New game warden excited to explore Mineral County's outdoors

Growing up in Helena, Cody Stipcich thoroughly enjoyed hunting and fishing with his dad, but becoming a game warden was not a childhood dream.

“It was probably around my second year of college that I made the decision to pursue it,” he said in a recent interview. 

He was hired last June and went through orientation training, and then the Montanan Law Enforcement Academy. But before that, he worked for the Licensing Bureau of Montana Fish Wildlife & Parks for three years.

At 27 years old, he has already served eight years in the Montana National Guard, including two deployments as a crew chief on a UH-60 Blackhawk for six years and then the UH-72 Lakota up to his discharge last April. 

Stipcich received his associate’s degree at the University of Montana Western in Dillon and then completed the process online through American Public University in one year. 

“I did this when I was deployed,” he explained. 

His dad retired from the National Guard two years ago, so patriotism is in his DNA and his father-in-law is a retired game warden, so he has been performing family traditions on both sides. He and his wife are expecting their first child this month.

“We picked Mineral County as it’s really a new area for us and looks like it has what we want when it comes to lifestyle living,” he said.

When discussing Mineral County, he said, “This is some steep country,” and laughs when talking about the upcoming big game hunting season. “Definitely a cool area though, and to have over 90% public land gives people plenty of recreation opportunities.” 

He was unaware of all the mountain lakes available until last year when researching this area and is excited to see them. Elk hunting is his favorite sport and he admits the topography from his Helana hunting grounds looks to be easier than his new home.

With the spring snow, he’s been checking for groomed trail permits on snowmobiles near Lookout Pass for the past 10 days. Mountain lion hunting is still open in a few areas that he keeps an eye on as it is quota-regulated, but people are getting outside more so he’s checking for the conservation licenses and fishing licenses for those floating between fishing access sites or from the riverbank. 

Cellphone and radio coverage for communication is something else he’s getting the hang of as he explores the county and he is still meeting other first responders and smiled when he said that Bobby Henderson, the Lolo National Forest Law Enforcement Officer, helped pull his truck out of the snow after getting stuck the other day.

Stipcich feels his biggest challenge today is getting to know the area and people. 

“Building community relationships is one of our top priorities so getting out there meeting people is what I’m focusing on right now. For them to know that FWP does have a game warden living in Mineral County and for me to meet my neighbors. So, public relations and as the snow melts, finding out more about the topography and lay of the land.”

He explained that there are two different types of merchants that FWP works with. 

“Fish, Wildlife and Parks' providers have the computer system to sell all recreation permits and licenses, such as ACE Hardware in Darlows (Quality Foods). FWP vendors just sell stickers, like what the snowmobilers need. The Mineral County Treasurer and the $50,000 Bar are FWP vendors.” 

The image of a game warden has changed over the years and the FWP administration has worked hard for this to happen. 

As Stipcich said, “When I issue a citation, I still want to end that conversation with a handshake.” 

The integrity of the department is a critical part of the daily interactions that FWP employees in the field have with people, even in uncomfortable situations. This professionalism must come from inside the individual even though it is instilled by the administration.