duced on irrigated land. Expansion of the irri- 
gated acreage is regarded, therefore, as a means for 
obtaining a greater stability for Montana’s agricul- 
ture (fig. 5). 
The great value of water makes it the most 
important of all the products of Montana’s forest 
land. Annual precipitation on forest land is prob- 
ably three times as great as it is on nonforest land, 
and the difference in precipitation on the higher 
mountain areas and dryer lowland areas is much 
greater even than that. Though only one-fourth of 
Montana is covered with tree growth, seven-tenths 
of the runoff or stream flow originates on timbered 
areas (fig. 6). 
When we take into account the factor of usabil- 
ity, 1. e., timeliness, quantity, and quality, water 
from the forest assumes even greater importance. 
In general the daily, monthly, and yearly runoff 
from forest land is much more stable than from 
nonforest land. Winter snows of low-lying areas 
melt quickly with the first spring thaws and run 
off in quantities larger than can be used. A later 
and more gradual runoff comes from the forested, 
higher elevations. Consequently, during the late 
summer when water is at a premium, 80 to 90 per- 
cent of the stream flow comes from forest land. 
In land management for water production the 
objective is to secure water flows that meet the re- 
quirements of timeliness, quantity, and quality. 
Forests exert an important influence on what hap- 
pens to the precipitation even though they may 
not affect the amount of precipitation. This in- 
fluence may be good or bad, depending upon the 
character of the forest management. Therefore, 
people in the Missouri River and Columbia River 
basins, and even as far away as Astoria, Oreg., and 
New Orleans, have by virtue of their dependence 
upon water a deep-seated interest in how the forests 
of Montana are handled. 
Recreation Values of the Forest 
Recreation enters into this report on Montana’s 
resources because a large part of the State’s attrac- 
tion is in its beautiful forest country (fig. 7). To 
most Americans the term “Montana” means rugged 
mountains and wide open spaces. Those who come 
to the State for vacations seek mainly to enjoy an 
invigorating summer climate, fine mountain scen- 
ery, lovely lakes, rushing streams, an abundance of 
fish and game, and some of the last real wilderness 
in the United States. 
Forest Resources of Montana 
Extending into Montana on the south is Yellow- 
stone National Park, the oldest and one of the 
most visited of all our public parks. Lying entirely 
within Montana is Glacier National Park. It was 
established in 1910 because of its outstanding scenic 
attractions. Approximately 296,000 people visited 
Glacier Park one or more times in 1949. A survey 
of visitors staying overnight in the park indicated 
that on the average they spent 9 days in Montana 
(4). Particularly significant is the fact that 75 
percent of the visitors interviewed said that they 
had come to Montana primarily to see the park. 
In addition to the national parks the Federal 
Government has dedicated 1.6 million acres of na- 
tional-forest land in Montana as Wilderness and 
Wild Areas. These areas are primarily of value 
for recreation and are to be left in their natural 
wild state except for developments needed for fire 
protection. Thus, the public has seen fit to set aside 
one-tenth of all the forest land in Montana’® to 
preserve certain scenic and wild attractions. 
The countless fishing streams throughout Mon- 
tana’s forests and an abundance of wildlife are a 
major recreational attraction (fig. 8). A 1948 in- 
ventory (18) shows that Montana had 236,600 big 
game animals distributed as follows: mule deer, 
109,800; white-tailed deer, 40,500; prong-horned 
antelope, 35,300; elk, 35,000; black bear, 6,700; 
mountain goat, 4,100; moose, 3,100; rocky moun- 
tain bighorn, 1,400; grizzly bear, 691; and woodland 
caribou, 15. Data from the Fish and Wildlife 
Service indicate that in 1949 Montana was second 
only to Idaho in number of hunting and fishing 
licenses and duck stamps purchased per capita. 
From a strictly materialistic view, it can be 
pointed out that recreation is a big, profitable 
business in which Montana has a share. Recreation 
visitors have added greatly to the income of this 
State in the past and they can bring in many more 
dollars in the future. 
Just how much income recreation brings into 
Montana no one knows. However, State Highway 
Department estimates show that the spending by 
out-of-State auto tourists alone amounts to a very 
substantial sum (fig. 9). During 1949 they spent 
$65,000,000. While Montana is often called the 
copper State, the tourists’ spending was three times 
the value of the copper mined that year. 
5 Actually, more than half of this area is unsuited for 
timber production. 
