My husband Cary and I are both private pilots who have for many years taken great pleasure in experiencing our magnificent Montana landscape from the air. When the time came to find a place that could serve as a getaway from our busy lives in Helena, it was logical to start our search from the air. A little valley, tucked in between Rock Creek and Flint Creek had caught our attention many times as we flew over it, headed for the Big Hole or the Bitterroot country, so we decided to look into it. To our good fortune, we discovered a parcel of land that had just become available and it didn’t take long for us to make a decision. The land included over a mile of Upper Willow Creek, which we learned provided important spawning habitat for bull trout and cutthroats. The healthy riparian corridor through the property is also a favorite haunt of local moose. And as a noxious weed management specialist, I was particularly pleased to find healthy stands of desirable grasses still relatively unaffected by invasive plants that threaten much of our native range in western Montana. Originally homesteaded in 1913 by Lawrence Maloney, the land has been in continuous agricultural use ever since, most recently as part of large family ranch that had to be sold to settle an estate. Although this land had been grazed and some of the timber had been harvested, it remained in a natural state, supporting abundant wildlife, and of course providing incredible views of our wonderful Montana landscape. We knew from the beginning that we wanted to preserve the scenic, ecologic, and historic use and values that are unique to Upper Willow Creek and protect the land from future subdivision. So, early on, we contacted Five Valleys Land Trust. We knew that through the Rock Creek Trust, they had been working with private landowners to preserve the natural values of the drainage for many years, and we believed that a conservation easement with the Trust would meet our objectives and preserve the character of the land. We feel very fortunate that Five Valley’s Land Trust was able to support our desire to conserve the valuable resources in Upper Willow Creek. Cary and I strongly believe in the importance of protecting open space, wildlife resources, and the historic use of an area to maintain the rural character of Montana and now we have had a chance to make that vision a reality! Cary and Celestine Duncan donated a conservation easement on 173 acres along Upper Willow Creek in December 2003.
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