Montana Outdoors: Snow shots...

Biggest snow of the winter, all 5-6 inches of the white stuff, did make for a scenic backyard; with mid-week temps in the 50s won't be white long so I guess best thing is to enjoy while lasts...

Can't speak to all wirehairs but Kate loved snow, no matter how deep, no matter how cold, even the sight of it morphed her instantly to the "energized bunny." Annie, pictured here, is also very much the snow puppy...We took her out yesterday afternoon and she could hardly contain herself...bounding about at warp speed, leaping into the air coming down stiff legged, pounce, pounce, pounce, rolling, all four feet in the air and of course doing what we come to call "the wirehair thing"...rubbing whiskers too frenzied for words...you have to see it to believe.

 Bushes such buffalo berry with their many stems and limbs make for some intricate and interesting patterns...While I'm sure this one won't be the last and as I might have mentioned previously we sure did enjoy tramping bare ground all winter our high desert does not do well without adequate snowfall so...Bring it on...over and out...

Montana Outdoors: Biggest snow of the winter and a couple critter shots...

Spring officially springs day after tomorrow and wouldn't you know it along comes the biggest snow storm of the winter; 4 inches or so Saturday night and at least double that last night. Though the bare ground was nice while it lasted I doubt the snow came as much of a surprise--at least did surprise us. Last winter while not quite so brown suddenly morphed to winter white as I recollect about same time. May and much of June seemed almost strange those days didn't snow. While it feels and looks really winter-like what with yet another afternoon raging wind, the sun is still already starting to do its work; melting off what I did not shovel off, the sound of water dripping off the roof, gone from the truck and almost gone on the camper roof. Weather man says after today we should be back in the high 40s, mid-50s, even 60s in some spots...A course think on it and not much different than most late winter-early spring snow jobs, eh?

Ground squirrels been out for a week or so and while no strangers to spring snow, I'd bet they'd just as soon not...Does this guy look forlorn or what?

Gale shot this red fox vixen taking snooze in the sun; no doubt taking a much needed break from a raucous nursing brood. We sort a doubt she much gives a crap but snow or no she needs to eat so Mr. and Mrs squirrel, ya best watch out ya hear...

Annual Big Hole Tour Provides Few Surprises

Saddle Mountain (right foreground)/West Pintlar Peak behind show off typical Easter weekend snow bonnets... 

Yesterday we decided it was high time to do our annual Big Hole tour. Expecting lots of snow in the high country topping the Big Hole Divide, gazing across the drifted-in valley to the winter-white peaks of Beaverheads beyond erased any doubts. While the sagebrush foothills of the Pioneers to the east are as usual mostly bare looking west is a winter wonderland. Why this drastic change, actually just about follows the road all the way to Jackson remains a mystery to us.

We spotted dozens antelope and a small band of elk on the Grasshopper side of the Divide below the snowline. Just over the pass countless mule deer, some looking really poor, grazed the open sagebrush. Above Jackson to Wisdom the river is open and the snow in the valley is really spotty. Ground squirrels were everywhere as were the raptors hunting them--northern harriers, red-tails, rough-leggeds, ferruginous swainson's, golden and bald eagles to name several. Numerous sandhill cranes, several ospreys and a large elk herd just outside Wisdom highlighted that portion of the tour. From Jackson all the way to Glen waterfowl loafed in just about every puddle; especially numerous in the river above Squaw Creek bridge off the North Fork road...plenty muddy by the way around the edges, be sure to keep 'er on the straight and narrow. Mallard, wigeon, blue and green wing teal, white pelican, common and hooded merganser, pintail and of course scads of geese to name just a few off the top the ol' bald noggin'.

We stopped for lunch at Fetty's, now the Big Hole Crossing. The change of course came about when the original BHC across the street burned last summer. Extensively damaged, apparently beyond rebuilding, the owners decided not to rebuild. Instead bought out Fetty's. Lunch by the way was excellent and quite filling. Since the BHC owned a considerable reputation for serving up good and plentiful eats on the other side the street we were not surprised.

Thought I might make a few casts at Fish Trap but a marauding skunk nixed that idea...the good news is Annie baby failed to see it...No snow in the valley below Squaw Creek and once you get down around Wise River even the foothills are bare. The river is clear and open all the way. While there still might be some ice on the shadiest banks we did not see any. No fisher folk to speak of until Stanchfields but quite a few rigs from there down to the Glen Bar...the Salmon Fly access was just about standing room only largely due to a horde of ATV rigs.

Sage Hens Are Indeed Alive and Well After All...

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Witnessing scenes such as this, (here Annie's nailed 'em, Kate's backin' her up) are the main reason I hunt birds in general and sage hens in particular. As I have noted previously this fall sage hens, for us anyway, were tough--such that more often than not we failed to find even a single grouse. Worse in all our best spots there was little or no sign of their passing. In a typical season which runs from September 1 through November 1 the hunting starts off slow, hit or miss through much of September, then October rolls around and like flipping a switch the big grouse start to show up. Growing in numbers until the last two weeks of season it is not at all unusual to see 50 or more birds each day. Killing a limit often becomes too easy, so much so I take to shooting only when the dogs do a really good job. And then other days my heart really isn't in it. In that sort of frame of mind usually even if the dogs do good my shooting isn't so hot and...Like I said is all about the dogs anyway so what.

But with the sagebrush virtually empty all fall I fretted and fussed hoping nothing catastrophic happened. And thanks to the sage hen gods I can now report nothing did. Three weeks or so ago winter hit southwest Montana with a vengenance. Snow, bitter winds and cold (some days the high failed to top zero) and while it didn't happen overnight for the past week or so Voila! sage hens everywhere, at least everywhere they're supposed to be...Yesterday the Sisters found two bunches; one of about 12 or so and the other more like 35 or 40.

Pretty damn nifty, eh?

Deja Vue All Over Again

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Gale shot this hero shot a couple turkey days ago up near Malta. (I know, I know, her bad luck the only model fool enough to pose that day twas me but like the man says you gotta play the hand dealt ya).

Anyway the temperature (not the wind chill mind you) at first light in town was -28 (not a typo). As I walked Kate to the vacant lot across the street from the motel (too damn cold to camp) I knew the only way would be to stall awhile hope for the best.

So we headed to the cafe ordered a big breakfast (thinking bigger might take longer) swilled coffee until the waitress finally quit bringing the pot, took a drive through the refuge (the excuse there was to see how many other insane hunters we might have to dodge--weren't none). Then instead of signing in to hunt the refuge we decided to stall some more and check out a couple WPAs. By this time the gal on the radio was waxing apoplectically "dangerous" wind chills and "blowing and drifting snow" creating "hazardous" conditions to your health and well-being so...What to do? 

Naturally we pulled the ear bobs down, loosed the hound and headed for the thickest, most drifted cattail tangle we'd seen on our early morning tour. Yes, it was damn cold, insanely so, but undaunted good ol' oblivious-to-snow-and-cold Kate soon uncovered a rooster, pushed it into a drift, pointed. Lucky me, it flushed almost close enough to kiss, too easy, I made the shot and...And in no time flat we had ourselves a 3-rooster limit.Mission more than satisfactorily accomplished we made a mad dash for the truck. Cranking up the heater we then took a drive over to Nelson to check on the ice fishing (we had no intention just seemed like a good time waster and twas--in case you're interested nary a fool). By then it was lunch time so we drove back into Malta, grabbed a bowl of hot soup, swilled more coffee and...And called her good. 

The reason I bring this monumentous occasion to light this morning is of course the air temp and wind chill are once again bottomed out--minus 10 on the porch, weatherman says the wind chill is about -25 and to expect blizzard conditions through tomorrow with even stronger wind, lower lows and...well, blizzard-like. Gale just reported I-15 into Idaho, the infamous Monida Pass, is now officially verbotten...

As Yogi might say, "Here we go folks looks a lot like deja vue all over again"....over and out...Chuck

Pondering Winter and...

...this morning Al officially declared the Big Hole River trout fishing DIW. Hard to argue given it snowed all day Saturday and since Friday the high temperature in this neck of woods has yet to reach double digits even though both Saturday and Sunday the weather gurus promised highs in the low 20s. Sorry not on my porch anyway. Three mornings in a row now bottomed out below zero, -10 Saturday, -8 Sunday and -4 this morning.  OK, for southwest Montana such readings are no big deal and far from what Old Man Winter is capable of dishing out but...Single digit highs and that the wind is almost never still this time of year do make it damn chilly and while I don't know if the Big Hole is yet starting to ice over you can bet the farm should the forecasted lows for the next few days--negative 20 something in town Wednesday who the hell wants to know what up Wisdom way--the ice gods will damn sure be wearing a big grin anways.

Signs of winter have been around for awhile now, most days barely reaching the freezing mark, snow piling up almost daily in the mountains, rumors of big elk herds migrating down from the high country (near Lima several road closings in the past few days to protect one big herd from yet another potential slaughter  (hooray, tis about time, eh?) otherwise. Ducks and geese abandoning now frozen over potholes and showing up in great numbers wherrever open water exists by the thousands. Up near Stevensville at the Lee Metcalf NWR thousands of geese showed up the other day to say nothing of the many thousands ducks accompanying the big migration and on and on...

For my dogs sake and OK for our sanity I hope the Ol' Boy reconsiders at least long enough for us to make a few more swings before heading south. As come mid-December we plan to head to southwest Idaho, then on to Nevada, Death Valley and eventually to chase quail about the deserts of Arizona. And yes, winter-like or not, we can still, no doubt will still hunt but...Well you know, wimpy geezers and all, what can I say.

Big Hole River Continues to Foil the Forecasters

Be sure to duck that is if you're foolish enough to find yourself in a boat about to pass under Browne's Bridge spanning the Big Hole River anytime soon. Contrary to any and all predictions just when the river would peak and how high yesterday it topped 10,000 cfs. And if anybody out there thought it would reach 5-figures they sure weren't shoutin' it out. This morning it has dropped slightly but it did so too night before last only to start back up as the day warmed. What will happen today is of course more than I know...like don't expect any prognosticatin' here.

Anyway with guide trips cancelled we decided to head up into the nearby high country perhaps fish a favorite lake we haven't tried in several years. WRONG!

Our hopes soared as we gained elevation on a surprisingly dry road, smooth too, no doubt the usual ruts washed out in the deluge of a couple days ago. But the last 5 miles are always the worst and this time was no exception. Then after bumping and grinding up the steepest part wouldn't you know it... Yes, snow blocked the way and of course I did not think to bring snowshoes so, like the aborted guide trip two days ago this one too ended in skunk, though naturally a different flavor since we didn't actually fish.

The crick we followed was, as expected, raging, ripping or roaring, take your pick. Wildlife sign was nearly non-existent up high as the snowpack is far from melted. Lower down we did see a few mule deer and I photographed a skinny little rattler. Up high in the wet places marsh marigolds lent an air of optimism spring is indeed just around the corner...albeit the corner this time around might very well be a ways down the road...even still, despite than June is well along and July really is just around the bend.

Starting to Mold

I used to bitch and moan "too damn hot and Sunny" ad nauseum but...Will solemly swear never again if you rain and snow gods promise tocall off the deluge for at least a couple days. Yes, I know here in the high desert, the semi-arid west needs all the water it can get but...Do we really have to get it all at once? We worried all winter, at least I did, how could it ever snow and rain enough this spring to keep our rivers and streams from drying up this summer...

Well, at least for the time being any worry seems unfounded. Ever since the beginning of May we've been getting dumped on big time. Judging the forecast for the next week or so no end in sight. Nearly bare mountain tops a month ago are now winter white. Yesterday even the surrounding foothills were once again snow covered.

Stream fishing is on temporary hold. All the area rivers and streams are raging torrents, chocolate milk indeed an apt descriptive. While mostly rain in the valleys, in the mountains snow continues to pile up even with June just around the corner. Should all that snow melt quickly you can pencil out stream fishing prospects for quite some time.

What all this has to do with the kestrel (sparrow hawk) pix? Well, nothing actually, just a little activity we engage in between rain and snow storms to, you know, keep the shack nasties at least somewhat at bay...   

At Least We Didn't Need Snowshoes...

With the big storm now history we decided to head to high country, more out of curiosity how much snow the mountains got than any real idea we might just get to fish...after all that moisture it seemed a given the little cricks would be ragin'. But surprise, surprise despite all--up top around Crystal Park there was still at least 6 or 8 inches and you could plainly see a lot had melted--we found them just about perfect. So naturally after having a look around we rigged up a rod and had at it.

The creek is about as brushed in as creeks get. Wall to wall willow thicket just getting to the water is tough finding room to cast at times a cruel joke. But poke around enough and usually we can find a pool or two and hopefully a willing trout or two waiting to nab our offerings.

We almost always rig just one rod and play it something like "three strikes you're out." Mostly because I was holding the rod when we found the first opening I got first dibs. But several good drifts with a soft hackle failed to interest the pools residents so we plowed on deeper into the brush. The next pool looked really good but with all the brush I could not get a decent drift so again we moved on...

The third pool proved to be the proverbial charm. Pitching the soft hackle upstream and letting it wash into the deep then slowly hand-twisting it in a brookie grabbed it but got off as I was manuvering it around the idiot dogs--bless them for their fishing enthusiasm but today the pair were a royal pain in the you know what. But the next cast another brookie grabbed the soft hackle and this time I managed to land it despite the dogs--hooray! 

Handing the rod to Gale she too landed a brookie and then I took a really skinny rainbow. Enough carnage for one spot we continued on. Switching gears we caught trout on a couple different soft hackles, a bead head fox squirrel nymph and Adams dry fly. Two hours and a mile or so upstream we'd had enough--cold, wet feet (why we didn't put on our hip boots who knows) way more than fed up with the damn dogs, and worn out leaping beaver ditches and willow thickets--called it good. 

Several yellow-bellied marmots, a couple sandhill cranes, one way up the crick at the base of the tall mountains, elk and moose tracks galore in the fast melting wet snow, a couple mule deer, two snipe and...hell, dogs excepted, turned out an OK day after all.

Global Warming? What Global Warming...

On the heels of one of the wimpiest, at least snow-wise, winters ever this spring is fast becoming one to "really" remember. Ever since winter was declared "officially" dead it seems every time you turn around more snow, yet another winter storm warning, is in the forecast. Two days ago it snowed here in Dillon where it hardly ever snows much more than a dusting, ALL DAY!!! True here in the valley the white stuff melted almost as fast as it hit the ground but it came down hard and the storm hung around just about dawn to dark.

Now today here we go again. Another winter storm warning, this time forecast to stay mostly in the mountains but it's been raining since daylight and the temperature is hovering in the mid-30s and...And well, like I said, here we go again...at least the potential is out there for another snow day.

I shot these mountain blue bells (I think?) up on Badger Pass yesterday afternoon where there was still a few inches left over from the storm day before. Yes, it sure is pretty all that snow hanging on the trees and spring wildflowers and green grass poking thru the white blanket here and there but enough, it is after all nearly the end of May and high time to get on with it... 

Spring Snowstorm Puts Our Sage Hen Photo Shoot On Temporary Hold

Our friends Bert and Jane are on the way home after spending the winter writing about and photographing the desert southwest. Bert is one of the best photographers around but has never had much luck with sage hens.

So when I suggested they stop off here for a couple days and just maybe we might get lucky naturally they jumped at the chance.

Alas after leaving Zion National Park they made it as far as the Utah/Idaho before running into a massive spring storm. Having experienced blizzard conditions before on Monida Pass on the Idaho/Montana border and wanting no part of an instant replay they wisely pulled into the KOA to wait things out.

This morning they awoke to 6 inches new snow and my grim report of more to come around this neck of sagebrush later this morning. But the worst thing is we got several inches already. I've never tried to photograph sage hens on snow but if Bert ever gets here and wants to give it a go...why not?

I scouted a local lek yesterday and found plenty of dancing roosters busily courting a fair number of hens. Whether or not the group is up for posing in the snow...well, hopefully we'll be able to better answer that soon...stay tuned.

Big Hole Tour

Yesterday was Gale's birthday--yes, that is all you need to know--so she thought it would be nice to "do the Big Hole loop." Dillon to Wisdom to Divide to Dillon is I think our favorite drive, if not it's right up there. Anyway we timed our arrival in Wisdom (about 60 miles from Dillon) so we could eat lunch at the Big Hole Crossing Restaurant (Gale of course wanted to browse the gallery as well but alas found it closed). Lunch was delicious by the way--we each got the Reuben special and a cup of chicken noodle soup.

It had snowed a skiff overnight, barely enough to make the road wet but the lingering clouds killed any chance to gawk the awesome snow-covered peaks surround the upper Big Hole most of the year. Dull, damp and dreary actually most of the day with just occasional peaks of blue sky and even less sun. But the worst thing was the scary lack of snow--the side roads would have been bare mud if it weren't for the overnight skiff. Below Fish Trap all the way to Dillon the hills, at least the south facing slopes were nearly snow free.

Perhaps the biggest surprise was the lack of wildlife--I think we saw a single bald eagle, a handful of geese and ducks and that was it. Although judging the tracks around Squaw Creek a sizeable elk herd is overwintering there--no doubt because of the lack of snow.

Another surprise was finding the river mostly open already below Jerry Creek--low and clear you might scrape bottom some but still floatable--not too many years you can say that in early March.

We let the dogs out below Melrose (Browne's Gulch) and kicking up dust for cripes sake,hiked a two track back into the hills--lots of prickly pear not much critter sign--a few antelope tracks and jack rabbit turds was about it. For such an empty spot, miles and miles of nothing running up into the east Pioneers (except for the highest peaks mostly bare ass as well)sure ain't much out there.

All and all a nifty way to wile away a birthday--I think Gale would agree despite the Crossing Gallery closed--and since it's snowing this morning pretty good in Dillon maybe just maybe the Big Hole high country is getting dumped on at last...now there's a really nifty thought.

Best Not Put Away The Snowshoes Yet...

Hard to believe but here in southwest Montana signs that spring is indeed sprung are everywhere. Many geese are already paired, super hardy Eurasian doves are building nests, some local ponds are completely ice free, the other day I spied two sandhill cranes cruising the river bottoms south of town...the earliest arrivals ever so far as I can recall...according to Gale's calendar about two weeks early...

In the valley there is zero snow and not all that much in the surrounding hills, although the mountains still remain winter white...no surprise there. The mud season is already off to a grand start...We tried to take the dogs up Ermont to look for sage hens and nearly didn't get turned around and back down was like steering a greased pig. It took about 5 bucks worth quarters at the car wash to even make a dent.

But it ain't over yet, ice is still wall to wall on Clark Canyon Reservoir (above photo), just the faintest sign of open water around the edges and then only in a few places. On the other hand we spotted a fair number of fishermen on the river, especially for a Monday afternoon in early March. A local guide I know was floating, working or just playing is more than I know. And over the weekend we saw that the Big Hole at least below Divide is mostly open and there were a couple rigs at Browne's Bridge.

So no doubt Ol' Man Winter will rear his ugly head a bunch more in the coming weeks spring is now official and that of course means summer is just around the corner...OK maybe not JUST around the corner but...well, you know.