While most skiers flock to the resorts for getting their winter enjoyment, the backcountry is where I get my fix. After getting introduced to AT gear last year and going through the learning curve without breaking any bones, I was eager to get out this winter. Our mild winter and low snow levels have hampered getting out, but I was able to take advantage of recent snowfalls. Cody was going to have a layover day here in kalispell, and he was flying in as we were getting about 6″ of powder. A trip up Cascadilla creek was planned and the weather didn’t disappoint. 

The Cascadilla creek trail is a very gradual uphill trek to the bottom of the bowl. Probably about 3 miles if you take the trail all the way.  We chose to shortcut the trail and climb through the forest cutting off about a mile of the regular trail. This got us up to the top of the bowl in about 3 miles. Once you start the climb in the bowl the terrain becomes much steeper.

The previous rainfall event we had caused numerous avalanches throughout the flathead range. Pretty much everything that was in danger of sliding had already let go. Consequently we had a very safe forecast for avalanche danger. There were slide areas however that we had to ski around.  When we started our assent the clouds were heavy and visability poor creating concern about our downhill trek. As we got closer to the top however the clouds opened up and became a beautiful day.

There are numerous accessible drainages in the flathead range that can be fantastic ski outings. Another flathead excursion I had was up the rescue creek drainage. This trail is a little more technical to access the bowl and does have a little more avalanche exposure.

Do you live in a household that celebrates the Christmas season starting around the first of November? That’s the way it is in our house. Connie has always been fond of holiday music and has it playing constantly. Usually it’s an annoyance, but today when I entered the kitchen and watched her preparing our Christmas meal it really warmed my heart. I remembered the many such meals that she has prepared for family. She was always one that went all out for a holiday meal. She didn’t care how much if any help she had in the kitchen, she was intent on providing the Christmas experience. The smells of pies baking, meats cooking, and fresh buns surround the house, and the person responsible is in her glory just relishing the joys of providing for her family. It doesn’t matter that all this work will be devoured in a matter of minutes, she stands in her kitchen and toils for the ones she loves. This is not a dramatic production that she is looking for recognition and appreciation, her work is strictly low key, done for the people she cares about. My wish for you this Christmas is that you have someone that puts the holiday joy into your house and life. God bless those that bring the spirit to us all.

Merry Christmas!

For our anniversary this year we took a horseback ride to Bowman Lake in Glacier National Park. Through the tourist season this area sees heavy public use so we seldom get up here. In late fall/early winter the road is closed to vehicle traffic and is a perfect time to visit this beautiful area. It’s a 12 mile round trip from the Polebridge ranger station.

We didn’t get an early start so it was mid afternoon when we arrived at the lake. With 20 degree temps and the sun already hitting its downward trend, it was a little brisk in the shadows

It is awesome to get to enjoy this beauty all to yourself. Later in the winter this trip is popular with skiers, but with marginal snow conditions we had no one else in the area.

If we had arrived earlier we would have built a fire and relaxed for awhile, but Connie wasn’t enthused with riding out in the dark. We ate a quick lunch and hit the trail.

This years elk hunt was another success. For me it started with conditioning horses and exploring up the North Fork.

We headed for our late season elk hunt down in the gallatin in mid November. Very nice weather, although somewhat chilly mornings, was in store for us. After a couple days of scouting, we were able to locate some bulls up Taylor fork. We spent the rest of our hunt focused on this area and trying to get a shot at one of these bulls.

A lot of hard work and long days didn’t prove to be successful in harvesting a nice bull this year, but we sure had a wonderful time. A couple of mornings we were just a few minutes late, and another was the tragedy of a lost bull that I shot and after an exhausting search had to concede that he was lost. Losing a bull is very depressing, but the overall hunt was a huge success. We love elk meat so everyone is disappointed that the freezer will be empty this year. Makes the preparation for next season much more meticulous.

After a couple months of awesome harvest weather, I made it back to the mountain. Connie was super excited to have me home, but not so sure the horses had the same sentiment. She loves to spoil these boys and when I show up they know it’s work time again. Although the weather has been crappy with lots of rain and then snow, we’ve still been able to get out daily.

Riding up the North Fork of Flathead country is just gorgeous this time of year. The fall colors are still prevalent and snow in the higher elevations is so pretty.

We frequently ride up our mountain. Working the horses through the forest service fuels reduction areas is great conditioning for them. No trail just boondocking your way through light deadfall. Teaching the horse not to become agitated from walking through the debris. Connie is a trooper putting up with the cold wet conditions.

As I was grabbing Tanner one day, Freckles gave me a look of “hey what about me” it was obvious he wanted to get out of the pasture and stretch his legs. He hasn’t been ridden since the grandkids were here last July. At 21 yrs old we try not to use him very hard anymore. So I saddled him up and boy was he excited. I think we underestimate his physical ability, cuz he was definitely showing me he could still get things going. So much fun!

It’s sure great to be back on the mountain.

Harvest is always a special time on the farm. The culmination of all the seasons work. This year we are sure hoping for a little easier conditions than in 2019 when we fought with constant rain and then 2′ of early snow.  So far it’s been good. Still a struggle to harvest dry grain, but at least we were able to combine and the wheat and barley are in the bins.

Another field done. Head to the next one.

We were fortunate that Cody was able to come back and help. Extra experienced operators this time of year are very much appreciated.

We did have to bag a few fields again this year. This is such a slick way to store grain in the field and elimates trucking to the bin site saving a lot of time. 

Harvest days are long and getting suppers brought out to the field are special. This day we were in between fields and back at the shop cleaning combines out so Leah brought supper to the shop. Such fun to have grandkids get to join us.

Yes, harvest is a special time.

It has been a busy summer up on the mountain, and it’s time to head back to North Dakota for harvest. It always gets a little congested with the tourist traffic around glacier, but this year was exceptional. The east half of the park was closed so we had an enormous influx of people over on the west side. Most all of the forest service trail heads had way more users then during past summers. As I drove along the highway 2 corridor on my way back to ND. I was amazed at the number of vehicles pulled off with folks camping or sleeping in their vehicle. The COVID-19 scare has people flocking to Montana from all over.

Our summer started off very wet up on the mountain. Which greatly limited areas we could access with the horses. So we spent quite a bit of time in the north fork which is A beautiful area to ride in with exceptional views.

We only had one excursion into glacier Park it was just too congested. Firebrand Pass trail opened up in July and we took a ride up there on a beautiful sunny day.

We were fortunate in July to have all of the kids and grandkids make it back to the mountain. The grandkids got a lot of horse time and also learned to shoot and fly fish.

There was only one extended back country trip this summer when the boys flew back for a quick four day three night fishing excursion. This one was definitely memorable

We did have an addition to the herd in June.We purchased nice black gelding named Dawson. He was young and didn’t have mountain experience so he didn’t get a lot of back country time. He did get out for a couple of bigger rides though and because he didn’t get to go on the pack trip I took him by himself for a trip up to Southfork of Two Medicine. This trail has numerous creek crossings and seems to be the home of numerous bears, so he got a lot of good experience

Now it’s harvest time, we’re sure hoping for a nicer weather than last year. Constant rain and couple feet of snow in early October made for a long tough harvest.

Everyone’s lives are so busy these days it’s sometimes difficult to make time for a father/son backcountry trip. Steve and Cody were able to make a quick flight out to Montana for a few days, and we managed a trip into the middle fork of flathead and up to castle lake. 

We did a 4 day, 3 night trip with 2 nights staying on the middle fork and 1 night up at castle lake. The boys landed around one in the afternoon and by six we were having a beer 6 miles back in the Great Bear Wilderness. It was bad luck the first night for fishing as there had either been a rain event or a mudslide farther upriver which severely clouded the water.

With no reason for pursuing fishing the river we packed up in the morning and headed up to castle lake. This is a beautiful little lake that seems to have a great fish population. 

We packed float tubes and the boys enjoyed the day floating around reeling in the fish.I stayed up at camp sitting in the shade and watching the horses enjoy their roaming freedom.

There was a party of stock users that we knew just leaving the lake when we arrived. They mentioned seeing multiple black bears during their stay. A sow and two cubs on one side of the lake and a boar on the other side close to where they were camped. We didn’t encounter any during our time on the lake.

We used a portable electric fence to keep the horses boxed in the upper end of the lake so they could graze and then high lined them during the night. Makes for a very enjoyable stay when the horses are happy and full.

Hoping that the water cleared we headed back to try fishing the river.The water was much better and the fish were hungry. The boys were catching nice cutthroat almost every cast.

After a few more hours of fishing in the morning, we saddled up and headed back to the trailhead.Beating the heat of the day and getting back for a cold beer at the pickup.

After arriving back at apgar view and some much needed showers, we were treated to a fabulous steak supper that Connie had prepared for us. Topped off with some home made ice cream for dessert.

As I drove the boys to catch their plane early the next morning, we reminisced of how much fun this quick trip had been. The fishing was fabulous, the horses were awesome, and the company was first rate. Life these days is so extremely busy, little trips like this are hard to find time for. This was one for the memories. 

Wow we’ve had a busy couple of weeks on the mtn.. All of our children and grandkids were able to make it out for a summer visit. Steve, Leah and kids had a quick stop after a tour thru Yellowstone. Cody, Whitney, and kids were next to arrive and then Angie and her girls were able to fly out for some mountain R&R.

Mountain time seems to be so precious to these young kids. The horses are always the biggest attraction, but just having the freedom to explore, learn and enjoy Montana living is so special. The grandkids are getting older now and wanting to experience more, so this years activities included flyfishing, learning to shoot, picking huckleberries, hiking, horse riding, campfires with s’mores, and lots laughter and fellowship.

It was so much fun to see the progress the kids have made with their riding skills. It’s no longer fun to be led around by an adult, now they have learned to control their horse and do very well riding on their own.

Cody and Angie’s family’s come out of the Minneapolis area. When your life is in the city a visit to the mountains is a great way to recharge and collect your sanity.

Connies folks were able to drive up and see all the kids. At 85 years of age Don jumped on a horse and joined Cody and the kids for a ride.

It’s not just riding that attracts the kids to horses. They all wanted to help with grooming and tacking up.

Yep it was a busy wonderful couple of weeks up on the mtn. The kind of visit that will be remembered for many many years. Hopefully the mountain magic will always shine in the eyes of these kids.

Back in my teenage years my best friend and I used to hike into Tranquil basin each summer. The fly fishing was always great and rarely did we ever see another soul in this remote area. Well it’s been about 40 years since those days, so when Cody was asking about a possible location to hike to and fish, I suggested we give Tranquil a try. Having never been there he was up for the excursion. 

Most hikers visit Tranquil Basin via Edna creek trail off of Big River trail. This trail accesses the massive ridge line that sits above the Tranquil lakes but has poor access down to the lakes themselves. We elected to hike up the ravine that drains the two lakes down into Bear Creek. 

There is no Forest Service trail up this ravine just a rarely used hiking trail that is pretty much just used by goats, and the goats shy away from it because it’s to steep. Just kidding, it’s not quite that bad, but it sure seemed extreme compared to my childhood memories. 40 years and 50 lbs tend to change a persons perspective. 

This is the scene as you finally get to the easterly lake

The trail is somewhat difficult to follow, but if you have reasonable route finding skills you won’t have any trouble hiking into these lakes. It is about 2200 ft of elevation gain in a couple of miles, so it is very vertical. 

The trail navigates to the more easterly lake. We fished this for just a short period of time and only had one bite. To access the larger west lake we just bushwhacked our way across a ridge and down to the lake. This lake was reported to have been last stocked in 2010 by state game and fish so we were hopefull of some nice sized cutthroat.

The fishing was pretty slow, not near filling our expectations. Still just getting to be there and fish these beautiful lakes is worth the trip.