July 2023

Election Ballots Coming Soon!

The Annual BSOA Board of Directors Election is on the horizon! Please be on the lookout for your paper or electronic ballot packet, which will be sent out next week!

Over 600 members opted in for electronic voting this summer! Thank you for helping us make our elections more environmentally friendly!

Get To Know Your Candidates

Candidates for Board of Directors

BSAC Candidates

Join Us For The BSOA's 51st Annual Meeting!

BSOA Launches Benefit Big Sky

BSOA is proud to announce the launch of Benefit Big Sky! Help us fund community projects such as traffic mitigation efforts and the Little Coyote Pond Restoration project!

Pilot Wildlife Study

One of the amazing aspects of Big Sky is living among some of the rarest megafauna in the world. Because of our community’s proximity to Yellowstone National Park and US national forests, we often have encounters with our four-legged neighbors. In recent conversations, it was determined by concerned residents and the BSOA Sustainability Committee that there is very little data on the current activity of wildlife in the Big Sky area and how they are being impacted by increased human activity here. It was confirmed that state agencies like Fish, Wildlife, & Parks do not have any active studies in Big Sky at this time.



We are faced with the challenge of fully understanding the impacts to wildlife migration patterns and populations in light of the almost full build-out of our community. Our local elk herds, moose, and bear could very well be disappearing due to habitat loss, increased disturbance in wilderness areas, and fragmentation. A similar situation is occurring in Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest in Steamboat Springs, Colorado (Desjardin, et.al, 2022). To find out what is happening here in our neck of the woods, the first step is to collect data.

A meeting was held between BSOA staff, concerned residents, ecologist Bob Crabtree from the Yellowstone Ecological Research Center, and April and Lance Craighead of the Craighead Institute last spring. It was discussed that a non-invasive pilot study be conducted in a high-volume recreational sample area. Six game cameras were donated to this cause from the research center to detect wildlife movement and species. The Craigheads agreed to interpret the data captured from the cameras and generate a report. The study aims to discover wildlife that are inhabiting the sample area and how they are utilizing it, especially during elk calving and mating season.



This pilot study is in its earliest stage; however, there were already a number of species detected from the cameras in the first week, as shown in the photos below. We will keep sharing updates on this on-going effort. For now, we hope you enjoy some of the photos captured by the cameras! Part of the BSOA Sustainability Committee’s purview is to advocate for our local wildlife and ensure County leaders are properly reviewing criteria for critical habitat degradation from proposed development in Big Sky.

The Scorch Report

Aspen Groves Community Chipping Day

In late June, a thinning crew provided by the Big Sky Fire Department brought out a chipper to clear up slash piles in Aspen Groves. It was encouraging to see so much participation and enthusiasm for fire fuels reduction from the neighborhood. Thank you to everyone who was able to put out your slash piles. Taking steps to minimize your fire risk can go a long way in the Wildland Urban Interface.

There are many benefits of hand thinning around your property. Thinning builds resilience to fires by reducing immature trees, brush, dead branches, and limbs, also known as ladder fuels. In the right conditions, excess fuel allows fires to burn hotter, larger, longer, and faster, making them more difficult and dangerous to manage.

Keep an eye out for more community chipping days in other neighborhoods in partnership with BSFD. The BSOA is part of a larger network of community stakeholders known as Fire Adapted Big Sky (FABS).

Gallatin River Watershed Clean-Up

A Reminder to Slow Down

Be Bear Aware, Big Sky

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