Last visit to Range was unpleasant

Editor,

This letter is in response to the article about the National Bison Range dispute. I have used this best kept secret of the West at least once a month for the last five years. The animals, birds and land are so valuable to the people of western Montana. My family always stops at the visitor's center on the Range when we visit because it is such an inviting and clean facility.

During our visits there last summer (2005) things were different because the Tribes had taken over the center. We noticed that the faces were different, some friendly and some not. We are new to bird watching and the staff had previously proved to be very knowledgeable. The new staff did not seem to know about these things, but were so eager to find answers for us.

This summer (2006) we went back and were so pleased to see some of the same friendly faces at the visitor's center. Our normal day to visit was on Sundays. The same two girls that worked every Sunday were so nice and eager to please us. The restroom on the Red Sleep Mountain Drive by the Bitterroot trail was out of tissue more than one time. We would let these women know and they would immediately take care of it.

We returned on the Saturday before Labor Day to take a drive and stopped in again. There was one of the women there from last year who was so unfriendly and unapproachable that we were very surprised to see her at work again. When we approached this young woman with questions, we did not get a response nor even an attempt to try to get an answer.

This visit was our last one and it left us with a bitter feeling. We tried to remain neutral on the issue of the takeover but with this incident, it proves that it may be best if things remain the way they were. One of the main concerns is if this is happening in public, what is happening that we cannot see?

Linda Smith

Missoula