MONTANA MID October 2021 BACKCOUNTRY HIKING ADVENTURE

After returning from my great adventure in April, work consumed most of my time through August when I realized I needed to plan another adventure into the backcountry. Traveling with Covid still presented many challenges, especially if I wanted to go up to Alberta, Canada, so I decided to go back to Montana to explore new areas.

The first item I addressed was when and how many days. I decided to be there the second and third weeks of October, giving me 11 full days to explore. For the first six days, I would be staying in Livingston, MT, where I identified six different locations in Gallatin National Forest I would be hiking. For the last five days, I had located just south of Big Sky, MT.

As I said before, each new adventure is built upon past experiences, enabling continuous evolution of preparedness. My preparedness could not have been better. I had listed out every possible scenario I would encounter. Then I reviewed the list, making sure each item was covered. Even with all this planning, there would still be some challenges I needed to overcome.

I want to make another critical point: everything I did on this trip alone. I'm an introvert who loves snow/cold weather and the solitude of remote wilderness areas discovering new experiences.

Summary of experiences are:

1. Early morning driving on a very rugged dirt road as a two-day snowstorm was ending

2. Hiking in new-fallen snow up to my knees

3. Laying down cleansing noise from the mind along side a small creek

4. Challenging myself to survive harsh hiking conditions

5. Falling to sleep high up on the side of the mountain every day

6. Experiencing a tree crashing to the ground with absolute silence makes a hell of a noise

7. Majestic connect with Black and Grey Wolves

Overall, it was another fantastic adventure with many vital elements of situation awareness. Continue reading my story below to get more insight.

My Arrival

When I arrived in Bozeman, snow fell at a lite to moderate pace. Driving to Livingston, a winter weather warning sign on the pass flashing heavy snow expected over the next 24 hrs. I could not be more excited as my mind looked back one year ago in a similar situation. One thing I learned out here, weather conditions can be so different from valley to valley.

Once settled into my hotel room, I went to my favorite bar restaurant for dinner. To my surprise, they were closed due to not enough help. Nothing was open, so I went to the grocery store for a ready-to-go salad, not what I had in mind. When I returned to my room, I started to prep all my gear. I already knew I would be going to the Tom Miner area in the morning. Before coming out though, I made rough plans of different areas I wanted to go and hike. The image below identifies each of the places I explored during this trip.

Day One - Tom Miner Area

When I woke up at 4:00 am, I looked out the window snow was still coming down at a moderate pace. When I went out to my vehicle, this is what I saw.

Just to remind you as you read this, I love winter!!! Especially fresh snow. I was like a little kid and couldn’t wait to get out there.

My biggest concern was whether this GMC Tahoe with generic all-season tires would get me to where I needed to go! Once I made it to the dirt road, I saw the snow depth getting deeper with elevation gain. This dirt road from the HWY was 11 miles long to the trailhead. I have a lot of experience driving 4x4 vehicles in these conditions since I was 16. Lessons learned, allow the 4x4 to crawl along without spinning the tires. Using this methodology, it took me 1 hour to reach the trailhead!

Once I made it to the trailhead, I realized the snow was deep and turning around would be difficult. That concern would have to wait. I have been thinking about this hike since April, and I was not going to let that issue distract me from enjoying my day.

I continued to hike further up the mountain. The further I hiked up, the more I kept thinking about how to turn the GMC around without getting stuck. It was just after 1:00 PM local time, and I didn't see any signs of wildlife, so I started the hike back, which took me 2 hours to get back to the vehicle. While hiking back, I began to mentally prepare myself so that I may have to spend the night out here. I called my wife on my satellite phone to let her know the situation, but she didn't pick up. I left her a message, but after I hung up, I realized that message would scare the shit out of her (not too bright!).

Once I returned to GMC, two additional inches of snow were on it. After I had packed my gear away, I started thinking about how I would turn the vehicle around. I stomp down the snow as best as possible in the direction I would be turning the GMC around. I did this by taking small baby steps back and forth, turning a few degrees at a time. I had to watch out for the slight drop-off on both sides of the dirt road. If I were to slide off, it would be stuck.

It took a lot of patience to complete the turnaround without any issues. There was considerable relief, but I still had to drive back to the main road the same way I came in without knowing what those challenges would be.

As I started driving back out, I thought how unusual it was not to see any other signs of people driving out this way. Not more than a 1/2 mile later, what do I see but signs of someone stuck? When I looked at the tire tracks, I was surprised to see big knobby tracks. This person didn't know how to drive in these conditions.

My timing was spot on when some sunlight started to highlight the fall colors against the fresh snowy background. This picture alone make it worth my day to come up here today!!!

Once I got to the main road, I had a cell phone signal and called my wife to let her know I had made it back to the main road without any issues. Lucky for me, I was in Montana, and she was back in Michigan!!!

Let me put it this way, I got an ear full and was in the dog house!!!

Day Two - Big Creek Area

On this day, I focused on exploring the Big Creek area for the first time. The drive from the HWY was so beautiful, driving on a one-lane dirt road through some tight canyons along the creek. The challenge for me as I drove further, the dirt road condition deteriorated to the point where I was not sure the GMC Yukon would make it. Then I found a nice spot to park, which fly fisherman use even though it was about a mile short of reaching the trailhead.

After the trailhead sign, I noticed a fence with a cattle gate; I thought that was interesting as I was heading up the high country! I wanted to explore a large meadow named Cooper's Bench. Luckily I had put on my "Micro Ice Spikes" as this trail went vertical and steep. One thing I noticed was two sets of hoof tracks in the dusting of snow that had fallen overnight, which at the time, I thought were Moose tracks coming up from the creek. After I made it up this very steep ice draw, I decided to head off-trail through a densely wooded area. It was a good decision as, not more than 40 yards later, it opened up into this beautiful meadow.

It was still early morning when I made it to this point, and the early morning sun was rising over the mountains to the east, poking through some openings in the clouds, when I heard this deep moaning sound. The moaning started to get louder as whatever was making the sounds got closer to me from the deep ravine I just came up. I crept over to the edge when I saw two heads of cattle heading further up the gorge. Now it all made sense why that cattle gate was right after the trailhead. The high country meadow was well suited for grazing cattle.

I quietly explored the area to a point where I could no longer go without doing some serious climbing. Beyond running into those two heads of cattle and seeing a small herd of deer in the distance, there were no other signs of wildlife in the snow. My stomach told me I needed to take a break and have lunch. Found a great place under this broad pine tree that overlooks the whole area. As I was sitting there, heavy snow squalls continued to come and go. While snacking on cheese and lunch meat, I looked south at the mountain range right in front of me. What came to mind was about 6 miles as the ravine flies was where I was the day before. The amount of snow there compared to where I was sitting was about a 12-inch difference. I am always amazed at how the mountain ranges affect the weather over relatively short distances.

After some lunch, I took a 45 min nap when I woke up by heavy winds. I decided it was time to start heading back down, seeking shelter from these strong winds coming off the mountain pass behind me. As I made my way to the steep descent, I looked down and said to myself, "Oh-Shit" that will be difficult as I carry a load of 40 lbs. Having plenty of experience in these situations, I treated every step with extreme caution. One slip or twisted-off balance would have dire results for me. Just remember going up is much easier than going down!

When I finally made it down that section, I made it another 30 yards down the trail when I saw this tall older tough-looking rancher. As I greeted him, his heavy weathered face showed signs of concern. Lucky for me, my beard was grayer and much longer, giving him the impression I was a local. His first words were; where had I been, and had I seen any cattle? His WEATHERED FACE BROKE INTO A HUG SMILE when I responded with a yes and their location.

He told me he had a US National Forest Grazing permit, and the week before, he was bringing all his cattle down before the heavy snows started falling when two got away on him. He had been looking for them, hoping they would come down on their own, but per the instructions, other people, like myself, kept closing the gate.

He shook my hand, thanked me for the info, and then asked me one other question: How did I make it up that deep section? The only way he gets up there is by horse; even then, it is difficult for the horse to get up there. I just smiled and showed him my "Micro Ice Spikes." He nodded with appreciation. After I packed all my gear in the Yukon, he drove by and stopped thanking me again. He told me we would go up by horse to drive them back in the morning. I asked if he needed my help to locate them. He smiled again and thanked me but said he had it handled.

With all the craziness in the US, it was very satisfying to meet this rancher. It reminded me of when I worked on the farm as a young teenager, where your word and a handshake meant something!!!

DAY 3 - SIX MILE CREEK

It was my first time hiking in this area. I had to drive through a ranch to the trailhead parking area. An old dirt road continued up, but since this was my first time, I would hike the road till it ended. I found out that the road went for another 6 miles to a small parking area. At that point, two trails were heading deeper into the backcountry. I decided to stop at this point as several hunters had driven up to do some scouting.

One thing was self-evident: the area had experienced an extensive wildfire years ago. You could see some early tree growth starting to evolve. The only wildlife I saw were several Ravens, Bald, and Golden Eagles flying up and down the creek. I stopped along the creek to have lunch and take a nap. With the sun out and the sound of the rapids, it was a perfect place to relax and dose off for a while. What surprised me was I didn’t see any Deer or Elk tracks. I guess that is why the hunters had driven up to the end of the road to start their hike further into the backcountry to do their Elk hunting. I had thought about driving up the next day, but since the hunters were in the area, I decided not to return.

Day four - Beattie Gulch

I've hiked this area a few times and have yet to be successful in seeing any wildlife. About 2 miles into the hike, I came across this warning sign. Even though the forest service posted the warning sign a few weeks earlier, I quietly took my time step by step up the mountain. When I did come across the carcass, nothing much was left. I continued to hike up to the top of the mountain without seeing any wildlife, to my disappointment. I did see many older Grizzly tracks in the hardened snow, but nothing recent.

Even though I didn't see anything, I enjoyed the solitude of quietness.

DAY FIVE - WEST BOULDER MEADOWS

West Boulder was another area that I have yet to venture into. It was an adventure to get to the trailhead as I had to drive through several ranches to get to the trailhead. Once I arrived, I noticed that the temperature had entered the upper 40’s. The ground had not frozen since it was the first big snow of the season. The snow melt created a sloppy, muddy trail with the temperature rise. I had put my spikes on, but the mud started to build up, and I realized this would not be fun. So I turned around and went back to the vehicle. After dropping off most of my gear, I decided to hike down the river through the campground. I didn’t expect to come around a blind corner to see a topless women standing next to her tent. She and her husband were just as surprised as I was. I decided to turn around when the husband said wait a minute. Then, he said it was okay for me to continue. I stopped and talked to them, apologizing for my sudden intrusion. They both laughed it off. They were from California and had been camping there for a few days without seeing anyone. After our conversation, I returned to the vehicle and decided to drive to Boulder River Valley, just over the mountain range that separated us. On the way out, I took this photo of one of the horses standing by the dirt road.

SECOND WEEK - BIG SKY, MT AREA

I took my time driving from Livingston, MT, over to Big Sky, MT, stopping to check out other areas I might want to hike. The weather had warmed up compared to when I arrived. Most of the snow had melted, changing my plans for the week. The first item that came to mind was to take advantage of the full moon. There was a spot along HWY 191 where I thought it might be an excellent spot to photograph the Moonlite landscape, the night sky, and the extended hauler semi’s that travel along this route. The plan was to get up at 3:00 AM local time to arrive at the specific location to take advantage of the full moon setting to the NW about an hour before twilight. When I arrived at the site, despite some clouds, I figured it would make for a unique photograph. Now, the challenge would be having the right semi with the proper lighting to come by. My luck would have it that everything I had planned the night before allowed me to take this great photograph.

After taking the above picture, I started preparing to head out for the day. As I started hiking out, I was constantly scanning the area slopes for any movements or listing for any wildlife sounds. I could not see or hear anything as I would stop occasionally. The snow was not very deep but slushy, making it somewhat slippery. Around 11:00 AM local time, I stopped to have some lunch. The image below shows where I stop to sit against a large stump. After lunch, I closed my eyes, taking in the sun, warm temperatures, and no wind. I don’t know how long I had dosed off, but all of a sudden, a significant, heavy-sounding noise scared the shit out of me. When I looked toward where the noise was coming from, I could see a cloud of debris from the fallen tree limbs shaking. It took me a few seconds to comprehend what just had happened. My first thought was there was no wind, what caused that dead tree to fall? Then I thought, when a tree falls in the woods when no one is around, does it make a sound? Hell yes!

After exploring the fallen tree I headed back to the vehicle. It took me much longer than I thought it would. Between the bright sun, heat, and muddy conditions made it a very slow go of it.

TEPEE CREEK AREA

For the past 4 years I’ve hiked this area where I have seen Grizzlies, Moose, Wolves, Elk, and Fox in the distance but nothing really close. On this day I went up high and off trail following one of the many game trails. As normal I walked at a slow pace trying to not make any noise. As I was going through a higher dense forest area I came across 3 Bull Elk beaded down. Luckily I saw the top tips of the large rack through the tall grass first. I stopped and just as I raised my camera the first Elk stood up looking at me. I didn’t move but the clicks of my camera caught his attention. He then walked slowly to my left when I saw the other two large Bull Elk. I was able to get a few more pictures as they started to graze moving slowly up the slope before they disappeared into the very dense forest.

I really enjoyed that experience because the Elk never showed any signs of being threatened by my presents. Below are a few pictures of them.

What an unexpected great experience enjoying every minute and just taking it all in.

My second to last day Amazing Wolf Pack Encounter

With only two full days of hiking left, I stayed positive I would still have a fantastic experience before I made the trip back home. As I was heading out for the day, I was struggling with where I wanted to explore when my intuition told me to go to an area where I had seen wolves the previous two years.

A year later, almost to the day Oct 19, 2021, not more than a 1/4 mile away from the same spot, it was early morning, and I had hiked up to a meadow along a tree line where three different groups of Elk were feeding. I sat down against a tree in the open to have some hot tea. Suddenly, I noticed a small group of Elk all turn and look in the direction away from me (around 150 yards) and saw this Black Wolf appear. Then, six Gray Wolves pop out right behind. Several of the Grays took after the Elk disappearing behind the tree line. The Black just stood at attention watching. Then, after a few minutes, they returned to the Black and just played around. I then closed my eyes and meditated, creating a telepathic frequency, hoping to communicate with the Black to say we met last year, and I want to connect with you again. In my meditative state, I felt a sense of positive energy fill my body. I opened my eyes, and the Black led the way, coming right towards me. Before I knew it, the Black and a Gray came within 35 yards and sat down. I had my camera with a 600mm lens on and photographed the experience. As both of them looked in my direction (hearing the camera clicks), I lowered my camera and just looked at them, taking it all in for several minutes. Then, the others caught up playing around as they progressed to the next ridge and out of site.

You maybe asking yourself after you review these wonderful pictures, how did the wolves get so close to me without smelling me or seeing me. When I go out I always squirt fox urine all over my gators and pants (I don’t mind the smell). I also carry a small camouflage tarp that I can pull out to drape over myself. In this case I had my backpack sitting right next to me while I was drinking my hot tea. As soon as I saw the Black Wolf appear I reached over to grab the tarp. What they saw was the camouflage tarp against the tree with just my 600 mm lens sticking out.

Over my lifetime, I have always had a way of connecting with wildlife. Consider this: it's a wide-open area; the wolves could have gone any direction. I have had many wolf encounters over the years but this one was truly about being in the right place at the right time. I will never forget this experience as long as I live!

Overall, I had a great experience starting out with the snow storm. Yes, was bummed for many days not seeing any wildlife. What I have learned is with anything in life is to have patience and be persistent with your passion or trade craft. The encounter with the wolves was so unexpected but it was the reason I was out there. Like I always tell myself, expect the unexpected.