwatersbrewing for our Volunteer Appreciate Party! We'll announce our Volunteer and Packer of the Year and raise a glass to all of the hardworking volunteers who gave back to the trails this summer. Join us between 5-8 PM to catch up with old friends and join in some Wilderness-themed games and activities. If you volunteered this summer, your first drink is on us! We hope to see you there! #lovethebob #bobmarshallwilderness

We're excited to announce that our BobFest Silent Auction will be online this year! Our mobile bidding system will both make it easier to bid in person and also allow folks to bid from afar. The perks: 🏃‍♀️ No more waiting in line to make your bids and rushing back to check the bid sheet. You'll be notified every time you're outbid and you can bid again straight from your phone. 🕰 No more waiting in the check-out line for your items at the end of the night. You'll know right away what you won and you card will be charged automatically. 👀 Preview all of the items, pre-register and even start bidding as soon as Monday, Oct. 21st so that you're ready to go once the event kicks off on Friday! 🏡 Can't make the BobFest in person? You can still bid and support our work from home! The online auction will go live on Monday, October 21st, and we'll share the link then! Our live auction and raffles will only be available in person at the BobFest on Friday, October 25th. Learn more and grab your tickets at bmwf.org/bobfest ❤🏔 #lovethebob

We had the best weekend gathering on the east side with our Board of Directors for our annual retreat! Our board members are spread out on all sides of the Bob these days, so this is an important chance for us to all get together in person and look towards the future for the foundation. We're lucky to have such a diverse set of skills, passions and knowledge on our board, and we're so grateful to these smart, talented folks for volunteering their time to steer the ship at BMWF. As we look forward to updating our 5-year Strategic Plan in 2025, we're proud of all that we've accomplished together and we know we're in good hands to keep moving forward! On Friday evening we were joined by some friends from the Forest Service and the outfitting community to celebrate our season and recognize Master Packer Frank Vitale as his term of service on our board comes to a close. While we know this is just "see you later", we'll truly miss Frank's decades of packing experience, many stories and good humor on our board! Luckily there are still many nights around the campfire to be had as he'll continue to pack for our volunteer trips and mentor our packer apprentices. Thanks so much to the @7lazyp for providing the perfect venue for our retreat. There's nothing like the east side of the Bob 🤩 #lovethebob #bobmarshallwilderness

As we close out another field season in the Bob, we want to give a shoutout to our friends at @rightontrek who donated some of their delicious backcountry meals to support our crews this summer! While our Crew Leaders generally love getting creative with their camp cooking, there are always those long days when a ready-to-go hot meal is clutch. Plus, they offered a 30% discount on all of their Montana-made meals as a thank you to our volunteers, to use on their own adventures! We so appreciate the support and commitment of this local outdoor business in giving back to the wild places in their community. #lovethebob

We're so excited to unveil two brand new accessories to keep you looking sharp on the trail. Announcing our Mount Richmond Neck Gaiter and Beargrass Bandana! The microfiber gaiter is rated 30 UPF and features a stunning rendering of Mount Richmond from Birch Creek by Kathleen Schlabach of @highrockiesart. The organic cotton bandana features one of the Bob's most iconic critters, the grizzly bear, peaking out from behind a stand of beargrass blooms by Derek Conner of @skysquatch406. Thanks so much to both of these local artists for providing their rad talents to keep our merch looking fresh 🤩 Grab yours today at our Bob Shop! 🛒 bmwf.org/shop #lovethebob #bobmarshallwilderness