Good morning, Missoula! In today’s edition: First baby of 2026, libraries lending telescopes, kite skiing Greenland, and more. Let’s get to it!

— Cait Baker

🏆 Most popular this week

Curated by popular demand — here are this week’s most-clicked events, local spots, and stories.

Grizzly legacy begins anew: Missoula’s Community Medical Center welcomed its first baby of 2026 on New Year’s Day, a boy from a family with five to six Montana generations — read the full story.

Bringing the night sky closer: Public libraries and tribal colleges across Montana will soon let people check out telescopes after NASA awarded $250,000 to a University of Montana program at the Missoula Public Library — get all the details.

Architecture aligned with nature: River Edge Pavilion in Alberton earned AIA Montana’s top honor, one of three statewide, celebrating an open-air design that connects to the Clark Fork River and uses cross-laminated timber — read the full story.

Sweet accolades roll in: Missoula’s Bigfoot Cookies was recognized by DoorDash’s Top 50 Holiday Dessert Rising Stars list, reflecting strong holiday demand and popularity, and giving the shop fresh visibility and new customers — see why it was recognized.

Upgrade your cozy corners: Whether your space leans cabin-chic or chaos-with-potential, Montana Decor stocks mountain‑modern rugs, art, lamps, and bedding, plus approachable styling to pull it together. A few well-chosen pieces can shift the whole vibe, making your home feel more you.

A fresh chapter for readers: Last Best Books, Missoula’s newest used bookstore, is offering rare and out-of-print reads. Owner Crystal Koosman focuses on keeping old books circulating and prices them affordably. The shop holds about 10,000 titles, including rare Hemingway and a 1948 Webster’s Dictionary. Read the full story.

Are you overpaying? The national average for car insurance is around $175 per month. I was paying over $300 for ONE car until I checked out various quotes, switched providers, and ultimately cut my premium in half. If you haven’t checked in a while, you’re probably losing money too — this free comparison tool makes it easy.

Gold & silver are hot: Gold just had it’s best year since 1979. Silver did even better, climbing nearly 150% in 2025… and analysts expect the momentum to continue. If you’re curious about adding precious metals to your portfolio as a market hedge, American Hartford has a helpful guide that covers everything you need to know. It’s free — and definitely worth a read.

A new haircare solution: My hair’s been thinning and I’ve been quietly ignoring it, hoping it’ll fix itself. Plot twist… it hasn’t. When I finally started looking into what I should do, there were so many options I didn’t know where to start. I stumbled on Keranique, and its simplicity really sold me. One kit, no pills, no choosing products, and no confusion whatsoever. It’s also on sale with a money-back guarantee (although I doubt you’ll need it).

📆 Sneak peek at next week

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✍ Nature Writing Hush Hour – January @ Montana Natural History Center | Monday (1/12) at 6:00 PM – Second Monday sanity check: slip into the Montana Natural History Center for Hush Hour, a free, register-ahead session where poetry, prose, and half-baked drafts get some fresh air. No open mic, no small talk, just you, your notebook, and the exhibits keeping quiet.

🐦 Bird-shaped Forests: Interpreting Woodpecker Sign in Montana @ University of Montana | Monday (1/12) at 7:00 PM – A talk on decoding woodpecker sign in Montana forests, from anatomy and behavior to the holes, scats, and feathers they leave behind. Think CSI for trees, fewer grim monologues. Field ecologist Rob Rich teams up with the native plant folks on the UM campus.

🥫 Canning Basics Workshop @ Turner Farms | Tuesday (1/13) at 6:00 PM – New year, new pantry flex. Head out to Turner Farms for a canning basics workshop where Jon and Erin Turner share 30 years of know-how, covering fundamentals, food safety, and smart technique, and you leave with a curated gift pack, confidence, and smug winter preparedness.

🎿 Kite Skiing Greenland: Expedition Travel Powered by Wind @ Freestone Climbing Center | Tuesday (1/13) at 7:00 PM – Swap your driveway heroics for a vicarious epic, as Jesse Crocker recounts kite-skiing 2,000+ kilometers across the Greenland ice cap at -40, and how that translates to windy fun in Montana, otherwise known as Tuesday. At Freestone Climbing Center, BYO snacks, beer, and curiosity.

📚 Brad Bigelow (Virginia Faulkner: A Life in Two Acts) @ Shakespeare & Co | Wednesday (1/14) at 7:00 PM – Trade your streaming backlog for a seat at Shakespeare & Co. as Missoula author Brad Bigelow reads and chats about his debut, Virginia Faulkner: A Life in Two Acts. Smart conversation, local vibes, and the kind of wit you actually want to take home.

🔥 Fan the Flame: Auction Exhibition Artist Talks @ Missoula Art Museum | Thursday (1/15) at 5:00 PM – This Late Thursday, the Missoula Art Museum turns the auction preview into a smart hangout with artist talks, sharp conversation, and regional work worth your wall space. Bid now through Feb 7, or hit Buy It Now if patience isn’t your medium. Free admission.

🎡 Sky Blue Shows @ Missoula County Fairgrounds | Friday (1/16) at 12:30 PM – If your ideal weekend smells like gun oil and kettle corn, the big Sky Blue show at the Missoula Fairgrounds is the move. Expect rows of dealers, vintage pieces, Montana-made gear, and plenty of neighborly chat about safes, training, and responsible ownership.

Wanna see more? Browse our full events calendar →

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📻 Missoula report

Weather forecast

Today – High: 39°F – Low: 23°F – Precip: 1%

Partly sunny, with a high near 39. North northeast wind around 2 mph. Later: Partly cloudy, with a low around 23. East wind around 2 mph.

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Tomorrow – High: 41°F – Low: 28°F – Precip: 0%

Partly sunny, with a high near 41. South southwest wind around 2 mph. Later: A slight chance of freezing rain and a slight chance of rain and snow after 5am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 28. South southwest wind around 2 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.

Most popular house this week

Set in Rose Park in the heart of Missoula, this 5-bed, 1.75-bath home layers everyday ease with smart updates. A small mudroom buffers the weather, then a large living room with a gas stove and south facing windows frames the backyard. The open dining area and refreshed kitchen feature an induction stove and a 2024 full bath remodel.

Upstairs offers a bright study and a bedroom, the basement adds two more bedrooms, a cozy three quarter bath, and laundry. Outside, sprinklers, a 2022 deck and bike shelter, a covered patio, a shed, and a generous garden sit beneath maple, apple, cherry, and young plum trees.

Take a peek inside →