NWCC - SNOTEL Snow Water Equivalent Update Graph

Bitterroot River Basin is at 95% - good news.
NWCC - SNOTEL Snow Water Equivalent Update Graph

Fly fishing the upper Bitterroot with Roy Loman in early April

Trout (of course), Pileated Woodpeckers, ice, and on the next day - a cow moose. Interesting times on the Bitterroot. Love the spring.

Rachel fly fishing on the Bitterroot River in March

A day on the river with Jack learning all there is to know about fly fishing - though she has been fishing with Jack since she was very young. On this day, she rowed a lot, but that didn't stop her from wetting her line and catching a lot of nice fish. What a gorgeous spring day.

2013 Feb skiing Gash Peak in Montana

The top of the climb

Winter in Montana is a wonderful time to explore the Bitterroots. Mark, Skip and Jack skinned up the Bitterroots in the Gash Creek and Peak area in mid-February. Here are a few photos taken by Mark. Enjoy. Here is the slideshow

Ice fishing in western Montana - pike was the big catch

Five pound pike

Successful day on the ice

Ten pound pike!

Pictures say it all. Thanks for forwarding these photos to us Mike!

Betty's Montana pronghorn hunting success

Betty and the pronghorn doe shot this year on opening day

Our friends, Joe and Betty, love to fish and hunt. Betty is very successful. She shared a photo of her pronghorn (antelope) doe she shot on opening day this year. I found a photo of a buck she shot a few years ago. They are great photos and she said I could blog them. Here they are.

Betty is like me, she does it all. She doesn't stop after shooting, she retrieves her game and takes care of the meat. 

Betty and the buck she shot a few years ago

Are you a Montana fly fishing outfitter or guide and concerned about climate change and impacts?

Montana Audubon and guides and outfitters speak up about climate change concerns.

Derek Goldman works for Montana Audubon out of Missoula, Montana. He is concerned about climate changes and impacts on Montana resources. He is reaching out to fly fishing outfitter and guides and asking them to speak up if they share his concerns. He has prepared a letter and is asking for signatures.

Here is the body of his draft letter.

Dear Senator Baucus, Senator Tester and Congressman Rehberg,

As fishing guides and outfitters in the state of Montana, we are writing to express our concerns about the impacts global climate change is having on our rivers, our fish, and our livelihoods, and to encourage you to support energy legislation that includes a strong, science-based cap on greenhouse gas emissions.

In Montana, we are fortunate to have more than 170,000 miles of rivers and streams meandering through our state. (Only Alaska, California and Texas can boast of more waterways than Montana.) Many of these rivers provide habitat for various species of game fish, including native Cutthroat trout, Bull trout, and Arctic grayling. Healthy fish populations and quality habitat are critical for our small businesses and for our way of life. The persistence of this world class fishery, for which Montana is famous, is in peril.

Climate impacts on Montana streams

Today global climate change threatens the health of our streams and the quality of native fish habitat. Studies of 50 years of climate data shows that total annual snowfall has decreased—by 6.3 inches annually in Great Falls to more than 22 inches in Missoula. At the same time, average March temperatures in Montana increased about 5.5° F.3 This is having a dramatic effect on the timing of spring snowmelt, resulting in a 30 percent drop in average spring snowpack throughout the state.

As a result, we are experiencing declining average stream flows and run-off that peaks several weeks earlier in the spring. Unfortunately this does not bode well for our native fish in Montana, many of which are absolutely dependent on cold water. The reduced snowpack and earlier melt-off results in less water in the rivers during the summer as well as warmer stream temperatures that can be lethal to our native trout. In fact, in recent years, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks managers have been forced to close many streams to all angling to protect fish from added stress.

Economic impact of fishing in Montana

America’s 44 million anglers play a major role in our economy, creating 1.1 million jobs and contributing $116 billion in overall economic output.5 Here in Montana, nearly 350,000 people fish annually (39 percent of whom are nonresident visitors) and spend $292 million on equipment, guiding services, lodging and other related expenditures.These anglers create 3,100 jobs in Montana, which pay $50 million in wages and salaries. Putting the breaks on greenhouse gas pollution is critical in order to keep these Montana jobs and associated economic benefits, and to provide the stability our businesses will need to persist in an uncertain future. This holds true for fishing guides and outfitters and also for the many other small businesses—from farmers to ski areas—that stand to lose if we fail to act.

Conclusion

As Congress moves forward in consideration of clean energy and climate legislation, we urge you to support strong, science-based limits on the greenhouse gas pollution that is causing global climate change and impacting Montana’s streams and native fish. Legislation should also maintain the integrity of our Clean Air Act, and provide investments in renewable energy as well as adequate funding to safeguard fish and wildlife from the worst effects of global warming.

Thank you.  (followed by signatures)

You can click here for a printable version of letter in PDF format. The printable version includes citations. Contact Derek if you want to sign the letter or have comments or questions.

Derek Goldman, Field Representative
Montana Audubon
405 S 1st St. West
Missoula, MT 59801
Office: (406) 549-2848 ext.2
dgoldman@mrss.com
www.mtaudubon.org

It snowed today.

Click on the photo for a larger view in a new window - it is worth it.

We woke up to snow today. We were hoping for cooler weather to keep the snow in the mountains but this is a bit much. Like Jack said, "It isn't going to flood in April this year." The cool weather this spring will help the snow melt in an orderly fashion, if it warms up enough to actually melt!

Today we took a hike when it was the warmest, about 47 degrees. At the beginning of our hike, we saw a herd of elk. What a nice start. Then we hiked into a bit of a snow flurry.

Pinegrass - A Bluegrass Band, Stevensville Montana Festival

The Montana Rockies Bluegrass Association is a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving and performing bluegrass music.

The association, which was formed in 1999, offers a slate of events throughout the year to promote bluegrass music. This includes sponsoring performances by local and nationally recognized bluegrass bands, campouts of bluegrass pickers and fans, and workshops where enthusiasts can develop their music skills.

The 2009 spring festival, which is in its 10th year, gives bluegrass fans an opportunity to hear outstanding performances across spectrum of bluegrass music. Started by a few “bluegrassers” from the Missoula and Bitterroot Valley, the association now has over 250 members.

Bands performing this year:Acousticals, Bill Anderson & Jeff Trask, Black Mountain Boys, Bonnie Bliss & Stan Hall, BVDs, Gravel Road, Ken Benson & Friends, Larry Gangi, Sr., Mike & Tari Conroy, Pinegrass, Ramblin’ Rose, Salmon Valley String Band, Spring Thaw, Three Rivers Bluegrass, Will Williams, Wise River Mercantile. To read more about this event and the late-night jam and campover, visit our website at http://www.mtbluegrass.com/.

Bitterroot River with Joe Graziano

Joe Graziano fished this beautiful day with Jack on the Bitterroot River. With the very cool nights, the river is coming up, but fairly orderly and there are fish to be caught.

The forecast for next week is for 70 degree days and nights above freezing. Those ingredients make for a rising river and possible run-off conditions.

Check back to see what happens and if the fishing turns on or off. For Bitterroot weather (ten day forecast) and local USGS streamflow data click www.wapiti-waters.com/stream.htm.

Doc Bolton Fly Fishing the Bitterroot with Jack

Doc Bolton is up from California again. He has a small house on the Bitterroot now and comes up at least a couple of times a year. He is fishing about four days with Jack and today, Terry Nobles is in the boat. I will pick them up at the take out. I can't wait to get some more photos of Terry. Click Terry Nobles for more blog entries about him.

Here is a slideshow of Doc's fishing. You will see different days, different sections of the Bitterroot River.

View Album, click here to view in a new, larger window.
Then choose "Slideshow" to get a full screen view.

First hike, then ski - you do what you can to stay fit

There is not much snow in the Bitterroots right now, at least not enough to find a close place to cross country ski. These photos show a desperate attempt to exercise near home and find a place to ski!

Jack and I are spending about 8 hours a day working on the business, then attend meetings, Lady Griz Basketball (my daughter plays), play music with the band, and more. Winter is busier than you might think. He ties flies, writes material, works on gear and vehicles. I do admin and web stuff. The work is necessary, but so is a mind and fitness break. For Jack's work and for health, it is important to stay fit. We work in couple of hours of outdoor activity each day. The photos show one of our outdoor excursions with our dog, Bela.

View Album

FOREVER BLUEGRASS (Pinegrass) by Joe Nickell for the Missoulian

Forever Bluegrass By JOE NICKELL - Like the seasons that govern the growth of all good things in nature, bluegrass music is forever dying away and resprouting anew. In the 1950s, the energetic sounds of Appalachia were spreading far and wide in American culture, until rock ’n’ roll appeared and diverted everyone’s attention...read the rest of his story.

Excerpt:

The story of Pinegrass actually dates back to the late ’70s, when bluegrass bands such as Poor Monroe, the Great Northern Bluegrass Band (of which Ryan was a member), and Finley Creek frequented stages around western Montana. Over time, the members of those groups became the core of an increasingly tight-knit community of pickers and fans, who began gathering every Wednesday at a local instrument store called String Instrument Division or at the house of one of the musicians to play together in impromptu picking circles.
“Anybody could show up, and everybody got to play,” recalls Ryan fondly.

Like clockwork Pinegrass performs every Tuesday night at the Top Hat Lounge - click for map, located at 134 W. Front St. in Missoula. Through the end of this month, the band begins its performances at 10:30 p.m.; beginning on the first Tuesday of January, the band will begin its performances at 9 p.m. Admission is free.

Top Hat phone - (406) 728-9865

How to Shit in the Woods by Kathleen Meyer

How to Shit in the Woods:
An Environmentally Sound
Approach to a Lost Art

“This is the most important environ-
mental book of the decade [1989].”
—W. David Laird, Books of the Southwest

“Kathleen Meyer has contributed to environmental awareness while lending a grand old English word the respectability that it hasn't had since Chaucer's day.”
—Frank Graham, Jr., Audubon magazine

“Hey, this is the real shit.”
—Galen Rowell, outdoor photographer and writer

“It's something we all feel qualified to do, yet never talk about . . . For once, we get good tips on how to keep campsites clean while maintaining modesty and comfort.”
—Outside magazine

Visit www.kathleeninthewoods.com for more about the author and her books.

Kathleen Meyer and Patrick McCarron live in Victor, Montana. Kathleen is an author and has an editing business. Visit her site to find out more. If you need an editor, you will want to consider Kathleen.

Calf-A at Dell, Montana

On I-15 between Salt Lake City, Utah and Butte, Montana there is a small town. Take the Lima exit and go to Dell, Montana. You will see a unique cafe, the Calf-A, in an old, brick schoolhouse with the menu on the blackboard. I hear from the locals that the population of Dell "depends on the time of day."

Michael McCoy talks about the Calf-A in his travel guide, Montana - Off the Beaten Path - A Guide to Unique Places. He says,"The old building it is housed in was a school from 1903 until 1963, with an average enrollment of twenty kids, and then opened as a restaurant in 1978. Its walls, shelves, and bare pine floor are blanketed with memorabilia, fur-bearing trout, piles of old Life magazines, vintage rifles, an old piano with yellowed sheet music, rocks and fossils, a bedpan banjo, well-worn school desks, pull-down maps, spurs, kerosene lanterns, a ceramic water cooler, and a whole lot more."

The photo is of Ted Lowe in front of the Calf-A. Jack and Ted were in the area for five days in mid-December hunting elk during the extended season. The wind was howling and the temperature hovered at 27 degrees below zero. They hunted, but had no success. The conditions were brutal for humans. The saw lots of elk, but just couldn't get to them without freezing, sometimes they couldn't even get the old Dodge started! When they did, they came home.

The Calf-A is also called Yesterday's Cafe or Yesterday's Calf-A. Click here
for the Travel Montana website and more information.

2008 Hunting season, warm weather makes for nice walking but difficult stalking

Above is a photo of an elk herd (actually only part of the herd) that hangs on private land during hunting season. They are so much fun to watch as they move from field to field just on the edge of timber and Forest Service land.

We are still hunting for my whitetail doe and/or buck and of course for the elusive elk. It is fun, but we would love for it snow so their behavior was a bit more predictable and we could see tracks. It is our privilege to hunt in these beautiful mountains and be able to experience the wonderful sights and sounds as the sun rises and the day begins.

Here is a slide show of a few of our hunting photos. We did an eastern Montana antelope hunt in October. Jack went back in November and bagged a 4x4 whitetail buck. He didn't get any photos on that trip. It was rainy and mucky.

View Album

Get your own

If you click "View Album", then "View Slide Show" and slow the photos down to 5 or 6 seconds - it should show in full screen mode.

New Heathens in New York

A bit of a side...we met Nate online and are emailing about fishing, Montana, family, and his band in New York. Check out the latest New Heathen Blog.

As for Jack and I, we are getting ready for our annual antelope hunt near Zortman in eastern Montana.

Here is Nate's comment about that. Wish we had a photo of Junction Pool.

Good luck hunting (man, I don't even know where Zortman, MT is!). I had to work in upstate New York today and when I finished I had about an hour and a half of daylight to fish the famous Junction Pool in Roscoe, NY. The trout were rising to MIDGES, and I hooked only one, when it rose to a knot on my tippet.

A Bluegrass Band, Pinegrass - One of Jack's other hats

View 2007 Bitterroot Bluegrass Festival Album
Today Jack is performing at a wedding in Belgrade, MT with his band, Pinegrass. It is a welcome break in the fly fishing guiding season when he can play music in this kind of venue. Here is a slide show from a wedding in Missoula, MT in September of last year.


View Wedding in Missoula Album

Missoula Performance of the Smuin Ballet - A Benefit for McLaughlin Research Institute

When: Tuesday 09/29 and 9/30/2008 at 7:30

Who: Smuin Ballet

What: Art : Dance - Ballet

Where: University of Montana

Description:

Debuting in March 1994, Smuin Ballet has quickly established itself as “one of this country’s most entertaining, original ballet troupes,” (Dance Magazine). Indeed, few names in dance are as widely known and recognized as that of Michael Smuin: at the heart of the company is Mr. Smuin’s singular ability to create pieces which merge the diverse vocabularies of classical ballet and contemporary dance forms.

Monday 09/29: Dancin' with Gershwin and other selections. In the Montana Theatre across from the Adams Center. The Monday Gala ticket includes the reception.

Tuesday 09/30: Dancin' with Gershwin and other selections. In the Montana Theatre across from the Adams Center.

Age Group: All Ages
To purchase tickets:

• call the Adams Center Box Office at 1.406.243.4051
• call 1.888.MONTANA
• visit Griztix.com

Where is the University Theatre?
The University Theatre is located on the Missoula campus of the The University of Montana. Driving directions, maps, parking, and much more can be found here. Also, the following PDF map includes the highlighted location of the University Theatre on campus.

We are very fortunate to have this company perform in Missoula and even more fortunate that Michael Smuin was born in Missoula and continued to cherish his home town. Sadly, he passed away last year. Come see the ballet and know that Missoula and Montana creates the people who can change our world as we know it.

You will also be supporting an important world changing institution, the McLaughlin Research Institute with another Montana native as Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Committee, Dr. Irving L. Weissman. Irv is orignally from Great Falls, MT and is now at Stanford University.

Anna LaCroix and her chicks, hearing is believing

Because of a wonderful medical procedure, Anna can not only see her new chicks, she can hear them. Read on...

Anna is the daughter of our neighbors Amy Sage and Bill LaCroix. We do a lot together as families, including some "ranching." I traded Amy a rooster for a hen this spring and the result is recorded in these photos!

Anna was born deaf and has gone through two surgeries for cochlear implants. She is what we call a Bright Light. She takes after her sister, Ruby, and brother, Levi!

A cochlear implant is a surgically-implanted electronic device that helps provide sound to a person with severe sensorineural hearing loss. This is hearing loss usually caused by damage or a defect in the inner ear. Cochlear implants bypass damaged hair cells in the inner ear and directly stimulate the auditory nerve to send information to the brain.

They went to Seattle this month for the second surgery. Below is a message from her Mom.

Anna's surgery today went very well...even better than last year!
Dr. Rubenstein used a different electrode array, and got the whole thing inserted. He suspects that 18 of the 22 will be turned on! (On the right side she has 14.)
We are spending the night in the hospital with Anna , and going back to Port Townsend tomorrow.
Thanks for your thoughts and prayers everyone.
We are truly blessed (again)!
Love, Amy

Read a story about Anna published in the Missoulian last year.

To learn more about the procedure visit Cochlear Implants.

If you want to visit Montana, Amy Sage has a vacation rental of her own located on her historic (and still working) ranch, SweetSage Guest House, and she manages other vacation rentals in the valley.