Kalispell, MT, November 13, 2023 — The Flathead National Forest is requesting public input on the issuance of nine temporary special use permits authorizing outfitting and guiding activities to individuals, groups, businesses, and nonprofit entities who have applied for permits through the Flathead National Forest Temporary Outfitting and Guiding and Recreation Event Special Use Permit Process outlined in the document available at: www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd697445.pdf
Comments will be accepted through November 27, 2023 and should be submitted via email to: comments-northern-flathead@usda.gov Please include “2023 Winter Rec Special Use” in the subject line.
A special use permit authorizes occupancy, use, rights, and privileges for a specific period of time on National Forest System lands beyond those available to individuals visiting the National Forest. Special use may include group activities, recreational events, and use from which fees or income is derived. A special use authorization is not required for noncommercial, personal recreational activities such as camping, picnicking, hiking, fishing, boating, hunting, horseback riding, etc. For more information on the Special Use Permit process, please visit the Flathead National Forest Special Use Permit Webpage at: https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/flathead/passes- permits/other/?cid=fseprd646036
If a proposal is approved, the short-term special use permits would be valid through April 15, 2024 for the approved number of service days, or for the specific timeframes identified in the proposal. A service day is defined as an allocation of use constituting a day or any part of a day on NFS lands for which an outfitter provides a service to a client and is calculated by multiplying each service day by the number of clients on the trip.
A letter containing descriptions of the special use proposals and associated maps can be found on the 2023- 2024 Flathead National Forest Winter Special Uses project page on the Flathead National Forest website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/project/flathead/?project=65150 Also in that letter you will find a point of contact for each project and information on how to comment.
