Coming of Age in Comet

I am not sure that I could call myself a "history buff", but I do enjoy visiting historical places. Where I grew up in Michigan's "Tip of the Mitten" country, I had ready access to the pre-Revolutionary forts along the Straits of Mackinaw and Mackinaw Island. There were also plenty of little remaining pockets of remnants from the early lumbering and railroading days of America's infancy. 

Then last year, I was privileged to travel to Lisbon and Barcelona and visit what might be considered the place where America (as we know it) was conceived. 

For the last twenty-five years, though, I have called Montana home. With its legendary "wild and unruly" era, I tend to think of this period as America's adolescence. I love visiting Montana's ghost towns! We have been to Garnet and Granite, Colomo and Castle, Elkhorn, Bannack, Virginia City... well, you get the picture. 

On a recent camping trip, we added Comet to the list. While the town is located on private property, and access is limited, it is still easy to "explore" from the main road. With very little traffic on the road during the afternoon that we were there, it wasn't hard to imagine it as a bustling mining town. I could "hear" the pounding of the stamp mill, the honkey-tonk piano and brawling miners spilling out of the saloon, and I think I might have even heard a gun shot or two. ;)

I wasn't able to find much information on the town in its heyday, but that's okay. It means that I can interpret the photos anyway I want. (And so can you!)

PS. If you also enjoy ghost towns, you might want to check out Ghost Towns of Montana and Beyond, a magazine and Facebook page edited by Jolene Ewert-Hintz. 

I'm Goin' Back Someday

Come what may...

This might be the end of the line...
for today, anyway!

A week or so ago, I re-shared a past blog post. I was simply doing something -- ANYTHING -- to keep our Facebook photography page (Photography by Dan & Tammi Capron) relevant and active. The post that I shared was Life's a Beach in Weatherman Draw, and unbeknownst to me, it got Dan thinking. 

Dan has been working hard at getting some maintenance done on my atv. He is feeling a bit of pressure, since we have a big week of riding less than a month away. However, it has also been way too long since we have been out with the cameras! So I told him over breakfast that I was going to drive down to the Pryors to look for bluebirds, and he was welcome to join me. It didn't take too much arm-twisting to convince him that he wanted to come along. 

As we neared the Pryors, Dan asked if I really had my heart set on "Bluebird Wash" (see A Bluebird Bonanza), or if maybe we ought to go back to Weatherman Draw. That was okay with me, so we turned away from the Pryors onto Cottonwood Draw Road. As we crested a small rise where we could see the parking lot at the trailhead, I was dismayed to count eight vehicles! This was NOT what I had in mind! I wanted to avoid people, not join a hiking club! 

We turned around in the parking lot and drove back to Bobcat Pass. Having ridden over this road on our 4-wheelers, we knew we wouldn't get far in the Subaru. After just a couple of miles, we parked the car and started walking. The meadowlarks were quite vocal, and we were pleasantly surprised to find a photogenic one! When it finally took flight, we resumed our walk. 

I wanted to get to the top of the hill, but Dan's preference was to get down into the rocks and look for petroglyphs. (That's a switch!) We did something we rarely do ~ we went our separate ways. After a bit, we spotted each other, met up, and compared pictures. (I had a chipmunk and he had a bunny.) We walked together for a bit, ogling the strange shapes that wind and water have left in the soft sandstone. Oddly enough, we again drifted off in our own different directions, each drawn by different intriguing rock formations. Eventually, we reunited  once more and returned to the car. Dan was ready to call it a day and head home. 

The Weatherman Draw trailhead had cleared considerably by the time we drove back by, but it was too late in the day to start that hike. (It is about a mile to get to where the petroglyphs are.) Continuing toward home, I was watching the landscape roll by when I noticed a deep gash in the far hillside. I pointed it out to Dan, and his interest was piqued. This time I stuck close to him as we followed a dry wash to the base of the hill. 

We rounded a curve in the wash
and came face-to-face with Mud Man! 

 The canyon that I had spotted from the road looked like an ideal spot for petroglyphs, but unlike Weatherman Draw, this was NOT an easy hike! We scrambled up steep, sandy banks, squeezed between trees and the high rock walls, and even crawled under some fallen trees! We contemplated turning around a time or two, but we had come too far to give up! The area definitely felt like prime mountain lion territory, but despite evidence of occupation, obviously Kitty wasn't at home. (We didn't find any ancient art on the rock walls, either.) Having reached the end of the trail, we carefully made our way back out of the canyon. But we left much to be explored, so another trip is definitely in order! 

It's a LOT deeper and steeper than it looks!

This entire are is pitted with these cavities!

*** Bonus Pics***

I did find a solitary bluebird. 

Social Distancing ~ Montana-style

Arm's length, people!
Gloves? Check!
Masks? Check!

Are you as fed up as I am with the constant chatter about COVID-19, stimulus checks, and social distancing? I am always ready for an outing, but perhaps never more so than I was yesterday! 

We met a few of our friends in Bridger yesterday morning to go four wheeling near Belfry. The sun was shining brightly on the beautiful Beartooth Mountain Range 30-40 miles away to the west of us. The Pryors and the Bighorn Ranges in the opposite direction were equally gorgeous. 

The wind was a little chilly, but we had a great time riding under the nearly-cloudless Big Sky. No people, no "talking heads"! Just the wind and the chirping of birds! 

Ahhhh! Refreshing!

*** Bonus Pics***

While many people would describe this area as barren or boring,

I find the rock formations absolutely fascinating! 

 Stay healthy, my friends! <3

Take Me Back

Typically, if I don't post to the blog the same weekend we are out,

the post just never happens. But since we weren't planning to get out this weekend, I actually saved this post on purpose. 

Last Sunday was a little unusual for us: A couple of times a year, our church changes up the the schedule a little bit. Instead of the usual evening service, we have a picnic lunch and an afternoon service. It's fun once in a while to get to take a "Sunday afternoon drive"! 

Dan has a co-worker who lives outside of Roundup. He is always showing Dan cell-phone and trail cam pictures of the different wildlife that frequents his property. He has extended an open invitation to come explore. So we met Mike and his wife Amee at the Vintage Main Street Cafe in Roundup. Mike has been telling Dan about the good food and great service for a while now, and indeed, he was not exaggerating. Enzo and Nina, the owners, took excellent care of us. Dan said his burger was the best one he had ever eaten, and I could have made another sandwich with just the turkey that fell out of the one that I ate! This was NOT frozen, deli turkey, either -- it was real, chopped turkey breast. You know... that perfect "day-after-Thanksgiving" turkey sandwich. YUM! And the fresh-cooked potato chips? I am ready to go jump in the car right now and drive up for more! Seriously, next time you are in Roundup, you have to check this place out! (There you go -- the first and maybe only restaurant review you will ever read on this blog! Haha!)

After dinner, we followed Mike and Amee back to their place. Well, eventually... we kept getting distracted by photo ops. But we finally made it up to the property. Mike, Dan, and I set off to explore. Mike showed us his garden, then we moved on into the woods. The "resident" hen turkey put in an appearance, and we spotted a little mule deer buck as well. He was so handsome with his budding, velvety antlers. Then Mike showed us another spot where it wasn't hard to imagine a bobcat or a mountain lion bedding down. Unfortunately, they were just that -- imaginary. But we did spot a couple of small birds that were actually quite accommodating. Our last effort for the day was to attempt to call in one of the big tom turkeys that Mike and Amee have seen. We did get a hen to "talk" to us, but the toms remained stubbornly mute. 

Later research told us that these are violet-green swallows. 

All too soon, we realized that it was time to turn homeward. We still made a couple of sudden stops for a pheasant (gone by the time we got turned around), and a pair of nice mulie bucks. All in all, it was a perfect Sunday afternoon. 

Bonus!

We DID get out for a quick photo outing this weekend. Another long afternoon/evening drive found us bouncing favorite back roads. Not a lot of "blog fodder", but we did watch a little family drama among some sand hill cranes. 

I was very surprised when the adult bird jumped up out of the creek
and left the little one to find its own way out!

After several unsuccessful attempts to climb up out of the creek
(wings aren't much good for climbing),
the little one seemed to stop and think for a moment.
It then took about three steps further up the creek
and walked right out. 

The adult birds didn't even wait for the little one.
They just continued slowly working their way through the grass.

Eventually, though, the whole family was reunited, 
and they all wandered out of camera range. 

THE END :)

Peaceful, Easy Feeling

Sorry for the long absence. 

Things have been a little crazy around here this spring!

Everyone has that "favorite place" -- that place of which they never tire; the place to which they run whenever the opportunity presents itself. For me, that place is Yellowstone National Park. It has been a busy spring, with a trip to Spain, then a move, then a week in Milwaukee for our daughter's graduation. I was more than ready for a day in my "happy place"! 

With the arrival of spring, we can now enter the park through Cooke City. It is still too early to take the Beartooth Pass, but the Chief Joseph Scenic Highway plays a pretty good second fiddle! 

The little ponds alongside the road were undisturbed by even the slightest breeze, and they reflected their surroundings like mirrors. The ducks and geese floating quietly across the glassy surfaces created a "peaceful, easy feeling." The still water also gave away the presence of anything swimming there, and one such V-shaped wake caught Dan's attention. Were we finally going to get otter pictures? We watched for a while, and after getting a few pictures, Dan decided that they were not otters. Maybe muskrats? NO, that couldn't be! They simply HAD to be otters! I studied the pictures as we drove away and discovered the undisputable yellow buck teeth of a beaver! I was still a little disappointed that they were not otters, but beavers have also long been on the "to photograph" list, so I wasn't too upset. 

Part of the reason for going to Yellowstone in the spring (as if I need an excuse) is the likelihood of seeing bears. When one is fortunate, there are even baby bears. We were blessed indeed -- we saw two momma bears with two cubs each! The first bear jam was already so large and densely packed with people and cars that we didn't even try to stop. From my vantage point out of the sunroof of the Subaru, I caught a fleeting glimpse of a black bear sow with two new cubs. Awwww! 

Got an itch!

The second bear jam was just forming as we approached, so Dan let me jump out before he proceeded to an approved pullout to park the car. We got to sit and watch and photograph another black bear sow, this time with a pair of yearling cubs. After a while, we picked up our cameras and moved on. It was dinner time, and I was completely satisfied with another day in my favorite place. 

*** Bonus Pics***