The Pulp
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The Pulp is an independent, nonprofit news organization serving Missoula and western Montana. https://thepulp.org/ 🍊
The Old Trails Fire tore through a Spokane neighborhood of soccer fields and skateparks that never seemed like wildfire country — until it was.
Suburbia can burn, too – The Pulp
The Old Trails Fire tore through a Spokane neighborhood of soccer fields and skateparks that never seemed like wildfire country — until it was.
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The Montana Osprey Project has spent 20 years studying the Clark Fork through its ospreys. Now it's asking what the mercury is doing to the birds.
Iris the osprey and the mercury lurking in the Clark Fork – The Pulp
Missoula's famous osprey matriarch is part of a 20-year study tracking contamination along more than 100 miles of the Clark Fork River.
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Montanans push back on NorthWestern Energy's power plan as data centers line up for electricity.
Montanans push back on NorthWestern Energy's power plan – The Pulp
As anxiety over data centers runs high, Montanans demand more transparency from the state's largest utility.
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Wild, feral, abandoned — people have used a lot of words to describe Miller Creek’s free-roaming band of horses. As Missoula County moves toward a balanced management strategy, a proper legal term remains as elusive as the herd's origins.
Missoula County weighs future of Miller Creek horses – The Pulp
Wild, feral, abandoned — people have used a lot of words to describe Miller Creek’s free-roaming band of horses. As Missoula County moves toward a balanced management strategy, a proper legal term...
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The mill site's property owner backed out of the Krambu proposal this week, citing public concern — as county commissioners weigh a moratorium on future data centers.
Plug pulled on Bonner data center – The Pulp
The mill site's property owner backed out of the Krambu proposal this week, citing public concern — as county commissioners weigh a moratorium on future data centers.
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Ahead of the James Welch Native Lit Festival in Missoula, a conversation with Sterling HolyWhiteMountain on Welch's poetry, the writers he inspired, and the lineage the festival protects.
James Welch Native Lit Festival returns to Missoula with a focus on poetry and mentorship – The Pulp
A conversation with Sterling HolyWhiteMountain on James Welch’s poetry, the writers he inspired, and the lineage the festival protects.
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A food writer's quest to reverse-engineer the carrot dishes stealing the show at Montana steakhouses.
A root awakening: When carrots upstage the steak – The Pulp
What a food writer gleaned from reverse-engineering the carrot dishes stealing the show at Montana steakhouses.
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Scott Mathson walked into Missoula's oldest recording studio looking for a way back to music. He ended up buying the joint — and inheriting four decades of Montana sound.
Playing it back at Missoula's oldest recording studio – The Pulp
Scott Mathson walked into The Recording Center looking for a way back to music. He ended up buying the joint — and inheriting four decades of Montana sound.
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Devon Lawler didn't plan to become the fresh pasta guy. Then he read a book, bought an Italian noodle extruder, and sold out the Missoula Farmers Market.
Missoula's Third Street Pasta turns Montana grain into fresh noodles – The Pulp
Devon Lawler didn't plan to become the fresh pasta guy. Then he read a book, bought an Italian noodle extruder, and sold out the Missoula Farmers Market.
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The only three runners who have finished every Missoula Marathon since the inaugural race in 2007 have become each other's biggest supporters — and fiercest competition.
Last ones standing: Meet the Missoula Marathon's legacy runners – The Pulp
Three local runners have finished every Missoula Marathon since the beginning. Now they're locked in a friendly race to outlast each other.
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From Crow Nation teenagers channeling Nirvana to a Missoula neo-soul collective and Livingston surf-rockers, independent Montana artists just dropped new releases to stock your summer soundtrack.
New music from Montana artists: A summer mixtape – The Pulp
From Crow Nation teenagers channeling Nirvana to a Missoula neo-soul collective and Livingston surf-rockers, independent Montana artists just dropped new releases to stock your summer soundtrack.
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A documentary from Missoula's High Plains Films about the insects holding life on earth together is back at the Roxy.
High Plains Films' insect documentary returns to the Roxy – The Pulp
Missoula filmmakers' documentary "The Little Things That Run the World" screens at the Roxy Theater for World Pollinator Month.
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The cake decorators at a Missoula Walmart have become local legends. Corporate has no comment.
The unhinged cake decorators at a Missoula Walmart – The Pulp
The Brooks St. Walmart's cake decorators are serving up pop culture references, Gen Z humor and existential dread — and the internet can't get enough.
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A new web tool called TroutCast can predict how drought will hit Montana's blue-ribbon trout fisheries, potentially before managers have to shut them down.
TroutCast forecasts drought risk for Montana’s blue-ribbon rivers – The Pulp
The new tool links streamflow data to trout population trends — giving Montana anglers and managers a heads-up before drought forces fishing restrictions.
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During the day, Missoula's Montgomery Distillery moonlights as a cafe called Mama Tried.
At Montgomery Distillery, the morning belongs to the barista – The Pulp
Mama Tried Cafe, the daytime coffee shop inside Missoula's Montgomery Distillery, serves espresso, Bloody Marys and weekly specials.
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For one Hamilton conservative, the 2026 primary election season became a fight to reclaim and defend his Republican identity from his own political party.
Exiled Montana Republican David Bedey wins primary by 76 votes – The Pulp
The longtime Bitterroot Valley lawmaker survived a Montana GOP effort to purge him from the party, narrowly beating Kathy Love in the Republican primary for Senate District 43.
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How Missoula's Lolo Hardware turned a climbing obsession, memes and a napkin manifesto into a real(ish) business.
How Missoula's Lolo Hardware turned climbing memes into a business – The Pulp
Lolo Hardware isn't in Lolo and it doesn't sell hardware. But for Nate Barton's climbing-apparel shop, that's the whole brand.
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From the Big Dipper to Madagascar, vanilla is anything but plain.
From Missoula to Madagascar, vanilla is anything but plain – The Pulp
The word "vanilla" can mean boring because the flavor was made boring by design. A Missoula writer traces the complicated history of a simple scoop.
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Three Democrats are vying for an open Missoula legislative seat. Their priorities look similar. Their backgrounds don't.
Which Missoula Democrat will speak for HD93? – The Pulp
Nick Kujawa, Sam Kulla and Ben Davis are running to represent House District 93 in the Montana Legislature. Their priorities look similar. Their backgrounds don't.
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Montana Republicans keep trying to rewrite the laws around same-day voter registration and other election procedures. Ahead of the June 2 primary, here's what's settled, what isn't, and who's caught in the middle.
What Missoula voters need to know before June 2 – The Pulp
A Montana court has preserved same-day voter registration ahead of the June 2 primary, but new ID rules are still in effect. Here's what's changed.
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Bayern's new Kölsch breaks with tradition as brewery's founder prepares for retirement.
Bayern's new Kölsch breaks with tradition as Missoula brewery's founder prepares for retirement The Pulp
Bayern Brewery's Kölsch-style beer is its lowest-alcohol brew yet — and the first departure from its Bavarian lineup.
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Two engineers couldn't find bear spray on a trip. Now their vending machines stock some of the West's wildest trailheads.
Bear spray vending machines come to national parks – The Pulp
Bear Spray Shack's automated kiosks let hikers visiting Glacier, Yellowstone, Grand Teton and Denali rent bear spray with a swipe.
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The stage is set for Missoula County's first hearing on the data center proposed for the Bonner Mill site on the banks of the Blackfoot.
Processing: Bonner’s AI data center – The Pulp
The stage is set for Missoula County's first hearing on the data center proposed for the Bonner Mill site on the banks of the Blackfoot.
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More than 50 years ago, a smokejumper carried tree seeds to space and back. Some were planted in Missoula. The rest of the story is about how we forgot.
Missoula's 'moon trees': What happened to them? – The Pulp
In 1976, Missoula planted "moon trees" — seedlings grown from seeds a smokejumper-turned-astronaut carried to space. Fifty years later, they're gone. Here's what we found.
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A Montana PBS investigation uncovered dangerous levels of "forever chemicals" in Montana fish — and evidence the governor's office buried the findings.
Montana fish have a PFAS problem. The state has been hiding it. – The Pulp
State officials knew about dangerous levels of "forever chemicals" in Montana fish nearly two years ago — and kept it from the public until a Montana PBS reporter forced their hand.
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An obituary might be the last place you'd look for a surprising, deeply reported story. A new podcast from UM journalism professor Jule Banville and Radiolab founder Jad Abumrad proves otherwise.
The Obit Project podcast: Jule Banville and Jad Abumrad find life in the obituary – The Pulp
A new podcast from a UM journalism professor and the founder of Radiolab uncovers the surprising stories hidden inside Montana obituaries.
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As Missoula builds up and over itself, a former poet laureate is holding the line on Levasseur Street.
'A home in witness' on Missoula's Levasseur Street – The Pulp
As Missoula builds up and over itself, a little blue house is holding the line.
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UM's decision to kill its master's in literature — over faculty objections — further erodes the university's liberal arts identity.
The cost of killing the University of Montana's master's in literature– The Pulp
UM's move to cut one of its oldest programs — over faculty objections — further erodes the university's liberal arts identity.
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New downtown dumpling joint Pelz brings tradition and Alaskan-style punch to the Russian pelmeni.
Pelz brings Alaska-inspired pelmeni dumplings to Missoula – The Pulp
New downtown dumpling joint Pelz brings tradition and Alaskan-style punch to the Russian pelmeni, sourcing ingredients from Montana producers.
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Unions representing mobile home parks in Missoula and Bonner say they’ve secured some concessions from their Texas-based landlord.
Missoula mobile home park unions win concessions in lease negotiationsMobile homes, immovable residents – The Pulp
A Texas company bought mobile home parks, raised the rent and figured that was that. The residents had other ideas.
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