Days of Missoula

Woke up to an inch of snow but most of it melted off by the afternoon, with tons of sunshine and balmy temps. Worked in the office then got an oil-change. While waiting I stumbled on a local second-hand store and ended up buying 15 books, even though I have a backlog of about 30 books I have been wanting to read for a long time. In some cases years. Called Stephen seeking sage insights in how to squeeze reading into one's life as he seems to have it down. He said I have to try reading more enjoyable stuff that doesn't feel like homework all the time.

Today I met Brett, a friend of Pauh's girlfriend Mary, in Seattle. We met at the local Irish pub where quiz night was in full effect. "Who was the Canadian prime minister between '67 and '73?" I don't know either. There were cool rounds where you have to ID songs and portraits circulated at the tables. It was also cool meeting a friend of a friend of a friend. Perhaps we'll get up on some waterfalls before the winter's out.

Weekend of tele

This was a perfect weekend for cruising on groomers. It was cooold, the sun blazed, and there was good coverage at both Snowbowl and Lost Trail. On Saturday, I got in a half-day at Snowbowl after running errands, and was ever-amazed at the beauty of the 20 min drive to the lifts. I ended up skiing with a cool cat named Jake, who's also learning to tele and went paddling on a wave in town after skiing. Amazing to be able to kayak and ski in town all in one day. He mentioned that there are Sunday night pool sessions at the university to work on rolling, which I want to get down, after getting the bug from Maggie, Dorcas, and Pat last summer in DC.

Today, I got up bright and early and met Max and Scott at Lost Trail. We got in a full day, flying down the long, luscious groomers at mach 3. Visibility was unlimited and the slopes were just about empty. Perfect day of cruising...

In other news, I have been listening to the new Shins album, "wincing the night away," which just came out last week.

There are some really good songs, but sadly they lost their edginess, trading their high energy jams for ballads and lullabies. I had such high hopes, but must relinquish the Shins to pop at this point.

Baaaadlands

Today I met up with Dan at our main office in Bismarck and we drove out to the Medora Ranger District where we met up with Arden, who accompanied us to the badlands. We inspected a pond that was built in partnership with Ducks Unlimited, looked at some prairie dog towns we are managing, including some that had to be poisoned so they would stop encroaching on private landowners, and examined some oil drilling platforms.

The weather and wildlife were phenomenal. Lots of golden eagles, bighorn sheep, antelope, porcupine, rough-legged hawks, ferriginous hawks, prairie dogs, elk, buffalo, etc. The badlands are gorgeous and it was neat being with expert birders who see all the critters and know what they are in the blink of an eye.

I have spent the last two weeks trying to understand the visceral, fuming hatred the locals have for prairie dogs. Just about everyone I met here loves to shoot them for sport, and consider the land they occupy as "destroyed." The issues are complex and the feelings run so deep, it is really a fascinating study in human nature. If I had to distill it down into a simple concept, it would be that just about everyone out here lives off the land or has family who does, and anything that restricts the use of the land is considered the enemy.

Prairielicious fishes

For the past couple of days I have been deep in the grasslands, working on frozen ponds and lakes to create fish habitat. We set out bunches of old Christmas trees with concrete blocks chained to them on the ice, so when the ice melts the trees will sink and the fish will have cover to spawn in. We also laid out some fence line to isolate a peninsula for duck nesting so the grazing cows can't trample them, checked up on goose nesting buckets, examined prairie dog towns, and met with local volunteers who do bird counts for us. Highlights include seeing pronghorn antelope zipping across the prairie, watching golden eagles soar over the grasslands, and spending the afternoon ice-fishing. Tonight I came back to Bismarck and met up with a colleague at a local restaurant/bar and drank brews/chowed on pizza/listened to a local jam band. All in all a great time out here, with scarce periods for sleep, and vast periods of awe at the big skies, wildlife, and wonderful people. Now I am delirious with sleepiness and have to get up in a few hours to head out to the badlands bright and early...

Living it up in Bismarck

Today was a neat. Did a spinning session at the local YMCA, with my coworker Mark and 25 other folks, that pushed me to my limits. Just when I thought I couldn't do any more the instructor would say "now 10 seconds of sprinting out of the saddle!!!" over and over. After lunch I met up with my colleague Dan and his family and we went sledding in a local park. I felt like a kid again, screaming down the icy hill going insane speeds while spinning around and around and trying to avoid the bushes on the side of the hill. After dinner we went to a great operetta put on by the Bismarck Civic Chorus that included scenes from The Wizard of Oz and Les Miserables. Some of the acts were very edgy, and the singing was great.

A Fortnight on the Dakota Prairie

Greetings from Bismarck! It's always great exploring a new place, especially when you come with no expectations and are pleasantly surprised by what you find. What I'm finding here are a bunch of great people and a whole new appreciation for the grasslands. It's definitely cold, but not as much as Bozeman was last week, and the pristine rolling hills are a great metaphor for how I want my heart and mind: Open, expansive, and full of diversity, complexity hidden in the simplicity, and uniqueness. Unfortunately, most of the prairie is now over-exploited for oil, farming, and grazing, leaving only tiny refuges of the original character of the landscape.

Since arriving, I have mostly been in the office getting to know how the area is managed on paper and in meetings, though yesterday Dan (my tourguide/mentor) took me out to do a winter bird survey and check out Fort Mandan, where Lewis & Clark holed up for the winter on their way through. Starting with this weekend the rest of my time here will be about immersion into the cultures and landscapes of this place. I can't wait.

Weekend in Bozeman

After a crazy post holiday week in Missoula, including two nights of birthday partying for Max, I went to Bozeman to hang out with Diane and get up into the mountains. It was FREEZING, between -5 and 5 degrees all weekend, but the sun was out and the sky was crystal clear. On Sunday, Diane, Russ, Emmanuela, and I went up to Big Sky for a day on the slopes. It was my first trip to Big Sky and I was totally blown away by the Gallatin Range, which is full of crags, cliffs, narrow ravines, rushing streams, and a couple nice big peaks.

The road on the way up was awesome. Tight, twisty, and scenic. I have to revisit it this spring on my moto. For now it is very icy. There were crosses every mile or so along the road for all the poor souls who didn't quite make it up or back down the road. Sometimes in a spot that was perfectly straight, and it was hard to imagine what fate could have befallen those who died there.

Big Sky has been suffering this year with whimpy snowfall, and despite getting 8 inches last week there were still lots of treacherous runs with rocks just waiting to take a chunk out of your ride. My edges definitely got a few dings in them, though we all had a great time, and the mountain was lots of fun. With more snow it would be epic, especially with the tram that takes you to the top of Lone Peak.

Lost Trails of the Bitteroot

Still riding high from the holidays, I found myself suddenly immersed in a snowy wonderland... sometimes after making a cartwheel head over heels... It was pure pow at Lost Trails and we had the benefit of Max's house 20 minutes away, deep in the Bitteroot Valley. Having finally sealed the tele turn on the groomers I spent an entire weekend learning how to throw my weight around in the heavy stuff. Heeeee Haaawwww! And Max grilled up some scruptuous Elk and Venison that we devoured like snow beasts in the West Fork.

Today I drove up to Bozeman with my boss and we met with the fish bio on the Gallatin NF to roll out a regional strategic plan for the fish of Region 1. Driving through Western Montana fills me with a constant sense of awe and serenity. The countryside means serious business, and the mountains form in riffles, sometimes with treecovered lobes looming over elk and turkey heavens right here on earth. hallelujah! I love this place.

Seattle Swankfest

Post Peru: lazy days chez stephen & maria, partying, skiing with lawrence and jon, and capping it off with a trip to the chiwawa for new years. it was great to meet up with summer and jeff, and meet their great friends Doug, Marlin, Christine, & TJ. after the fashion show we moshed to trip-hop, salsa, and country, then made snow angles by the bonfire. a more fine new years one could scarcely ask for.

then i drove directly to missoula on hwy 2, totally devoid of traffic and socked in with fog and snow. gotta love the subie. now i'm back in town and it's time to get busy.