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Introduction Log In Pre Test Environment Products Balance Recreation Final Message and Post Test
Introduction:"Hello, I’m Marc Racicot… People want many different things from Montana forests. They want forests for hunting, fishing, hiking, working and generally to have fun in. They also want all the good things forests provide us: grazing forage, solitude, beauty, wildlife viewing, clear water, clean air, wood and other plant and animal materials that give us thousands of products people want and need. Industries such as mining, agriculture and recreation also want to use the land upon which forests grow. We are fortunate to live in a state with such great forests. But our forests are for everyone. People from around the world recreate in our forests or use products that come from them. Giving so many people what they want while maintaining a healthy environment is a goal of Montana’s professional forest managers. The information contained in this interactive CD will take you on an educational voyage of discovery, so you can better understand how our forests evolved, how they are ever-changing and how forest managers are working within this ever changing system to sustain these forests for future generations."
LOG IN: Log in your class – or log in as an individual. The letters are sound interactive. This is good practice for point and click skills for your students.
Click I’M FINISHED
Pre-Test: WOODEN YOU KNOW. "Hey! Before you begin, see if you can get the right answers to these questions." The correct answers are highlighted in bold. Simply click on your selected answer and the number of correct answers is tabulated at the end of the test.
- How much of Montana is covered by forest? A. About ¼. B. About half. C. About ¾. D. I don’t know.
- Montana forest types vary according to: A. Elevation. B. Which direction the slope faces. C. Precipitation. D. All of the above.
- Westslope cutthroat trout are: A. Native fish. B. Live in mountain streams. C. Live in lakes. D. All of the above.
- What is the most common way Montana Forests regenerate after harvest? A. Planting. B. Seeds, sprouts and suckers, C. They usually do not grow back. D. Natural regeneration.
- One acre of trees can provide enough oxygen daily for: A. You and 17 friends. B. You and 100 friends. C. Just you. D. I don’t know.
- How many different products in the USA contain wood? A. 150. B. About 2,500. C. Over 5,000. D. I don’t know.
- Well-managed forests provide … A. Soil protection and high water quality. B. Wildlife habitat and recreation. C. Sawlogs and pulpwood. D. All of the above.
- What is the primary job of a forest manager? A. Cut trees from the forest. B. Fight wildfires and save forest trees. C. Balance the various benefits and products from the forest. D. I don’t know.
- What do trees do for us? A. Give off carbon dioxide and take in oxygen. B. Warm the earth by as much as 15 degrees. C. Clean our water and prevent soil erosion. D. I don’t know.
- Ruffed grouse are found in: A. Alpine areas. B. Grasslands. C. Whitebark pine forests. D. Brushy mixed-conifer forests.
"You’re done! Now let’s get started."
CLICK NEXT
Introduction Video part one: (no script)
Introduction Video part two:"You know, we’re so used to having trees around us everyday that we take them for granted. But WOW – We’d sure miss them if they were gone. And I’m not just talking about the wood that comes from trees – the stuff we make into hockey sticks, postage stamps and railroad ties, -- I’m talking about trees."
"Trees give wildlife like deer, bears and birds a forest to live in and humans a place to "get away from it all." They also give us oxygen, clean our water and fight soil erosion. And there’s nothing like resting under a shady tree on a hot day. We need to take care of them! Trees don’t just keep us cool; they are cool!"
"Talk about cool! Check out this autographed baseball bat, this sports drink, this electric guitar. Know what they have in common? They’re all made from trees. The sap is used in paint, cellophane is made from pulp and some cancer-fighting drugs are made from bark. Every part of the tree can be used! Trees are so much a part of our lives that it’s important to take care of them."
"We need to protect our forests! Did you know that just one acre of trees¼ can give you and nine of your friends 1,000 comic books each? Or can give you and 17 of your friends enough air to breathe for a day. So how do we use trees to make the good things we need¼ and at the same time, protect the forest for all the things it does for us? The key¼ is forest management. The goal of professional foresters and landowners is to make sure that we have Montana forests forever. – We can enjoy a healthy environment, the great outdoors, and the forest products we all depend on."
"In Montana, the challenge for forest managers is to maintain natural forest ecosystems while using the forest for many products and activities. The forest ecosystem provides many opportunities for harvesting wood products, mushrooms, berries and decorative plants. Forests are also used for recreation, grazing, and as home for a wide variety of wildlife. Protecting the forest ecosystem while using forest resources requires a balancing act to sustain both the forest ecosystem and the many forest uses. The message for everyone is that without this balance between sustaining both ecosystems and products, we wouldn’t be able to continue to enjoy some of the products we use every day – things you wouldn’t even think came from the forest. Scientists and land managers are seeking and finding new ways to ensure this balance. New approaches to conservation are known as: "stewardship", "environmental forestry", "sustainable forestry" and "ecosystem management".
MAIN MENU – "See for yourself the importance of habitat, the need for wood products and the need for balance." From here, you can explore the main content of the CD. A logical sequence of use is to explore ENVIRONMENT, then PRODUCTS, RECREATION and finally BALANCE. However, depending on your teaching objectives, you can use the CD any way you want.
Environment: Don’t forget to place your mouse pointer over the PAUSE button and be ready to stop where you want to! The video scripts are organized into topical sections and you may want to pause between each topic. Each is laid out below as a separate paragraph so that you can customize the content for your use by pausing for discussion where you want to.
"It's an air purifier, a water filter, a home for wildlife and our backyard; it’s a Montana Forest. It’s pretty tough to list all the things forests do for our environment. Trees offer homes and protection to many animals and even other plants. Their root systems hold together the forest floor and help purify our drinking water. Most importantly, forests capture the sun's energy in the process of photosynthesis. The trees take carbon dioxide from the air, store the carbon in the tree, and release oxygen, which all organisms need to live. Reducing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere can help reduce the "greenhouse effect" and consequent global warming."
"The forest provides habitat for thousands of different creatures from Bacteria to Bears. Each has its niche and does its part to continue the forest cycle. Living together in their environment, animals and plants contribute to an incredibly strong and resilient variety of ecosystems. Forest scientists and managers are working to understand the complexity of ecosystems in order to balance the needs of these animals and plants with the needs of people."
"Forests grow and change constantly. They look different because of age and the history of disturbance to the forest vegetation. Just as humans go through several stages of development during their lifetimes, forest stands move through a pattern of young, middle-aged, and old. Here is a forest near Hamilton, Montana in 1909. This is the same spot 80 years later the large tree is still there; can you find it now? Wow! What happened? Where did all these new trees come from? There it is, hidden among all those new trees. These new trees are a result of natural forest succession—the continual change in plant communities with time."
Tree Location:
You may want to practice pausing during the slide sequence to specifically identify which trees are still visible in the historic photos and what detail your students can observe in each slide – note that the biggest ponderosa pine in the foreground has been harvested between slide # 2 and # 3. You might want to keep your eye on the pine tree immediately to the right and behind of the big one in the foreground in slide # 2. This tree is the one that is pointed out with an arrow in slide # 3. The complete sequence of these Lick Creek pictures are available on the Montana Forests Forever web page.
"In addition to the continual process of succession, natural disturbance events such as fires, wind, insects and diseases periodically change the forest vegetation. Partial disturbances reduce some species, allowing other species to invade or expand. Major disturbances reset the disturbance clock to zero and a new plant community begins. Over time, succession and different levels of disturbances create a landscape pattern of different ages and kinds of forests. Animals meet their unique habitat needs by taking advantage of these different patterns on the landscape."
"Just as other species, Humans modify the ecosystem as they seek the food, water, and shelter they need to live. Included in these modifications are their forest management actions that affect the other organisms dependent upon the forest conditions they disturbed."
"Concerns about existing or potential damage to the environment have resulted in laws such as the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, and the Endangered Species Act. The intent of these laws is to protect all resources while enabling us to utilize specific resources. Sustainable forestry tries to maintain healthy ecosystems so that future generations have the same opportunities to use resources as we have today."
"Montana forests can be very different for other reasons too. Each region of Montana has different kinds of forests. They are also different because temperature and precipitation change dramatically as we go up the mountainside and also change from one side of the mountain to the other. Montana forests can be found at elevations ranging from 1900 to 9600 feet and annual precipitation varying from 10 to over 60 inches per year. This broad range in elevation, temperature, and rainfall provides many different growing conditions that support many different kinds of forests. Animals often adjust to take advantage of these different forest conditions."
"As you fly over this virtual forest you can observe some of the variety of forests in Montana. This illustration of a typical western Montana landscape shows where you will find different kinds of forests and why they grow where they do. You need to double click on each part of the landscape to learn about these different kinds of forests and get a close-up view of the forest and some of the wildlife species that occur there."
The virtual landscape rotates from NE to NW during the introductory script above. Keep this in mind as you explore the different forest zones with your students so that you can explain which aspect you are looking at when you explore the interactive zones. To orient yourself and your students, the building with the green roof is to the SW of the mountain. If you rotate the landscape fully to the right, you are looking at the mountain from the northeast. If you rotate the landscape fully to the left, you are looking at the mountain from the northwest. We will be developing a topographic map of the mountain that will be available on the Montana Forests Forever web page.
Double click on the landscape to activate the interactive programming. A hand will appear where your mouse pointer was. Position the hand in the sky above the mountain, click and hold the mouse and rotate the landscape by dragging the mouse in the direction you want the landscape to rotate. Release the mouse button and move the hand over the landscape. When the hand pointer crosses an interactive zone on the landscape, a message will appear in the green box below the landscape. Now you are ready to explore the selected forest zone video by single-clicking the mouse.
At the end of each forest zone video, you can click on the wildlife icon to launch a video about example wildlife species that use this type of forest. You can customize which forest zones and which wildlife species you want to explore today and which specific topics you want to discuss within each by using the PAUSE button. To return to the virtual landscape without examining wildlife, click on the BACK arrow at the bottom of the screen. By careful exploring, you will be able to find the following interactive zones:Grasslands; ponderosa pine forest (only on east, south and west aspects); Douglas fir forest (widespread) lodgepole pine forest (only on north, northeast and northwest aspects); western larch (only on north, northeast, west and northwest aspects); whitebark pine forest (high elevations only); alpine area (above tree line); riparian area (adjacent to the lake) and stream (rotate the landscape all the way to the right and search directly west of the north end of the lake). There are virtually no limits to where you can go using this virtual forest as a teaching tool. Probably the most important lesson is getting the students to recognize that aspect and elevation are the primary influences that create different forest types across the landscape. Please note that the forest types shown in the wildlife videos may not exactly match the part of the virtual forest being described in that section. Should your students note these discrepancies, you could use it as a higher level thinking application and ask them what it is about the habitat that does not match what they were told in the forest section and praise them for being such keen observers.
Don’t forget to check out the sample activities on the Montana Forests Forever web page by clicking on the THE NET icon at the bottom of the MAIN MENU screen.
"Those are just a few of the animals that you will find in all of Montana’s different kinds of forests. Lets see what else Montana’s forests have to offer."
You are now back at the MAIN MENU screen.
As with the Environment section, the video scripts are organized into topical sections and you may want to pause between each topic. Don’t forget to place your mouse pointer over the PAUSE button and use the script to prepare where you want to stop. There are many directions you can go in; for example, you might want to have a class discussion about recycling.
"This is the main reason we harvest trees, right? To make houses, furniture, pencils … well, that’s only part of the story because lumber is only part of the tree. There are so many different parts to trees that we can make over five thousand different products from them. And we can use every part of the tree -- the solid wood; the wood pulp; the bark, sugars and cellulose. The usefulness of the tree doesn’t stop there … many wood products are recovered, recycled and reused everyday. In fact many egg cartons and cereal boxes are made entirely out of recycled fiber. So you see, we can get more out of a tree than just wood!" "Renewable harvested products are surely a major part of the products we get from forests, but only a part. Montana forests are also the source of pure water – another forest product. We also get many other products from our forests – things like decorative plants, berries, even medicines like a cancer-fighting drug that comes from yew bark. - - And who hasn’t tasted a huckleberry --yummy! So, you see there are many products that forests provide for us." "Forest managers are finding ways to carefully harvest all these products in ways that ensure the forest products and natural ecosystem processes will all be sustained for future generations."
Try the game below to learn more about forest products." "Welcome contestants to I WOOD IF I COULD. The game show that dares to ask: can you find the products that aren’t forest products? Take a look at these items, then click on the one’s that don’t come from trees. Ready! Begin!""All of these products are forest products, many of the things we use every day are made from trees, in fact, it’s hard to find things that aren’t.
"There are many discussions and activities you can initiate after the I Wood if I Could game. See the activities guide on line by clicking THE NET icon at the bottom of the MAIN MENU screen.
"Over ¼ of the State of Montana is covered with trees. These forests are constantly changing, and as competing demands for forest resources increase, it becomes more important than ever to carefully manage them.""As you discovered in the environment section, forests are ever-changing, whether through insect activities, disease, windthrow and wildfire or human activities like logging and intentional prescribed burning. For example, if you study a harvested area or a wildfire area, you can record when certain plants and animals appear and when they go away. This natural pattern of change, which takes place over time, is called succession. When trees are removed — whether by natural processes like fire, wind, insects or diseases, or by human activities, the forest regenerates in a predictable order." "Each stage of succession provides unique habitat for a variety of plants and animals as well as many different products. Figure 1 illustrates a common classification of "even-aged" successional stages for Montana forests that results following major stand-replacing disturbances. Figure 1 also illustrates an alternative "uneven-aged" stand structure that results from periodic, minor disturbances. The upper part of this diagram illustrates a variety of forest structures that characterize stages of forest succession. The bottom part of the diagram illustrates important differences among these stages in providing biological diversity and food and cover for wildlife species. One goal of management is to provide an appropriate variety of these natural successional stages on the landscape. Click and drag on the knob on the top of the wheel to cycle through these Even-Aged successional stages. Then try the Uneven-Aged Forest for an alternative management method."
Align your mouse pointer with the knob. Click, hold and drag the knob to the end of stage one – where the slot is. Release the mouse button and the image box will highlight, the WILDLIFE and PRODUCTS dialogue boxes (at the bottom of the screen) will change and the narrative will begin.
"In the earliest stage of forest growth, annual and perennial grasses, herbs and wildflowers are the first plants to appear. Within 10 years tree seedlings are well established and develop as "saplings", gradually beginning to provide forest canopy cover. This process can be speed up by planting seedlings and controlling competing vegetation. If trees are growing too close to each other, thinning is often necessary to allow the trees to continue growing. This stage has very diverse plant life and attracts a great variety of foraging animals. It is also a great nesting habitat for birds preferring open conditions." "Products from this stage of forest growth includes Huckleberries, mushrooms, decorative plants, and Christmas Trees."
Click and drag to the next stage.
"During this stage, the forest has a more closed canopy, resulting in less plant diversity. Trees provide cover and protection for animals and places for birds to roost. In natural succession, this is when weaker or smaller trees begin to die. Thinning is often done to improve vigor and health of the forest. Products such as posts, poles, pulpwood, small sawlogs and firewood are often provided and help offset the cost of thinning. The re-opened canopy allows for the remaining trees to grow faster and provides more light for development of undergrowth vegetation. This stage of growth provides thermal cover and hiding cover for many wildlife species, there is less of foraging habitat for most wildlife species unless trees are thinned, but then you are trading cover for forage."
Click and drag to the next stage.
"Surviving trees continue to mature during this stage of the forest cycle. Larger and fewer, these trees produce more cones and seeds, and attract animals that live in dense forests in addition to those that nest in the canopy. At this point in a managed forest, loggers harvest some trees for two main objectives: maintaining healthy, vigorous forest conditions and to produce valuable products such as sawlogs, telephone poles, house logs and pulpwood. Some woody material such as dead standing and fallen trees is often left on the ground to provide habitat for wildlife species."
Click and drag to the next stage.
"At this stage, the large trees are becoming more susceptible to insects and disease. As individual trees die and create openings, shade-tolerant species begin to regenerate in these openings, creating a multi-layered forest. Partial cutting, a process where some trees are cut while others are left standing, is often used to encourage regeneration of desired species while harvesting valuable products. Some of these products include large or small sawlogs, peelers for making plywood and quality logs for clear, no knots, lumber. Remaining trees provide seeds and shade for developing seedlings. This silvicultural method is called a shelterwood system." "If these stands have large numbers of undesirable trees, forestry professionals may choose to harvest all mature trees and replant the area with a new crop of seedlings of another species. This is called a clearcut system. Both systems are called "even-aged" because the forest is managed as a "crop" with a 100 to 120 year "rotation". Some woody material is often left on the ground to provide woody debris for wildlife species." "These forests support different kinds of wildlife than the younger stages of succession. Like the last two stages this stage of growth provides thermal and hiding cover for many wildlife species but less of a foraging habitat for most wildlife species, unless stands are thinned. The trees and stands are old enough to start providing dead trees called snags and decayed live trees - both of which are critical for many cavity nesting birds and mammals. Balance is achieved by keeping some dead or dying trees, rather than harvesting all the unhealthy trees and also by leaving some coarse woody debris for wildlife."
Click and drag to the next stage.
"Old forests are characterized by large trees, snags, and coarse, woody debris. They represent the later stage of natural forest succession and are very important habitat for many plant and animal species. Over time, unmanaged old forests convert from pine to Douglas fir and other "shade-tolerant" species. A minimum percentage of these kinds of stands need to be retained to provide healthy landscape diversity. The difficult question is determining what that percentage should be. This is a central question of any large-scale landscape planning activity. The old forests are eventually replaced by natural stand-replacing disturbance or by planned harvesting. Harvesting can be designed to return the forest to the seedling stage by clearcutting or shelterwood harvest systems or by returning it to a mixture of tree species and ages with a selection system prescription." "Products similar to those in stage four can be obtained from this stage through planned harvests or salvage harvests following natural disturbances such as beetles, wind storms or fires." "The primary purpose of maintaining some of these old forests is to provide habitat for wildlife species that are dependent upon them and for allowing natural ecological processes to continue without being interrupted at the end of a 120 year rotation. Forest managers also try to maintain some wildlife habitat for cavity nesting birds and other animals that den and live in tree cavities by leaving some snags in the forests they manage."
Press the NEXT button to activate the Uneven Aged alternative."This alternative to "even-aged management" is appropriate for many acres of Montana forests-- especially the low elevation ponderosa pine forests. The uneven-aged silvicultural system mimics the kind of stand development that occurred in warm, dry environments where natural underburning historically took place every 15 to 30 years. Three stages are illustrated: existing condition, immediately after treatment, and 25 to 30 years later." "Click and drag on the knob at the top of the wheel to cycle through the uneven aged forest.""The ideal starting place for the uneven-aged system is in a forest with enough healthy trees of different sizes to build a foundation for the "continuous" forest. For example, a ponderosa pine forest in stage four or five of succession; it’s an old or middle-aged forest. Healthy trees of various sizes are marked and the rest of the trees are removed. The forest canopy must be open enough to allow new seedlings enough sunlight to grow."
Click and drag to the next stage.
"After harvesting, a new multi-storied stand structure is established. The open forest is healthy, productive, and resembles the kinds of natural forests that used to develop when natural understory burns were occurring at 20 to 30 year intervals.
Click and drag to the next stage.
"New seedlings have established and larger trees have fuller crowns. Competition for space will stress the trees and insects and diseases will increase unless density is reduced. Partial removal of trees will restore the forest to the condition of 25 to 30 years ago. If trees are selected carefully for removal or saving, then this process can be repeated indefinitely. The forest will not change greatly in appearance - therefore the term "continuous" forest can be applied as one approach to ensure sustainable forestry. However, a word of caution, this method of management is not well suited for many forest sites. For example, sites supporting undesirable shade-loving tree species such as subalpine fir will create unhealthy multi-story forests." Click on the NEXT button to continue Let’s take a look at how some people use the forest and what they think of how our forests are managed."
There follows an interview with four children from De Smet School in Missoula. Listen carefully, because they point out several of the major issues that members of the public are concerned about relative to forests and forest management: These interviews were recorded at the University of Montana, Missoula, in February of 2000 – before the Montana fires of 2000! You may want to pause and explore what these children say with your class – stand by with the PAUSE button!
"People in Montana certainly have a lot of different uses of forests and a lot of opinions of how forests should be managed! In addition to Montanan’s many opinions, managers of Montana’s 14 million acres of National Forests must consider what people all over the country have to say about how our National Forests are managed. So forest managers have a time-consuming and difficult job trying to figure out how to meet as many people's wants and needs as possible, while still keeping healthy forests for the future.""Look, trees are a renewable resource, right? That means there is virtually an unlimited supply of them if we take care of our forests. By practicing proper forestry we can maintain healthy ecosystems and provide a steady supply of products." "Here are just a few ways professional foresters manage the forests.""Forest managers have learned how to use their knowledge of disturbance and succession to meet management objectives. For example: foresters might want to increase the growth rates of a particular tree species. To do this, they might remove the trees that are competing with the chosen species for nutrients and sunlight.""Wildlife biologists might want to increase the grass and shrub food supply in an area where elk live in winter. To do this, they might burn the understory plants to encourage resprouting of new plant growth for the elk to eat. They might also maintain habitat by leaving the woody debris found in middle aged forests on the ground for grouse, squirrel, and salamander habitat. Sometimes, the same management activities can be used to meet two or more different objectives at one time. For example, forests can be thinned to improve tree growth and forage production. Prescribed burning can also be used to provide a good place called a "seed bed" for naturally deposited seeds to grow while simultaneously increasing the amount of forage production for wildlife.""Other ‘active management’ "tools" forest managers use to achieve management objectives include using grazing to alter both plant succession and fire disturbance by reducing understory vegetation. Fire Suppression eliminates or lessens fire's natural disturbance and thereby changes plant succession, forest structure and the animals that use an area.""Hunting and fishing are used to control animal and fish population numbers and thus affect succession.""Sometimes managers use passive methods such as letting succession take its natural course rather than the active methods mentioned above. Can you think of some more?
"Click the NEXT button to continue.
"As you can see, we can use a variety of tools to meet varied management objectives that we have for large or small areas of forestland. Sometimes, natural conditions affect which tools we choose. For example, steep mountain slopes could limit the use of certain types of harvesting equipment." "Prescribed fire may be difficult and dangerous to use near people's homes. The challenge for forestland managers is to use the best tools to achieve the desired management objective. Here are some examples of Management Objectives:" "Here’s someone’s house in the woods. If a forest fire started here, it could burn down the house. The management objective is to reduce the risk of fire around the house." "Forest lands can produce revenue for people who either own and are stewards of national forest resources or who work in recreation or forest products businesses. The management objective is to create revenue." "Wood products are used to build houses and make other items we use everyday. Here the management objective is to produce timber for the manufacture of wood products." Other products include berries, mushrooms, and decorative plants." "Here is an overgrown hillside. If a wildlife manager were to burn these trees and shrubs, they would resprout as good food for deer and elk. The management objective here is to improve deer & elk forage. Why don’t you try and develop some management objectives?"
Click the NEXT button to continue.
"Once forest managers have decided on their management objectives they also have to consider any special constraints or limitations that will affect which management tools they can use. These include things like:""Laws may direct or limit the choice of tools that a forest manager uses. For example: motorized vehicles and power tools are not allowed in Wilderness Areas." "Rules and regulations limit when and where you can use different management tools. For example: In Montana, State regulations govern hunting seasons and which game species can be hunted in different hunting areas." "Sometimes people disagree about management objectives for many different reasons. They may be too expensive, they may ruin the view, or they may put wildlife at risk."
Click the NEXT button to continue.
"Sometimes problems develop as a result of management. These can include the introduction of noxious weeds by logging equipment, trucks, all terrain vehicles, hikers, cattle or horses. Or, an escaped prescribed fire may burn-up desirable riparian vegetation. With this in mind, land managers take steps to minimize these unintended consequences. Some of these steps include seeding of grasses to control weeds, improving forest road drainage and replanting roads no longer used to reduce sediment."
Click the NEXT button to continue.
"Remember, proper forest management is the key to a healthy and productive forest. Through activities such as thinning, harvesting and prescribed burning and letting natural succession occur, Montana's forestry professionals try to imitate the natural patterns of disturbance and succession and provide the balance necessary for both the environmental benefits and the products they provide. As part of this balance forest managers also try to maintain wildlife habitat by providing snags, woody debris, forage and protecting streams & riparian areas."
Return to MAIN MENU screen.
Introduction:"Just about any outdoor activity you want to try can be done in a Montana Forest. Do you like riding mountain bikes or hiking? How about camping, hunting, or fishing? Water sports like swimming, canoeing, rafting, sailing and power boating can be enjoyed in most of Montana's forests. How about observing some of Montana's Watchable Wildlife, cultural and historical sites, or cross-country skiing? Or maybe you'd like to go snowmobiling or trail riding on your ATV. With certain limitations, all these activities and more are available either year round or seasonally." "Whether its hiking along the Continental Divide or visiting the historic Lewis and Clark Trail, your journey of discovery will take you through Montana's Forests. Well managed forests beckon you to come along and enjoy their bounty."
Select from the sub-menu on the left of the screen for the next Recreation section you would like to visit. You can also immediately access the suggested web sites for each sub-menu section by clicking on THE NET button. You can also connect with the Montana Forests Forever web page and browse under the Recreation button for a whole host of recreation information sites. Preparation: getting ready for your journey.
"Before leaving on a journey to your favorite forest area, make sure you find out whether that site is open to the public. Also, check on rules and regulations regarding the activity you are interested in pursuing. Most organizations have a web site that contains updated regulations. Remember to always ask for permission before entering private land."
You may want to use these web sites for activities before the next submenu item - http://www.plumcreek.com/company/recreation.html
Resources: there are many recreation resources in Montana. Find out who has what.
"Did you know that various agencies provide over twenty nine different forest areas to recreate in Montana? For example, the National Park Service runs two National Parks and four other areas, the Forest Service manages nine National Forests, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service runs fourteen National Wildlife Refuges. Other forested areas to recreate include some of the land owned by Forest Products Companies and the Bureau of Land Management."
You may want to use these web sites for activities before the next submenu item -Agency Land Locations:
http://nris.state.mt.us/nsdi/nris/ab105.gif
http://nris.state.mt.us/gis/mtmaps.html
http://nris.state.mt.us/scripts/esrimap.dll?name=mtmaps&Cmd=Map
http://nris.state.mt.us/nsdi/nris/ab28.gif
Forest Service: http://www.fs.fed.us/r1/pgr/r1_map.gif
BLM ownership: http://www.mt.blm.gov/
Places to go: here are some ideas about special recreation areas.
"Wildlife refuges are great places to observe wildlife in natural surroundings and you can learn how to view wildlife without disturbing it through a national program called Watchable Wildlife and a local program called the Center for Wildlife Information. Did you know that the Forest Service also has special areas called Wilderness areas that have no formal recreation sites such as campgrounds and boat docks? These areas require special care so remember to follow the seven leave no trace principles when you go there. These 7 principles include: 1) Plan Ahead and Prepare, 2) Travel and Camp on Durable Surfaces, 3) Dispose of Waste Properly, 4) Leave What You Find, 5) Minimize Campfire Impacts, 6) Respect Wildlife, 7) Be Considerate of Others."
You may want to use these web sites for activities before the next submenu item http://www.gorp.com/gorp/resource/us_nwr/MT.HTM.
http://www.montana.com/rattlesnake/
www.fs.fed.us/outdoors/naturewatch/
http://www.gorp.com/gorp/resource/us_wilderness_area/mt.htm
http://www.wilderness.net
Mountain ranges:"Can you name the major mountain ranges in Montana? These are also great places to recreate."
You may want to use these web sites for activities before the next submenu item
http://nris.state.mt.us/gis/ranges.gif
Organizations: there are many organizations that work together to provide a variety of recreational opportunities for us to enjoy.
"Montanans involved in federal, state, and industry related recreation and tourism activities are committed to providing efficient and cooperative management of Montana's recreational opportunities whenever possible. In order to help provide efficient and cooperative management, they created the Montana Tourism and Recreation Initiative. The members of this group are interested in topics such as distributing information, reducing environmental impact via education, viewing wildlife with the least amount of disturbance, off road vehicle traffic, and the Lewis and Clark bicentennial commemoration. In addition, Travel Montana is interested in promoting all types of recreational opportunities in Montana including forest recreation. Montana is divided into six travel regions based on their regional offerings. Within these travel regions, there are chambers of commerce and Convention and Visitor Bureaus, which provide information for visitors and recreationists alike."
You may want to use these web sites for activities before the next submenu item
http://travelmontana.state.mt.us
Here are some recreation story sites:
http://www.montana.com/territories/recreation/index.php3
Click on the arrow at the bottom of the screen to return to MAIN MENU screen. You have now explored the whole CD. Click on the CLOSE & EXIT button at the bottom of the MAIN MENU screen to hear a final message and conduct a post test.
"Forest management is important to our everyday life. We know that forests provide habitat for wildlife, cool the earth and give us a great place to have fun. Finding a balance for protecting the environment and providing for society’s needs is a tough job. Forest managers go to great lengths to care for and protect the forests and with all that forests provide, you can see how they plan to keep Montana’s Forests Forever.
"WOODEN YOU KNOW – click on the answers to the ten questions; the right answer to each is highlighted in green.
"Are you still there? You’re done!" Click on the SKIP TEST arrow when you are done. You will then be at the EXIT screen. You can either go back to the MAIN MENU screen or select EXIT to exit the program.
