Bond Lake

These pics are from the Bond Lake region, which is on the east side of the northern part of the Swan Valley. It was a backcountry hitch. So, we had to pack in all of our gear, food, and tools. It was an intense hike. What made this hitch cool though, was that a lot of the land we were working on had, until recently, been covered in snow. This meant that the wildflowers, which we had not seen in such numbers since june in the lower altitude areas, were blooming like crazy. These are just a few pics of the many flowers I saw. Also, some bees on some poop and an oddly dark picture of the lake we were camped on that was taken during the day. 

Lindbergh/Crystal Lake trail work

These are from the last hitch that I was on. It was in the Mission Mountains Wilderness in the Swan Valley. We only spent four days out there but it was a pretty fun hitch. The first bird pic is a pair of divergent Common Loons and the second one is of a parent Three-Toed Woodpecker with a first-year below it. The parent was feeding it and we watched from about 10-15 ft away for a few minutes. Not great quality pics but awesome stuff none the less. The last pic is of a tree covered in Black Bear claw marks. The marks went all the way up that tree and a few around it. 

The house

So, this is my house. We have a big ol' garden with tons of greens, berries, potatoes, zuchs, tomatoes and onions. It's just starting to really produce. Gonna be good. If I have been calling any of you it is probably  from either the front or the back porch.The house is in a nice neighborhood and there's a cafe a half block away. It's a pretty sweet deal. Also, there are most of the books that I bought at an incredible book store in Portland, OR and that is the moose antler that I found just outside of Glacier National Park.

Hitch 3: too tired to take pictures

My last hitch was 8 10 hour days of hiking, chainsawing, and clearing huge logs off of the trail. It really was tiring. There were stretches during which I was somewhat out of breath for more than an hour at a time. It hurt but it also felt very good.

I really should have taken pictures because it was so beautiful; we were working in burns and in dense and varying types of forest, along a large reservoir, and among huge green rolling hills with a view of snow-peaked mountain in an Idahoan Wilderness. It was swell. I was just too tired or working too much to whip out my camera. Next time though, there will be pictures.

I had wanted to post some pics of my house and garden too but I do not have the requisite camera cord so I could not. Those will come in time as well. Until then, though, I am going down into the Swan Valley to clear some more trails. I will be down there for the rest of the week. The Swan Valley is one of the most ecologically healthy and diverse parts of NW Montana. It is the region that I was in last time I was out here and it is spectacular. I am really looking forward to getting back into that country.