A thinning project at Lone Pine State Park is expected to kick off this week.  

Visitors may encounter foresters marking trees throughout the 279-acre park this summer, with the first cuts planned for this September, said officials with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks.  

Up to 30% of the Douglas-fir trees in Lone Pine State Park may be removed as part of the operation, which aims to reduce the spread of dwarf-mistletoe. The small leafless plants grow on native conifers, parasitizing the trees’ water and nutrients. Surveys completed in 2024 suggest that about 90% of the park’s Douglas-firs are infected with dwarf-mistletoe. 

Officials will plant ponderosa pine, western larch and native shrub species in thinned areas next spring to promote a more diverse mix of tree species and forest conditions. 

Prescribed burns will be used in some spots to revitalize native bunchgrass prairies and prepare forested sites for native tree planting. Officials last conducted a prescribed burn in the park in 2022, as part of the state agency’s ongoing efforts to safely reintroduce natural disturbance cycles, including fire, to the landscape. 

Lone Pine Park sees about 125,000 visitors a year, according to the state wildlife agency. The primarily forested park hosts more than 100 bird species, as well as ample populations of whitetail deer, red foxes and black bears. 

State wildlife officials have conducted several forest projects in the park since 2004 to address disease spread, fuels loading and prairie conversion. 

Reporter Hailey Smalley can be reached at 406-758-4433 or [email protected]. If you value local journalism, pledge your support at dailyinterlake.com/support.