On the crisp winter mornings of Jan. 23 and 29, the quiet landscape surrounding Libby Dam, in Libby, Montana, transformed into a living classroom.
For those two days, the dam’s massive concrete structure stood as a silent witness to a more animated kind of energy: the Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness (FSPW) 12th annual “Winter Tracks” event.
While Libby Dam’s Visitor Center is usually closed for the winter, it opened its doors for this event, and the surrounding U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (USACE) lands became the perfect stage for about 200 elementary school-aged students to trade their desks for some hands-on learning.
Using the Visitor Center as a base for exploring recreational opportunities during the winter season has been a goal for Park Ranger Susan James ever since the dam became a part of the annual “Winter Tracks” event four years ago.
“'Winter Tracks' field day is a natural extension of Libby Dam’s educational outreach opportunities for students, many of whom have already been on a powerhouse tour of the dam and visited here for “Birds of Prey Day” during the spring and summer,” James said. “By offering a youth hunt in the fall and participating in events like ‘Winter Tracks,’ we are able to round out the seasonal educational opportunities for students — natural resource management is year-round and recreation should be too.”
The event, a cornerstone of the FSPW’s educational outreach, is designed to spark students’ curiosity by immersing them in the ecology of their own wild backyard as they rotate through interactive stations led by expert naturalists and wildlife biologists.
For Libby Dam, hosting the event is a natural extension of the USACE’s broader missions. While the dam is tasked with flood reduction and hydropower, the Army Corps also manages about 2,000 acres of land for multiple uses, including environmental stewardship and recreation.
USACE’s commitment to natural resource conservation compliments the FSPW’s efforts to ignite students’ curiosity for the natural world, by providing the perfect backdrop to teach them that enjoying the outdoors and managing resources responsibly go hand in hand.
“Students learn that infrastructure can exist alongside nature, and both require care and respect,” said James.
Helping students understand that this winter’s snowpack becomes the water that fills next summer’s reservoir for recreation and the fuel for fall hydropower production, was what experts like Keith Karoglanian of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service was tasked to do.
Karoglanian used snow measurement tools to explain how not all snow holds the same amount of water; a fact particularly relevant to 2025, where the lack of snow at lower elevations caused Winter Tracks organizers to quickly pivot activities, while keeping student engagement and learning high.
In spite of the lack of snow, presenters including Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Biologist Garrett Tovey guided the eager students into the woods to find animal tracks and pointed out squirrel-gnawed pinecones and “middens”-piles of empty cones made more visible without the usual blanket of snow.
Biologist Sam Martinez, also with Montana FWP, reassured students that it was “...ok to touch” a heavy Bighorn Sheep skull and examine hooves, hides and horns he brought along.
The students enjoyed the hands-on activities, including making s’mores, while learning about campfire safety with Libby Dam volunteers and staff. During the second day, students learned what artifacts are and how to calculate their own ages ... in ‘tree years.’
Demonstrating collaboration in action, presenters, Libby Dam staff and volunteers joined forces to keep kids safe as they explored new territory, stretching their comfort zones away from the screen to the outdoors.
“The biggest win is what becomes possible through teamwork,” said Isabelle Manning, Lincoln County outreach coordinator for Scotchman Peaks. “By partnering with Libby Dam, ‘Winter Tracks’ becomes more impactful than anything we could offer alone. Students are exposed to multiple perspectives: federal employees, local volunteers, scientists, educators and community members and each perspective is valid, and together they create a richer understanding,” Manning said.
Despite brilliant clear skies, temperatures hovered below freezing on both days. Teachers and parent chaperones appreciated presenters holding some activities indoors, including a station where students learned about mining and what miners do in the winter in the nearby mountains in the past and today, as well as safety messages relevant to the local community including the hazards of mercury and other things they might encounter.
Multi-layered events like ‘Winters Tracks’ showcase how USACE can achieve its natural resource mission efficiently and economically through partnerships: presenters donating their time and experience, USACE providing the venue and facilities, and conservation organizations like Scotchman Peaks providing logistics and support. A $1000 Lincoln County grant obtained by FSPW provided bus transportation for the students to and from Libby Dam for this event.
USACE’s official Natural Resource Management Gateway website states, “In today’s financial environment, Partnering is an essential tool that allows the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to effectively manage recreation and environmental resources. In order to successfully meet our recreation and stewardship missions, and to foster shared values, vision, and a sense of ownership, it is imperative we work together with state governments, Native American tribes, private/public organizations, local communities and other partners, to maintain or advance programs from wildlife protection and habitat improvement to recreational facility enhancements. Partnering helps to pool scarce resources, to promote coordinated, focused, and consistent mutual efforts to resolve common problems and missions, and to avoid unnecessary duplication of effort.”
Echoing Manning’s sentiments, James said, “It's all about what we can offer the kids when we collaborate. Building a community of future stewards, who want to leave things better than they found them and can make informed, thoughtful decisions, is what inspires us."
By working together, with stewardship, safety and education as shared values, USACE and its partners model collaboration – an important lesson students see in action, up close and personal.