Side Tracks: Culture in Northwest Montana

A few miles south of Polebridge, past pavement, past cell service, sits a bar, restaurant and music venue running almost entirely on solar power - and serving some of the best food in the Flathead. In this episode of Side Tracks, Daily Inter Lake reporter Taylor Inman visits Home Ranch Bottoms to talk with owners Flannery and Dan what it takes to run a business at the end of the North Fork Road.

Inside the kitchen, chef Gabby walks Taylor through the Montana Bowl, a vegan farro and lentil dish built from herbs, produce and even stevia sourced from neighbors up the North Fork Road - a reflection of how much the restaurant leans on what the North Fork itself can provide.

Flannery and Dan bought Home Ranch Bottoms on a New Year's Day tip in 2021, betting that music and baking - the two things they already knew - could turn a stalled pandemic year into something worth building. Six years later, that bet has grown into a gathering spot for a community Flannery describes as bound together by remoteness and self-sufficiency: neighbors who trade rhubarb and herbs for meals, touring musicians who stop for multiple nights just to disconnect, and locals who show up because the team knows their names.

Along the way, Flannery shares the property's most infamous chapter - a grizzly bear named Stahr who tore through the building's walls in the 1990s and left claw marks still visible today - and what it means to run a kitchen 90 percent off the grid, where every menu depends on what the North Fork can provide that day. 

This episode is proudly sponsored by Heritage Knife Shop. A speakeasy-inspired knife boutique located in downtown Whitefish, built for people who appreciate true craftsmanship. From culinary knives to hunting and everyday carry blades, every piece is thoughtfully selected with purpose and style. They also teamed up with Whitefish's James Beard nominated Chef Earl Reynolds and bladesmith Corey Dunlap to create “The Earl,” a limited-edition knife crafted with the same intention and artistry Earl brings to the kitchen. Learn more at https://www.heritageknifeshop.com/

Northwest Montana deserves strong news reporting. Your donation helps continue work like this possible. Learn more at dailyinterlake.com/support

Visit DailyInterLake.com to stay up-to-date with the latest breaking news from the Flathead Valley and beyond. Support local journalism and subscribe to us!  Watch this podcast and more on our YouTube Channel. Find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Got a news tip, want to place an ad, or sponsor this podcast? Contact us!

Under the Big Sky Festival 2026 brought music fans to Whitefish, Montana from as far as Denver and Billings - and Daily Inter Lake reporter Taylor Inman caught up with them on the festival grounds Friday afternoon. In this Side Tracks episode, festival-goers share what brought them to Montana, who they're most excited to see, and the packing lists they swear by for surviving a full day on the lawn.

Northwest Montana deserves strong news reporting. Your donation helps continue work like this possible. Learn more at dailyinterlake.com/support

Visit DailyInterLake.com to stay up-to-date with the latest breaking news from the Flathead Valley and beyond. Support local journalism and subscribe to us!  Watch this podcast and more on our YouTube Channel. Find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Got a news tip, want to place an ad, or sponsor this podcast? Contact us!

Heading to Under the Big Sky Festival 2026 in Whitefish, Montana? Whether it's your first trip to the festival or you're a returning fan, this episode of Side Tracks has everything you need to know before the gates open.

Daily Inter Lake reporter Taylor Inman is joined by Daily Inter Lake News Editor Derrick Perkins and Whitefish Pilot Editor Kelsey Evans to break down this year's lineup, including headliners Chris Stapleton, Zach Top and Cody Jinks, plus the can't-miss undercard featuring Old Crow Medicine Show, Marcus King Band, Of Monsters and Men, Stephen Wilson Jr., Leftover Salmon, Jamestown Revival and standout Montana artists.

The trio also shares their favorite festival traditions, insider tips on parking, shuttles, food vendors, VIP perks, aftershows, what to pack, where to sit, how to beat the crowds, and why Under the Big Sky has become one of Montana's premier summer music festivals.

Learn more about Under the Big Sky at underthebigskyfest.com

Watch interviews Taylor had with festivalgoers in 2025: https://youtu.be/luklTL34bnw
Read Derrick's article from last year's festival: https://dailyinterlake.com/news/2025/jul/20/music-western-wear-take-center-stage-at-under-the-big-sky/
Read Kelsey's story about the light production for Under the Big Sky: https://whitefishpilot.com/news/2026/jul/15/the-glow-behind-the-big-mountain-stage/

Northwest Montana deserves strong news reporting. Your donation helps continue work like this possible. Learn more at dailyinterlake.com/support

Visit DailyInterLake.com to stay up-to-date with the latest breaking news from the Flathead Valley and beyond. Support local journalism and subscribe to us!  Watch this podcast and more on our YouTube Channel. Find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Got a news tip, want to place an ad, or sponsor this podcast? Contact us!

Founded just seven months ago by retired history teacher Steve Armstrong and fife player Pamela Roberts, Glacier Fife & Drum Corps traces its roots to a bucket-list trip to a Connecticut fife and drum "muster" - the largest gathering of its kind in the country. What started as one woman's dream to march in a single parade turned into a full corps, complete with uniforms gifted from the New York Living History Museum and the Presidential Fife and Drum Corps, valued at over $10,000.

With Montana's 250th anniversary celebrations in full swing, the corps is booked solid: a featured performance at the Montana 250 Commission's June 27th event in Helena, then a marathon 4th of July - the Kalispell parade, a park concert, the Conrad Mansion ice cream social, and a night game at the Range Riders ballpark.

They're also on a mission in local classrooms, teaching 3rd-5th graders about Lexington and Concord, Phillis Wheatley, and why the words of the Revolution still matter - and they're looking for new members, families included, to keep marching all the way to 2037: the Constitution's 250th.

Connect with Glacier Fife and Drum Corp on their Facebook page!

Northwest Montana deserves strong news reporting. Your donation helps continue work like this possible. Learn more at dailyinterlake.com/support

Visit DailyInterLake.com to stay up-to-date with the latest breaking news from the Flathead Valley and beyond. Support local journalism and subscribe to us!  Watch this podcast and more on our YouTube Channel. Find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Got a news tip, want to place an ad, or sponsor this podcast? Contact us!

Two brothers from Arlee, Montana set out to film a documentary about snowplow crews, and ended up uncovering the full, untold story of one of America's most iconic roads. In this episode of Side Tracks, reporter Taylor Inman walks the Going-to-the-Sun Road with filmmakers Jordan and Logan Lefler, whose documentary 'Journey to the Sun' traces the legendary road from its earliest history as Indigenous homeland through the death-defying construction era of the early 20th century, all the way to the crews who risk their lives each spring to plow it open today.

The Leflers share how a chance presentation on road-clearing operations sparked a filmmaking obsession, how a near-cancellation pushed them to tell a bigger, better story, and what it really takes - bulldozers without reverse, 400 hand-installed wooden guardrails, aerial footage strapped to a 20-foot pole - to open this mountain highway every single season. With sold-out premieres across Montana and a PBS broadcast on the horizon, this is a conversation for anyone who has ever driven the Going-to-the-Sun Road and never thought twice about what it took to get there.

Find upcoming premiere dates: https://journeytothesun.com
Check out more videos from the Lefler brothers: https://www.youtube.com/@LeflerBros
Read our story about the documentary's release: https://hungryhorsenews.com/news/2026/jun/10/arlee-brothers-complete-sun-road-documentary/

Northwest Montana deserves strong news reporting. Your donation helps continue work like this possible. Learn more at dailyinterlake.com/support

Visit DailyInterLake.com to stay up-to-date with the latest breaking news from the Flathead Valley and beyond. Support local journalism and subscribe to us!  Watch this podcast and more on our YouTube Channel. Find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Got a news tip, want to place an ad, or sponsor this podcast? Contact us!

What does it take to go from washing dishes at 16 to becoming a James Beard Award finalist in the Montana mountains? In this episode of Side Tracks, Daily Inter Lake reporter Taylor Inman sits down with Chef Earl Reynolds inside his downtown Whitefish restaurant, Herb & Omni for a hands-on conversation over a churro dessert you'll have to watch them eat.

Earl is a Whitefish native, avid snowboarder, and proud dad. He opens up about the winding culinary road that took him from a scrappy Pescado Blanco prep kitchen to culinary school in Seattle, fishing vessels in Southeast Alaska, a mountain restaurant in Truckee, a San Francisco hotel kitchen, and finally back home to the Flathead Valley. Earl shares what it was like to compete on Beat Bobby Flay, the gut-punch of missing his first James Beard nomination, the life-changing moment he found out he made the list for a second time while on vacation in Mexico, and why being celebrated by a restaurant full of strangers in Puerto Vallarta finally made it feel real.

Along the way, Earl gets real about seasonality in a state with hard winters, why he sources from local mushroom growers and Idaho farms, what cooking for his daughter Matilda has done for his creativity, and the advice he'd give to anyone thinking about a life in the kitchen: the passion has to be there, you can't fake it.

Watch this full episode on our YouTube channel! Read Taylor's article on dailyinterlake.com

This episode is proudly sponsored by Heritage Knife Shop. A speakeasy-inspired knife boutique located in downtown Whitefish, built for people who appreciate true craftsmanship. From culinary knives to hunting and everyday carry blades, every piece is thoughtfully selected with purpose and style. They also teamed up with Chef Earl Reynolds and bladesmith Corey Dunlap to create “The Earl,” a limited-edition knife crafted with the same intention and artistry Earl brings to the kitchen. Learn more at heritageknifeshop.com

Northwest Montana deserves strong news reporting. Your donation helps continue work like this possible. Learn more at dailyinterlake.com/support

Visit DailyInterLake.com to stay up-to-date with the latest breaking news from the Flathead Valley and beyond. Support local journalism and subscribe to us!  Watch this podcast and more on our YouTube Channel. Find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Got a news tip, want to place an ad, or sponsor this podcast? Contact us!

What does it take to film wildlife in one of the harshest environments in the country? In this episode, reporter Taylor Inman sits down with Hungry Horse News editor Chris Peterson to break down his stunning documentary Winter Song - a year-in-the-life look at a small river ecosystem in northwest Montana.

Over the course of more than 200 days in the field, Peterson and his son captured intimate, never-before-seen moments of wildlife surviving and thriving through brutal winter conditions, spring runoff, and the quiet rhythms of summer. From American dippers diving beneath frozen water to rare encounters with otters, wolves, and foxes, Winter Song reveals a side of Montana nature documentaries you don’t often see.

Peterson shares the realities behind the lens—hours of stillness, unpredictable wildlife behavior, technical challenges with gear, and the patience required to capture just seconds of usable footage. He also reflects on the deeply personal experience of making the film alongside his son, the evolution of the project from concept to PBS broadcast, and what it means to tell authentic, place-based stories in an era of polished, big-budget nature films.

If you're interested in wildlife filmmaking, documentary storytelling, Montana’s natural landscapes, or the raw process behind capturing nature on camera, this conversation delivers rare insight from someone who lived every season of it.

Watch Winter Song now on the Hungry Horse News YouTube channel.

Northwest Montana deserves strong news reporting. Your donation helps continue work like this possible. Learn more at dailyinterlake.com/support

Visit DailyInterLake.com to stay up-to-date with the latest breaking news from the Flathead Valley and beyond. Support local journalism and subscribe to us!  Watch this podcast and more on our YouTube Channel. Find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Got a news tip, want to place an ad, or sponsor this podcast? Contact us!

Country-rock artist Paul Cauthen joins reporter Taylor Inman ahead of his upcoming show at the Majestic Arena in Kalispell, Montana, offering a candid look at life on and off the road.

Speaking from a motorcycle trip through Big Bend National Park, Cauthen reflects on turning 40, preparing to become a father and the momentum behind his latest album Black on Black, released April 3. He breaks down the creative process behind the record, from years of songwriting and collaboration to staying grounded in his Texas roots while refusing to be boxed into a single genre.

The conversation also dives into his connection to Montana, his relationship with fans and the evolving sound that blends country, rock and beyond. Cauthen shares how his upbringing in gospel music shaped his artistry, why authenticity matters more than radio play and what audiences can expect when he hits the stage in the Flathead Valley.

This episode of Side Tracks highlights one of the most dynamic voices in modern country music just days before his Kalispell performance.

Northwest Montana deserves strong news reporting. Your donation helps continue work like this possible. Learn more at dailyinterlake.com/support

Visit DailyInterLake.com to stay up-to-date with the latest breaking news from the Flathead Valley and beyond. Support local journalism and subscribe to us!  Watch this podcast and more on our YouTube Channel. Find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Got a news tip, want to place an ad, or sponsor this podcast? Contact us!

Catch a powerful live session with singer-songwriter Drew Landry before his set at Under the Big Sky Festival on July 20th! From personal stories rooted in the wilds of Glacier National Park to protest anthems and bayou blues, Landry’s performance is a heartfelt ride through Americana’s rawest corners. Joined on stage by cellist Lee Zimmerman, the duo brings depth and soul to every track, weaving grit and grace into each melody. Whether singing about Montana’s last best places or the forgotten voices of the South, Landry leaves nothing off the table in this unfiltered set.

Watch our interview with Drew before the show: https://youtu.be/aeoooX9cmd8

Connect with Drew:
Website - https://www.drewlandrymusic.com
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/drew.landry.35/
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/artist/4fFbEsc4jGGL4ERaBblNaL
Apple Music - https://music.apple.com/us/artist/drew-landry/148098257

A big thanks to our sponsor of this Press Play installment, Under the Big Sky Music Festival — proudly produced by Outriders Present. Join the celebration July 18–20 for three unforgettable days of music, where Drew Landry will take the stage alongside a powerhouse lineup of Americana, outlaw country, bluegrass, folk, and rock artists. Set against the stunning backdrop of Big Mountain Ranch just outside Whitefish, Montana, this is one summer weekend you won’t want to miss. Grab your tickets and learn more at https://www.underthebigskyfest.com. 

Daily Inter Lake's Press Play concerts are a subscriber-only benefit and support our Newspaper in Education (NIE) Program. Catch your next show at flatheadtickets.com/

Northwest Montana deserves strong news reporting. Your donation helps continue work like this possible. Learn more at dailyinterlake.com/support

Visit DailyInterLake.com to stay up-to-date with the latest breaking news from the Flathead Valley and beyond. Support local journalism and subscribe to us!  Watch this podcast and more on our YouTube Channel. Find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Got a news tip, want to place an ad, or sponsor this podcast? Contact us!

In this episode of Press Play, Cajun-born singer-songwriter Drew Landry sits down with Daily Inter Lake reporter Taylor Inman for a grounded and wide-ranging conversation about songwriting, storytelling, and staying connected to your roots. Known for his raw and honest lyrics, Landry shares the experiences that shaped his voice—from growing up in Louisiana to building a life in East Glacier, Montana.

While sitting on the stage at Great Northern Bar in downtown Whitefish, they discuss fighting for what you believe in, the importance of honoring where you come from, and the drive to create something that speaks to real people. If you’re drawn to music with heart, grit, and purpose, this one’s for you. Drew will be performing live in the Daily Inter Lake press room for an intimate lunchtime show on Friday, June 27, 2025. Read Taylor Inman’s full feature on Drew at dailyinterlake.com.

Connect with Drew! https://www.drewlandrymusic.com

A big thanks to our sponsor of this Press Play installment, Under the Big Sky Music Festival — proudly produced by Outriders Present. Join the celebration July 18–20 for three unforgettable days of music, where Drew Landry will take the stage alongside a powerhouse lineup of Americana, outlaw country, bluegrass, folk, and rock artists. Set against the stunning backdrop of Big Mountain Ranch just outside Whitefish, Montana, this is one summer weekend you won’t want to miss. Grab your tickets and learn more at underthebigskyfest.com.

Looking for even more music? Catch Charley Crockett + Jamey Johnson at Big Mountain Ranch on June 28th to benefit the Wolves Den Youth Center.  This all-ages event features Indian Relay Races—a traditional, fast-paced, and daring horse racing competition rooted in the history of Native American tribes. Tickets can be purchased at outriderspresent.com.

Daily Inter Lake's Press Play concerts are a subscriber-only benefit and support our Newspaper in Education (NIE) Program. Catch your next show at flatheadtickets.com/

Northwest Montana deserves strong news reporting. Your donation helps continue work like this possible. Learn more at dailyinterlake.com/support

Visit DailyInterLake.com to stay up-to-date with the latest breaking news from the Flathead Valley and beyond. Support local journalism and subscribe to us!  Watch this podcast and more on our YouTube Channel. Find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Got a news tip, want to place an ad, or sponsor this podcast? Contact us!