This is Why I Golf

Wait, wait, WAIT! Before you roll your eyes and return to your homepage, hear me out. This is NOT a play-by-play commentary on my latest round.

Bully Pulpit Golf Course, Medora, ND

Why, you may be wondering, am I writing a post about golf on a nature/outdoor blog? Well, my friend, golf is not played in a gymnasium or an arena. Golf is, in fact, a great way to "go outside and play"! It is also an enjoyable way, in my opinion, to get some exercise. I don't think I have ever walked 5.7 miles in one stretch on the treadmill, yet that is what the odometer in my golf watch said I did yesterday. Golf is also a favorite way for us as a couple to unwind and spend some quality time together. 

But I digress... I was thinking as we played yesterday about some of the beautiful places we have played. Fall golf in Michigan and Minnesota? Yes, please! How about in view of gorgeous mountains in Montana and Washington? I'll take that, too. 

Covington Links, South Souix City, NE

I think my very favorite thing about playing golf... outside... in beautiful places, is the wildlife. Out among the budding trees yesterday morning (yes, I was seeking an errant tee-shot), the robins were busy chasing each other and just generally creating a ruckus. A pair of mallard ducks were swimming in the pond near the green, and of course the geese were everywhere. The turtles aren't out yet, but they will be soon. The squirrels are always entertaining, and deer are frequent visitors to our course, especially during quiet, evening rounds. We have even played among antelope a time or two, though not on our course. 

The only frequent golf course visitors that I would really rather not see are the snakes. Back in Michigan at the course where I learned to play, it was a really good (and rare) day that I didn't see at  least one garter snake. While most of the snakes here are also harmless, there have been a few rattlers on the course. One was a baby one... on the ladies' teebox! I am very glad that I spotted it before I reached down to put my tee in the ground!

Old Works, Anaconda, MT

Pheasant Country, South Heart, ND

It has been said that golf is a good walk spoiled. I beg to differ. One just has to slow down, take a deep breath, and take a look around. Beauty is everywhere. 

A History Lesson at Heart Mountain

Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.

~ Winston Churchill

                          

Yesterday was a different sort of day trip for us. Our usual outing involves atv's, mountains, pictures, etc. But, of course, when you ride the machines as much as we do, they require some maintenance. So we dropped them off in Powell for a little TLC. Now we had some time to kill. After a quick trip into Cody for lunch and a visit to Wayne's Boot Shop, we drove back to Heart Mountain World War II Japanese American Confinement Site. 

While the Wild West has plenty of historical places to visit, most of them are homestead and mining related. I was not aware until recently that our region had any connection to WW II other than some spotty war-related mining. Dan, however, being the history buff that he is, had read of the confinement of Japanese Americans after the attack at Pearl Harbor. One such confinement facility was located in the shadow of Heart Mountain, between Powell and Cody, Wyoming. 

We began our tour in the interpretive center. Many, many pictures and quotes helped us understand the impact that the forced evacuations made on the lives of thousands of West Coast Japanese American citizens. We then viewed a short documentary before perusing exhibits from "camp" life. Afterward we went outside to see the remaining structures -- a guard tower and the hospital boiler house and chimney. 

It was a sobering place. It was not hard to imagine myself in their shoes. I envisioned myself as a typical American teenager. One day - in school, hanging out with friends, doing whatever teens did socially in the 1940's. The next day - packing ONE suitcase (they were allowed to bring only what they could carry) for a train trip to an unknown destination. I pondered what it might have been like to be a mother of a young child in that situation. One suitcase for linens, bedding, and clothing! Which of her own necessities did she sacrifice so that life could be as normal as possible for her son or daughter? I thought about how it would feel to be jerked from a comfortable home and a successful business in a busy city and to be dropped literally in the middle of nowhere in a barren Wyoming prairie.

As vivid as my imagination may be, I am sure that I cannot begin to understand what these people went through. While this blog post is in no way meant to be political, one quote in particular really struck me: "...if you think that the Constitution protects you, you better make sure that the Constitution is actively operating... in other words 'constituent vigilance'! Otherwise, it's a scrap of paper. We had the Constitution to protect us in 1942. It didn't because the will of the people weren't behind it." ~ Gordon Hirabayashi

Looking for Yogi

Ever since the Yellowstone National Park Facebook page stated in mid-February that the bears were starting to come out of hibernation, I have been itching to get back down there. Yesterday was the first day where free time and decent weather coincided, so off we went. 

We stopped at Subway in Gardiner to grab lunch, and one of the employees told us that they had had an easy winter, and that the bears had, in fact, been out since the first of the year. Now more eager than ever, we entered the park and headed for the Tower Falls area, where there have been several sightings. Of course, the road to Tower is not open yet, so we turned toward Lamar Valley and Cooke City. 

Our first stop was at Wraith Falls. The light was right for pictures, and we wondered what it might look like frozen. The short trail was mostly clear of snow, so it didn't take us long to get to the viewing platform. Unfortunately, the falls, while pretty, were a little underwhelming, so we returned to the car. A couple of buffalo yearling calves were kind enough to entertain us while we ate our sandwiches. 

We continued our drive without seeing anything but bison. When we reached the Pebble Creek Campground, we turned around and started back. We were hardly back on the road when I spotted something beyond the river. We whipped into the convenient pullout, grabbed the cameras, and set out on foot. (Lamar Valley had more snow than some of the rest of the park, but it was mostly well-frozen and not too hard to walk on. Mostly...) We could see now that the animal I had spied was definitely canine. It was far more concerned about finding a bite to eat off of the buffalo carcass it had found than it was about us. Once it spotted us, however, it reluctantly retreated to the treeline. Dan looked at the pictures when we got back to the car and declared it a coyote. Phooey! I wanted a wolf! 

A couple of miles farther down the road, we caught sight of another coyote. Once again, we bailed out of the car with cameras ready. This time, there were two! They put up quite a ruckus of yipping and howling before trotting out of range. The afternoon shadows were lengthening, and we decided that maybe, for once, we would head for home before dark. 

I was a little disappointed that we never saw a bear, but a day in Yellowstone is never wasted. Maybe next time...