The Big Sky Farmers Market opened its Saturday season this weekend with a new “locals only” hour from 8 to 9 a.m., intended to give residents first pick of huckleberry jam and sourdough before the day-trippers arrive. Market coordinator Marta Whitaker said the idea came from a January visioning session where both villages agreed on something for once.

The morning light hit the meadow grass just right as vendors arranged rainbow chard and grass-fed beef sticks. A hand-lettered chalkboard at the entrance read “Locals Hour — Thank You for Being Here.” It did not define local.

“I’ve been coming up since the chairlift was a rope tow,” said Dale Pruitt, 72, loading two loaves of rye into his 1998 Subaru Outback. “Back then you knew everyone’s dog by name. Now I show up and someone asks if I’m visiting.” Pruitt moved to Meadow Village in 1989 and remembers when the market was three card tables and a cooler.

Across the lawn, Chloe and Brad Hensley unloaded a stroller and a Yeti cooler from their matte-wrapped Rivian. They bought a place in Moonlight Basin in 2021. “We’re locals now,” Chloe said. “We pay taxes here. Our kids will go to Ophir. We just want good tomatoes before they’re gone.” The Hensleys summer in Big Sky and winter in Scottsdale.

Whitaker stood near the kettle corn stand fielding questions. A man in a Patagonia vest asked if his LLC counted. A woman asked if her timeshare week qualified. Someone called 406-555-0183 to ask if their Yellowstone Club membership got them early entry. Whitaker said the club members usually send staff anyway.

The 9 a.m. bell rang and the rope came down. By 9:15 the huckleberry jam was sold out. Dale Pruitt got the last jar. He ate a spoonful right there in the parking lot, standing next to the Rivian.

Nobody mentioned the wind. It’s always there.