Skyline Sportsmen Club is more than an organization—it is an enduring part of Butte’s outdoor heritage. Through persistence, informed advocacy, and awillingness to confront difficult issues, Skyline has helped shape Montana’s conservation and public access landscape.
The Skyline Sportsmen Club has been a significant force in Southwest Montana’s outdoor and conservation community for decades. Founded by local hunters, anglers, and conservation-minded citizens, the club emerged from a shared belief that Montana’s wildlife and public lands are worth protecting—and that sportsmen have both the right and responsibility to lead that effort.
Although Butte hosted earlier rod and gun organizations, the Skyline Sportsmen’s Association of Butte, Montana, was formally chartered in 1958. From its inception, the club focused on wildlife conservation, protection of public land access, and education. These priorities continue today through initiatives such as annual banquet endowments, advocacy for effective wildlife and land management, and support for key conservation and access cases.
Strong leadership and a consistent ethic of stewardship shaped the club’s early years. While leadership styles evolved across generations, the underlying commitment to protecting Montana’s outdoor heritage remained constant.
In the mid-1960s, when elk populations were depleted across much of Montana and large culls were occurring in Yellowstone National Park, Skyline played a role in advancing a new conservation approach. Skyline member and Montanan Evel Knievel, then working as a hunting guide in the Big Hole region, traveled to Washington, D.C. to advocate for elk translocation rather than destruction. These efforts contributed to ending large-scale culling and established wildlife translocation as a core management tool still used today.
One of the club’s most influential roles was its leadership in expanding and defending public access to Montana’s waters and lands. Skyline was instrumental in shaping what became Montana’s Stream Access Law and State Lands access policies insisting that public resources remain open for public use.
This advocacy included direct legal action. The club hired Bozeman attorney Jim Goetz, whose work proved pivotal in clarifying and expanding recreational access rights. These legal efforts helped establish precedents that form the foundation of Montana’s nationally recognized public access framework.
Skyline also played a foundational role in identifying and addressing the impacts of fencing on wildlife migration. Members documented and challenged fencing practices that blocked movement across public and private lands, particularly near highways. Their advocacy influenced state, federal, and eventually international fencing standards, contributing to broader recognition of wildlife migration corridors and legislative support for migration protection across North America.
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Less any Montanan forget what our Montana values really mean—those core principles of equity and responsibility to one another and our state’s lands, wildlife and waters, of public education, public participation and public lands—look no further than the life of Tony Schoonen: Teacher. Advocate. Sportsman.
Together, these individuals defined Skyline as an organization willing to act decisively when Montana’s wildlife and public lands were at risk.
An early organizer who set expectations that Skyline would be an active advocacy organization. Lee was known as a steady hand and organizer, helping guide the club during its formative years. Lee was a U.S. Postal delivery man – he always delivered for hunters and wildlife.
An international hunting consultant and tireless defender of public access and ethical hunting. His leadership emphasized that public resources belong to the public and that sportsmen must standup when those rights are threatened. Jack led long-term efforts to expand access to Montana state lands, culminating in a landmark legal resolution after 14 years of litigation.
A BLM wildlife biologist who emphasized action-oriented leadership grounded in science. Especially when statewide policy decisions directly affected local hunters and anglers.
An educator who strengthened the club’s organizational structure and legislative outreach. He worked to ensure that Skyline remained active, informed, and engaged in statewide conservation discussions. Tony has been honored with an access point on the Big Hole River named for him.
An advocate for science-based wildlife management and long-term sustainability.
Whose direct action helped defend public road and water access and whose legacy lives on in Butte’s youth fishing pond. Tom was a fisherman and hunter and pushed the barriers of access on public lands.
Whose persistence symbolized the club’s refusal to abandon public access issues reinforcing the club’s willingness to challenge policies that limited public access or ignored the interests of Montana’s sportsmen.
Advanced collaboration with landowners and agencies to achieve lasting access improvements. He had a special knack for challenging landower collaborations and government regulations and ingratiated himself with landowers and working groups that set policies.
A vocal advocate who consistently forced difficult but necessary discussions on fisheries and access management. Jerry was one of the first angles to float local rivers in rafts and was not one to skirt rough water.
Skyline has long recognized the importance of public communication. In earlier decades, coverage by Montana Standard writer Roscoe Nickerson helped elevate the club’s positions statewide. Later, journalists such as Mark Hinkle and Brett French continued this tradition, documenting evolving access and wildlife management challenges. Media engagement remains critical as issues shift from establishing access tomanaging and sustaining opportunities.
The work of Skyline Sportsmen's Association is ongoing. Future success depends on informed, diverse, and committed volunteers who understand both the history and the legal frameworks shaped by past efforts. Key focus areas include:
Completing access reforms on Montana State Lands to ensureopportunities comparable to those on federal lands.
Restoring balance between public and private lands in wildlife distribution through cooperation and incentives.
Prioritizing management of native game birds and fisheries, with careful attention to water rights and stream flows.
Advocating for active, science-based land and wildlife management across multiple-use landscapes.
Addressing emerging challenges for species such as bighorn sheep, moose, and bison.