PPL Montana has scheduled eight weekends for the concrete walkway across its Cochrane Dam to be open to connect the north and south paths of the River’s Edge Trail, which runs along the Missouri River.

“PPL Montana is glad to make the Cochrane Dam walkway available and is proud to be a partner in the River’s Edge Trail,” said David Hoffman, PPL Montana’s manager of external affairs. “PPL Montana is a strong supporter of recreational programs throughout the state.”

The weekends and times that the Cochrane Dam walkway will be open are:

June 5 and 6 — 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

June 19 and 20 — 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.

July 10 and 11 — 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.

July 17 and 18 — 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Aug. 7 and 8 — 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Aug. 21 and 22 — 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Sept. 4 and 5 — 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Sept. 18 and 19 — 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Partners in the River’s Edge Trail along with PPL Montana are the City of Great Falls; Cascade County; the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife & Parks; the Montana Department of Transportation; and Recreational Trails Inc., a volunteer, nonprofit organization that works to maintain the trail.

“PPL Montana is a great company to work with, and I appreciate how beneficial opening the dam walkway is to our recreation program,” said Doug Wicks, president of Recreational Trails Inc. “About 500 people crossed it last year and loved it.”

Representatives from Recreational Trails Inc. will provide security at the Cochrane Dam crossing during the weekends that the walkway is open.

The 25-mile River’s Edge Trail weaves through Great Falls and connects parks and other points of interest along the Missouri River following much of the same route that the explorers Lewis and Clark traversed 200 years ago.

PPL Montana has committed $23 million over 10 years for recreational and environmental projects along a 524-mile portion of the Madison-Missouri River corridor. The company also supports community needs, funds education and scholarship programs, provides hiking and recreation areas near its hydroelectric dams, and is a major sponsor of the Lewis and Clark bicentennial celebration.

The 48-megawatt Cochrane Dam hydroelectric generating station is eight miles northeast of Great Falls on the Missouri River.

PPL Montana has offices in Billings, Butte and Helena. With about 500 employees, PPL Montana operates the coal-fired Colstrip and Corette power plants and 11 hydroelectric facilities along the Missouri, Flathead, Clark Fork and Madison rivers and Rosebud Creek. PPL EnergyPlus, another PPL subsidiary, operates a trading floor in Butte that markets and sells power in the wholesale energy market. More information is available at