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WELCOME TO

PRESERVE RAYNOLDS PASS

“I thought if I could save just one…”

—Clarice Starling, played by Jodie Foster in Silence of the Lambs, 1991

Our situation at Raynolds Pass (PRP) is not so different from the movie. There is a real, imminent threat to the agricultural and rural residential character of this critical part of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. The painful demise of wildlife, wildlife habitat, water, open views, public safety, and ground and surface waters is heading our way, and we have choices to make.

Preserve Raynolds Pass wants to save more than one. We know the one fundamental choice that protects them all, and it is protecting Raynolds Pass. This exceptional valley cradles the Madison River headwaters corridor, serves as a migration and connectivity passage for multiple species, and is home to people who care about the future of their land and the life upon it.

For many in Raynolds Pass, commercial development and unmanaged growth is hard to envision. Commercial development and rampant growth should be haunting your dreams. It will destroy the Montana you love as you helplessly watch the destruction of southern Madison County. Every year will bring new nightmares. But it can be prevented by acting now, before it is too late.

Zoning is the path to protection and PRP can lead the process. But you and your thoughts are key to the success of effort. You are the foundation. We will do the difficult, exacting work to make protection of the Raynolds Pass area for you and future generations more than a dream. Together we can build this new reality. We can save this one.

WHAT CAN YOU DO?

JOIN the community conversation, ask questions, share your thoughts and concerns and by doing so, help define proposed regulations supported by the Madison County Growth Policy!

DONATE your tax-deductible dollars to pay for legal guidance, other professional services and PRP operating expenses. Here is an additional way to give!

Fidelity Charitable is an independent public charity that sponsors a donor-advised fund program. These fund programs (often called DAFs), are like a charitable investment account that is set up for the sole purpose of supporting charities. Individuals can contribute cash, stocks, or other assets into the DAF and receive an immediate tax deduction. Those funds are invested for tax-free growth and the individual can recommend donations to charities of their choice over time. You can find Preserve Raynolds Pass using Tax ID 93-4961299.

GROWING — Pass the word that we are looking for a special person to support PRP as Community Outreach Manager! Click here for job description and application instructions.

Topographical Map of Raynold Pass from Papoose Creek to the Idaho Border

Recent Madison Valley Feature Articles

“Meet The Real Madison—And Why It’s Called ‘A Mini-American Serengeti’”

by Todd Wilkinson, Yellowstonian, December 2, 2024

Is the Madison Valley, because of its wildlife, the wildest valley with working ranches in Montana? Now Taylor Sheridan is putting a bead on it with his new melodramatic "Yellowstone" spinoff. Is out of control sprawl next?

“Refusing To Surrender Wild Ground”


Yellowstonian
, December 3, 2024

After a massive RV park was proposed for the middle of the pastoral Madison Valley, a trio of women stepped forward to fight it. Can their group, Preserve Raynolds Pass, serve as inspiration for frustrated citizens dealing with growth issues in other valleys?

“What’s Facing The Madison Valley? A Longtime Conservation Land Broker Weighs In”

by Robert Kiesling, Yellowstonian, December 4, 2024

Robert Kiesling has been an innovative forerunner in private land protection in Montana by bringing together farmers and ranchers with conservation buyers. More now than ever, he says, the Northern Rockies needs a plan for dealing with sprawl.