Montana Icons Collection #1
The Montana Icons Collection #1 includes six photo notecards of treasured Montana landscapes.
The Montana photo notecards are 6″x4.25″ and include envelopes.
All materials are curbside recyclable and compostable.
Wild Goose Island, Glacier National Park
Glacier National Park is full of iconic scenery but probably none is as famous or frequently photographed as Wild Goose Island. Surrounded by hovering, craggy peaks, the tiny island located in St. Mary Lake is actually two small adjacent islands. The lake can be covered with ice as thick as four feet deep during the winter.
The best vantage point for Wild Goose Island is a turnout on the Going to the Sun Road. If you miss the sign with the camera icon, you won’t miss all the cars parked on the lakeside of the road.
Wild Goose Island, Glacier National Park
Glacier National Park is full of iconic scenery but probably none is as famous or frequently photographed as Wild Goose Island. Surrounded by hovering, craggy peaks, the tiny island located in St. Mary Lake is actually two small adjacent islands. The lake can be covered with ice as thick as four feet deep during the winter.
The best vantage point for Wild Goose Island is a turnout on the Going to the Sun Road. If you miss the sign with the camera icon, you won’t miss all the cars parked on the lakeside of the road.
The Crazy Mountains
There are many beautiful mountain ranges in Montana but the Crazy Mountains fall into the jaw-dropper class. Referred to as “the Crazies” by Montanans, the majesty of the massive peaks is awe inspiring. Named Awaxaawippíia by the Apsáalooke (Crow people), which translates to “Ominous Mountain,” these peaks are a sacred place historically, culturally and spiritually for the Apsáalooke.
As you head west out of Columbus on I-90 toward Bozeman, you wind though the hills past Reed Point and Greycliff Mill. The jagged pinnacles of the Crazies will appear on the right of the windshield and the range will keep growing more breathtaking as your continue toward Big Timber.The Crazies are an island range, separate from the main strip of the Northern Rockies. If you’re a mountain lover, it’s worth the time to drive the circle around the range.
For more information about the Crazy Mountains plus an excellent video about the Crow Nation’s sacred ties to Awaxaawippíia, please visit – https://wildmontana.org/our-work/crazy-mountains/
Lone Mountain at Big Sky
Coming into Big Sky from Highway 191, Lone Mountain looms over the community. There are plenty of peaks and massive rock formations along the short route from the main highway to Big Sky Resort but Lone Mountain seems to hover over everything. Lone Mountain is part of the Madison Range, surrounded by a sea of peaks with the Madison Valley off to the west. As the anchor for the Big Sky Resort, Lone Mountain’s base is carved with a mosaic of ski runs and streets on the east, north and southern slopes. The summit of Lone Peak is located in the Lee Metcalf Wilderness which is part of the Gallatin and Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forests.
Lone Mountain at Big Sky
Coming into Big Sky from Highway 191, Lone Mountain looms over the community. There are plenty of peaks and massive rock formations along the short route from the main highway to Big Sky Resort but Lone Mountain seems to hover over everything. Lone Mountain is part of the Madison Range, surrounded by a sea of peaks with the Madison Valley off to the west. As the anchor for the Big Sky Resort, Lone Mountain’s base is carved with a mosaic of ski runs and streets on the east, north and southern slopes. The summit of Lone Peak is located in the Lee Metcalf Wilderness which is part of the Gallatin and Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forests.
The Badlands, Makoshika State Park
I was drawn to visit the Badlands area of Montana after reading “Photographing Montana, 1894-1928: The Life and Work of Evelyn Cameron” by Donna M. Lucey. Evelyn Cameron was a pioneer who lived near Terry, Montana and made her living photographing the lives of early settlers in Eastern Montana. The book includes over 170 reproductions of Cameron’s images and many of the images highlight the craggy, eroded Badlands.
The difficulty in isolating a single, iconic image from Makoshika State Park, which is located 40 miles north of Terry, can’t be understated. The park is full of fantastic rock formations and fabulous vistas. When you ask a Montanan about Makoshika, they will probably take a deep breath and tell you about a special visit or an adventurous hike. It’s a favorite place for us.
Best not to visit in August due to the heat.
The Badlands, Makoshika State Park
I was drawn to visit the Badlands area of Montana after reading “Photographing Montana, 1894-1928: The Life and Work of Evelyn Cameron” by Donna M. Lucey. Evelyn Cameron was a pioneer who lived near Terry, Montana and made her living photographing the lives of early settlers in Eastern Montana. The book includes over 170 reproductions of Cameron’s images and many of the images highlight the craggy, eroded Badlands.
The difficulty in isolating a single, iconic image from Makoshika State Park, which is located 40 miles north of Terry, can’t be understated. The park is full of fantastic rock formations and fabulous vistas. When you ask a Montanan about Makoshika, they will probably take a deep breath and tell you about a special visit or an adventurous hike. It’s a favorite place for us.
Best not to visit in August due to the heat.
The Mission Mountains
The Mission Mountains are part of the ancestral lands of the Salish, Pend O’reille and Kootenai tribes. Much of the range is located in the Flathead Reservation and has been designated a Tribal Wilderness by the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribal Council.
The Mission Mountains
As you’re driving north on I-93 from Missoula to Flathead Lake, after traversing the Rattlesnake Mountains, you’ll begin the descent into the Mission Valley. To your right, you’ll see the towering Mission Mountains. (And you’ll probably say, OH MY! Or something like that.) The Mission Mountain range is 45 miles long extending southeast from Flathead Lake. They were named for the St. Ignatius Mission which was established by the Jesuits in 1854, located at the southern end of the Mission Valley.
The Mission Mountains are part of the ancestral lands of the Salish, Pend O’reille and Kootenai tribes. Much of the range is located in the Flathead Reservation and has been designated a Tribal Wilderness by the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribal Council.
The Bridger Mountains
While both the Bridger and Gallatin Mountains enclose Bozeman to the south and east, the western side of the Bridger Mountains are the dominant visual landmark for Bozeman residents. The western slopes blaze with sunset alpenglow during the winter months and the entire range provides a plethora of hiking adventures during the summer.
Although the Bridger Mountains are named for mountain man, Jim Bridger, who developed the Bridger Trail to Montana’s gold strikes in 1864, the mountain range had long been part of a common hunting area for the Crow, Blackfeet, Gros Ventre, Pend O’reille and Salish tribes. The Apsáalooke (Crow people) call the Bridger Mountains Cheétawaxaawe, meaning Wolf Mountains.
About
Debra McNeill has lived in Montana off-and-on since 1992 and continuously since 2004.
For the first 25 years of her career, Debra worked in the financial services sector in California and Hawaii as an equity analyst and mutual fund manager. When she and her family moved to Montana in 2004, she knew she needed to make a career change. Debra learned web coding/design and SEO, became proficient with Adobe graphic design systems and figured out the popular social media systems. Armed with these new skills, she offered marketing services to businesses in the Ruby Valley and her new business thrived. Debra also supported her husband, Ed, in his greeting card business.
Debra quickly realized that many of her marketing clients needed professional photographs for their websites and advertising. Photography had long been one of Debra’s hobbies, so she upgraded her equipment and filled the void. Living in one of the most beautiful areas of Montana inspired her to enhance her photography skills and it didn’t take long for her to build one of the most extensive inventories of community and natural landmark photos in the Ruby Valley. Her photos have been regularly published as the backdrops for her client’s websites and print ads in the local newspapers.
After moving to Bozeman, Debra continued to provide marketing services for her Ruby Valley clients. While considering expanding her small business marketing services to the Bozeman-Belgrade area, she instead decided to focus on her photography skills and start a new business with photo notecards.
Since introducing her first collection, Montana Icons, Debra has been working on new photo collections inspired by Montana’s magnificent landscapes and local activities.
Debra continues to provide marketing services for her Ruby Valley clients, conducts equity investment research for a colleague from California, and works on building her new greeting card business.
Just Iconic Notecards Sold in These Stores
| Chalet Market | 6410 Jackrabbit Lane Belgrade, MT (406) 388-4687 chaletmarket.com/ Single cards only |
| The Obsidian Collection | 108 North 2nd Street Livingston, MT (406) 333-2581 TheObsidianCollection.com Boxed collections |
| Paper Cranes | 15 S. Montana Street Butte, MT (406) 498-3780 instagram.com/paper.cranes.butte Boxed collections |
| The Cave Spirits & Gifts | 223 Town Center Avenue #4A Big Sky, MT (406) 995-4343 thecavespiritsandgifts.com |
| The Grub Mine | 315 W. Wallace Street Virginia City, MT (406) 843-5903 Boxed collections & single cards |
| The Western Legacy Center | 415 N. Whitehall Street Whitehall, MT (406) 266-1276 westernlegacycenter.com Boxed collections |
