Hunting Season 2021

First Deer

This hunting season was the first season that I felt confident that I would be able to get within range of a few deer and time would tell....but not that much time. It is my second year on the property that I've been allowed to hunt so I had all my stands up before the season was open allowing for the deer to get comfortable with them which helped a lot I think. In any case, Sept 16th I got my first doe which snuck up on me from a direction I wasn't expecting but was luck enough to draw back when she was at around 30 yards and get a good hit and went down at 40 yards or so. It felt great to have success so early especially when I had 4 more B tags in my pocket and also my general tag. The property owners let me drive out to where she fell so it was the easiest haul out I've ever had which is not saying much as this was my second deer ever.

Third 

My second deer came in fro the same direction as the first with similiar results but during the time those two deer came in I was able to get a good idea of how the deer were moving and got permission to put another stand on an adjacent property. On the third sit on October 29th I had a group come running through at 20 yards. I was lucky to get a quick,"bawww" out to stop her and she was down in seconds. I was worried that they might be able to cross the road but fortunately she went down on my side of the fence....unfortunately she was in the middle of the road. I quickly pulled her to the side and field dressed luckily to not have a single car go by as it was taking place.

Obvious trail

After the third deer I put up another stand that the property owner told me had a few bigger bucks coming through to see if I couldn't get a shot on a bigger buck for my general tag which is either sex. On my first sit after I got the stand up I was on the verge of getting up and leaving as the nightfall drew clearer and a bigger buck busted me at probably 50 yards. He would have come right in to me but with nightfall coming fast I'm not sure I would have taken a shot but it was cool to see. After that I put a lot of time sitting in that stand and saw quite a few deer but nothing too big. November 11th I put out a decoy to see if it would work on bucks in the rut because since I had purchased it all it had gotten me was busted with a few does. Around noon a buck started walking across the field toward the decoy. He wasn't the biggest that I had seen on the property but with finals closing in I new he would be the one. He went behing a small patch of thick cover and took a good look a the decoy pausing for around a minute before breaking back to my left. I new I couldn't draw sitting so I waited for him to pass behind tree and used that break to both draw my bow and stand up. He paused in a small break in the trees and I let my arrow fly, it disappearing an inch behind the front leg. I knew before the arrow hit that the deer wasn't going far...it was just too good. Waiting thirty minutes was hard to do especially with such a clear trail to follow visible from my stand. Slowly I got down and followed the trail through thick cat tails to the other side. He fell on the other side out of the thick. A perfect season complete! I feel like this season I had break throughs every time I went out in regards to sign, patterning and just figuring out whitetail behavior. Had a blast...looking forward to next season already!

 

Wedding, Wisconsin, and Chicago

 We took a trip to Wisconsin to go to one of Sydney's cousins weddings which was a blast as I've never been to that part of the world. We also got to spend a some time in Chicago walking around the city and taking an architecture tour. Pretty fun time and great break from Missoula. Cheese curds and beer!

Architecture Tour

 

The Bean

 

Bride and Groom on Stage after Wedding

Missoula Summer

The summer of 2021 was a good one....a little smokey but good never the less! This summer we got out backpacking, canoeing, rafting, foraging and overall had a blast although at points the smoke was quite thick! 

We also got some good work done on garden, something that Sydney spearheaded while I filled in the front of the houses garden with mulch which made it look a lot better. I also finished the boat rack...took long enough!

  I also bought a new, smaller whitewater canoe which has been a blast getting out with even though it's a lot tipsier than my other boat. We had a blast hosting the 4th of July Party this year. Was great to have Chris back out and dad was able to join this year. Soon after the party we got on the South Fork of the Flathead (trip report on this blog) and after that a CO trip (also on this blog).

 

We we got back from the two trips mentioned above we were wiped and spent a lot a after work time canoeing the Bitteroot taking it a little more low key while also starting to shoot my bow more frequently getting ready for the archery season. All and all it was a great summer although somewhat busy....hopefully more backpacking next year! 

 

 

Colorado Family Reunion Trip

Sydney and I got out to the town of Granby Colorado for a family reunion but along the way we went to Yellowstone which was uncharacteristically NOT crowded. We didn't sit in a single traffic jam and scored a nice campsite on the edge of Yellowstone lake. The following day we made our way to Teton National Park which was a new one for me. I have only been through Jackson one other time and this time it was nice to actually take time to hike at the base of the Grand and take it all in. We also found a ton of huckleberries that no one else was even thinking about picking....it got a little out of hand and before long we both had a big full. One of the tourist saw us and asked us,"Are you guys picking soybeans" in a midwest accent. 

After picking huckleberries we got on the road and drove all the way to Granby where Sydneys family on her dads side had rented out a house for everyone to stay in. We took a few trips into Rocky Mountain National Park and got a small taste for what the park has to offer....very beautiful!

 

South Fork Flathead Packraft

 This trip has been a long time in the making with me sending out emails to friends last fall to rally people, in the end it was Sydney, Chris and I who were able to make it for the week long trip full up splashy whitewater and beautiful scenery.

Day 1 we got dropped off at the Lodge pole creek trailhead and started walking and walking and walking. We went over Youngs pass and hiked along Jenny creek until eventually we got to the confluence of Jenny Creek and Youngs Creek and continued on Youngs Creek trail. Up until that point we had only seen two other groups of three or four and at teh rail junction we had two packtrains pass us along with lots of others hikers who had paid for the packers to haul in their gear....mostly raft frames that stuck out from the mules a foot or two on each side. In all we hiked 16 miles to get to where we spent the night camped around the Hahn cabin, a small forest service cabin that houses any trail crew or horse packers who bring in trail crew gear. It was a long haul but it felt good to get so much out of the way on the first day and fall deeply asleep after a simple freeze dried meal. 

Day 2 we woke up and made some breakfast before making our way to the river to get the pack rafts inflated. It wasn't long until we were floating downstream in bliss....the bliss was short lived because the canyon tightened up and although it would've been runable at higher levels were were hestant to possibly put a hole in our boats in the first 4 miles of a 4 day float so we begrudgingly put our packrafts back on our backs and hiked three or four more miles to the confluence of Youngs and Danahar creek where we once again filled our rafts up and put on the river. Watching miles of river float past with little effort is great especially after walking in close to twenty miles. 

We were able to check out Big Prairie ranger station which turned out to be pretty cool. It is the most remote ranger station in the park system and because it is in the Bob Marshall Wilderness complex all gear and food have to be brought in by mule train. Even the conservation core workers have their mail delivered via packtrain. Pretty interesting place with a kind of outpost feel to it. 

At the end of day two we found a nice gravel bar with a small overlook to the river. Although the mosquitos weren't bad for this trip we thought that if they did start up the wind from the river would keep them at bay. 

At the end of the day we started unloading our meals, mostly dehydrated food Sydney and I had prepared at home, to find that one of our meals had gotten moldy probably due to being in a bear bin in our boats in the 90 degree heat all day. We started to figure out how much food we had left and figured that we would be fine if our fishing skills were up to snuff. That night we ate fish tacos which turned out to be great thanks to Chef Chris Wilhelm.

Day 3 we had a leisurely pace to the start of the day. All of use were worked from the last few days and with the only thing for us to do during the day being sitting in boats and letting the current take us we fished a little in the morning before eating some granola bars for breakfast and heading out. Our plan was to make our way down to the Salmon Forks Guard station but somehow it slipped right past us and we only figured that out after going a half mile further on the river....oops. In any case we set up our camp on a nice patch of green overlooking the river and decided to hike up to Big Salmon lake some three miles up the creek that ran past the guard station into the SF of the Flathead. It was a nice hike up to the lake but the lake itself was great and with little sign that anyone had been there which was different because the South Fork of the Flathead seemed like a super highway with us seeing many of the same rafts three or four times. Big Salmon lake is somewhere I would love to come back and check out. 

After the hike we returned to camp, ate dinner and slept soundly 

Day 4 we woke up and and got on the river taking our time in the morning and getting some fishing in before pushing off. During this day we go the chance to check out Black Bear cabin which was marked by a footbridge going over head and a group of guided clients and their boats also taking off. It was a nice cabin with some old structures to check out before heading onward downstream.

The last night on the river we found a nice spot on the right side of the river with a rocky outcropping downstream and a small stream trickling out of the forest. This was a nice camp and left us only a short distance to travel in the morning to the takeout.

During our last afternoon on the river we took some time to fish and went on a little hike following the trail downstream. A little after we arrived a group of rafter arrived and they let us have a beer or two before we headed back to camp to make dinner and fall asleep.

 The final day on the river was very mellow with us making are usual relaxed wake up before pushing off. We floated five or six miles before coming to the takeout. It was an easy place to spot with line of rafts waiting for their packers to help them strap them to mules and that's without a sign stating,"Dangerous water ahead, takeout here".

After packing up our gear we started walking to the car but it wasn't long until I heard Sydney say,"my water is spicy" before shrugging it off and continuing. A little while longer Chris said his face was, "on fire". It was at that point we realized that one of our bear canisters had a slow leak. While putting her bag on, Sydney had asked Chris to hold her bear spray after which he rubbed his face and after that because of the itchyness he splashed water on his face spreading it all over his face and eyes. I used my camelback the best I could to irrigate his eyes but it looked to be a rough experience!

 

After three miles of walking we finally crossed a foot bridge over the meadow creek gorge and were back at the car and ready for 70 miles of gravel road driving each mile getting us closer to the Flathead Brewery in Big Fork where I had the best meal I've had that wasn't a burger after getting of the trail....still can't beleieve they were out of burger....WTF.

-Owen

 

Big Salmon Lake

Life with Covid 19

Woah, life has changed!
With the onset of Covid 19 classes are cancelled after spring break here at the Unversity of Montana so the remainder of my classes are online and on top of that my work got shut down at the Trail Head which has put me on unemployment. The abundance of freetime has me concentrating on school but also getting out hiking and skiing and doing housework a bit. All of the restaurants are closed making gracery stores the only shops that are open and most people are wearing masks when they go out.  Here are some photos of the current situation! Weird times but ready for summer!!

All breweries and resturants are closed but we can get
carry out growlers

New Planters!

Gear room sorted 

Lolo ski touring with Bandit

New Bikes!

Mexico!!!

This past week I was lucky enough to head down to Mérida on the Yucatan Peninsula for a friend of Sydney's wedding and having not spent any time in Mexico I was pretty blown away by everything so here is a little trip recap!

Sydney and I woke up at around 4:30 Thursday morning to a light dusting of snow on the car and  loaded our bags. After a short drive we picked up a friend that would drive my car back from the airport after we had been dropped off....thank god for friends! We decide to go light on this trip and both only had carry on bag so grabbing tickets and shuffling through security was a breeze. After a quick layover in SLC we landed in Mexico City for the longest layover that I have ever experienced. We had eight hours to mill about or we could get out into the city so we chose to check out the city.

 We shuffled through customs and attempted to throw our bags in a locker but to our dismay they were all full so we headed out to the cab terminal and were soon speeding through traffic. The taxi drivers here have mastered the art of driving with one hand on the wheel and the other ready to hit the horn of anyone decides to try to merge...it was an exciting ride! After around 30 minutes we were in a nice plaza with street venders and lots of stalls with people selling lots of things. Going from below freezing to 90 in a single flight combined with a totally different culture was a wild ride and we decided we needed to get something eat so we sat down at on of the many restaurants bordering the walking area. We decided to sit at one of the tables right next to the walking area because it was one of the open tables and we also wanted to people watch. We quickly found out why those tables were left vacant...in he time that it took for us to sit down until we left people were trying to sell us things. I don't know much (any) Spanish but I can now say "No thanks" very well. A little while longer and one of Sydney's friends joined us to give us a mini tour of the area we were in. We checked out the outside of the Frida Kahlo Museum and the Leon Trotsky house before we big farewell and hopped in an uber back to the airport. 

Flying into Merida just after midnight was kind of unnerving because we had booked an airbnb and I wouldn't blame the owner if they had already fallen asleep but after taking a cab to her house she ran outside and greeted us with the key and after quickly trying to explain how to get into the house and realizing we didn't understand anything she directed any and all directions to our cab driver who gladly took on his new role. After a quick "thank you!" we loaded back in to to cab and headed to the airbnb. The cab driver apparently had the inside knowledge on how to open the door but even then it took 5 minutes before it begrudgingly opened for us. We tipped him and gave a big thanks! I don't think we would have gotten in without his help.

The next morning we got some much needed sleep after such a long day of travelling but it also put us smack dab in the middle of the day walking around Merida which was even hotter than Mexico City...a balmy 100 degrees. We woke up and walked around until we couldn't any more and came back to the AirBNB and crashed hard before the first of the wedding obligations.

 We were scheduled to meet up with a bunch of people that would be at the wedding in a little food venue that turned out to be a blast! Eating food and drinking beers with a bunch of fun people was awesome. The beers were ordered by the bucket and a good time was had. 

The next day we woke up and hopped in our friends Brittany and Clives rental car to head out to take a tour of a Sisel plantation were we would be meeting with the rest of the wedding attendees. I had no idea of what to expect so it was pretty cool. Sisel is a plant that after a very long process can be turned into rope or many other items. We even saw a few shirts made from sisel in Merida. 

The tour gave us an idea of the history surrounding sisel and also why it was so important to the economy of the Yucatan. The process looked to be very labor intensive and that is why the building around the plantation had lots of place for workers to live. At the end of the tour we had the chance to hop in a cenote which was awesome! A cenote is basically a place were freshwater comes to the surface and creates nice baths to cool down in. The one at the tour was in a cave that you had to walk down steps to get into and was very refreshing. Such a great time!!  

Upon the completion of the tour we headed to the place that the wedding would take a place and that those in the wedding party would be staying, a large hacienda with a full staff of waitresses. It was one of the most amazing places I've been. Words can't do it justice so I'm going to leave a video of a little walkabout I did.

Tour of the hacienda 

The rest of the trip was awesome as well!

-Owen