Feeling Better

Maybe all I had to do was put on jeans , grab a rain coat and take a walk in the rain. Today was the first time since we landed in Bellingham July 11th that has happened, the very first day I didn't roll out of bed and put shorts and a wife beater on. MP commented that as we walked it looked a bit like the Turnagian area, mist laying on the mountain tops as it rains in the valley. Here's how it looked as we did our three miles.

Even though I'm getting used to Hamilton I think MP and I both know that we're just going to ride out the virus here and do as much work on the little house as we can to make it rent-able or sale-able as we look for a larger and newer house with some privacy and a dishwasher and most likely near Helena...I don't think that's to much to expect out of this new life....Maybe even just the right fixer upper but after a long and heated 20 second debate we decided to pass on this one.

My last Blog entry you might remember I gave Kevin Costner and his ' Yellowstone' people some advice about ditching the Black Suburbans and getting some white ones so as not to be confused with a politician or a narco....Well, I guess Kev must read Mile 14 because as we walked by the new building they have taken over walla...not a black Suburban in sight. It's kinda cool, they have trailer vans full of props and costumes and the parking lot is full of Utah license plates where they used to film Yellowstone...So Kevin, I hope you keep reading Mile 14 and keep an eye out for a guy with a semi-lost look and pro cure on his jeans standing in line for the extra's call, I think I could help.

The other day we decided to soak at Lolo Hot Springs. We shoulda got started earlier because by the time we got there the place was full of kids. We decided to come at a better time, ya know I love kids but it wasn't the vision of quiet steamy whispering morning that I had along the way...But we did drive into Idaho and the Lochsa River valley. Gorgeous . Not far from the Natural Hot Springs that we Skinny Dipped as Kids we found the coolest little Camp Granada type setting in the Lolo National Forrest. I thought the North Rim of the Grand Canyon was kinda rustic until we found this place, Powell Station. If you need peace and quiet and a summer camp flashback, we found the place for you.

Powell Station is just around the corner from the Devoto Old Growth Cedar conservation area on the banks of the Lochsa River. The place was tropical like shaded with the fast running river gurgling away in the background, just the place to break out a beer and a guitar and do a video which I will end this blog entry with. These tree's are impressive.

Then we decided to find the Lumberjack Bar which sits in the middle of no where about 5 miles off the pavement which you would think would be a bad business model but here in Montana it seems to make perfect sense. Low and behold it was just like we remembered. I showed MP this place after a Hot Springs trip in 1976 and I remember after we walked in with nobody but her and I around she said ' now what ? " Well, all these years later she basically said the same thing and I said ' Heineken and deep fried mushrooms '  .  It's nice to see that some places stay the same. The second pic I took was because I was so impressed with the shear size of those cedar Logs, 4 courses to get a full 8 or 9 foot ceiling.

The place reminded me....although I'm in what we used to call ' the 48 ' I'm Alaskan through and through. My entire adult life is there and all I know and who I am came from there so if I act kinda hinky sometimes here I hope they all understand , they sure seemed to at the LumberJack, I like that.

I got two more pics. The first one I'm not saying anything about except thank you. And if I ever run out of songs or things to do my first project is going to be a stove pipe cactus that will be my Mexico touchstone just like that Palm Tree I fished out of the Kenai River was my Touchstone in the frozen north.

The Cedar Forrest on the Lochsa river was the perfect place to sing. I forgot my tablet and had to use my phone but it's OK...this song used to be kinda of a signature song of mine, It's my friend Glenn's favorite and I really hope Glenn I get a chance to sing it for you this winter in Mexico...but that is still in question...I've sang this song hundreds of times and I'm planning on hundreds more...Next Mile 14 I should have a new song about going back to your old home town, I hope you come see it.

Quirky

Maybe it's a sign that I'm starting to fit in...which I've never really been any good at but lately I've been noticing some quirky things about this new place on the planet for me. AND I'm starting to think that this place is a bit more liberal than my first impression, I like that. With MP in Helena nursing her mom from a fall two days ago I decided to drive to Stevensville just to see. Well, they call it Stevi and the 2 block downtown area is charming, it really it is. I came across a message or two...

The bottom pic didn't turn out so good but it was on a variety store and part of it said ' political humor always welcome ' . This day and age that's a pretty big statement and a bit chancy I'd say...As we walk along the river everyday we came across this fence. Now MPeasy has a theory for everything but this one left her a little stumped, maybe it was to scare off the deer when they jumped the fence and made them fall, or maybe the hole wasn't deep enough and they needed to be weighed down....or maybe somebody just hated to see a flat spot wasted, I don't know and neither does MP.

 In Alaska if you've got a truck over 20 years old with no rust or dents that's a pretty darn rare thing. So I get down here with that old truck I love and figure people will notice how nice it is and it's even from Alaska...Nope, that's another thing I was wrong about. Around here there's nice old stuff everywhere and it's way easier to keep it all nice and clean. I remember Denny Carlson giving us advice about moving things to Montana ' don't bring any old s*^# , there's lots of it in Montana '. Here's a pic of me with my white truck and an even older one that I parked next to at the hardware store the other day.

But...you do need to keep your stuff out of the sun and especially don't use the shade trees to do that. This neighbor of mine could plant a crop on his ride.

We went over Skalkahoe Pass to visit MP's sister at Moose Lake. Reminded me how big the country is. It was only 60 miles but on a winding dirt road it took 2 full hours and took another year off the life of my white pick up. I have NEVER seen corduroy so bad in my life. MP's niece Becky gave me some good ( but useless ) advice ' just drive fast enough that bounce over every 3rd or 4th bump.  But the drive was beautiful....we took the long way home on the interstate..did I tell you about  those 80 mph speed limits ?

There's something to be said about walking just a few blocks to downtown. The Saturday Market is much like Soldotna's but with just a more local produce. We walk and hold hands and it's familiar and makes me feel good. We come across what every one of these deals has, the send a shallow message on your t-shirt booth, I get a little tired of that.

So it was wonderful to then run into this fella playing the guitar. He seemed a bit nervous like he was new new to busking but his melodies were wonderful. I guess the only way to describe his handicap playing was that he plucked the guitar. He had tuned to an open key and it was like a good finger picker like my friend Chuck Sanders. As I threw some green into his guitar case I asked him if he sang at all...he said it was tough enough just doing this . So all I can tell him is this, thanks for reminding me how  lucky I've been and god love ya.

Speaking of guitars , I finally got all my stuff unpacked and when I played that first night I realized how much I missed it and maybe that's part of the reason I've not been feeling like my old self. So I promise you this, when MP gets back tomorrow we'll record a song or two and I will have it on facebook and my next blog for sure.

  And here's my new version of the eagle eating a salmon pic.

Several Osprey nest and hang out on the lights at the baseball field and the river is only a wing flap or two away...Now I'm wondering about winter, do you suppose they find the dump like Kenai's majestic  Bald Eagles ????

And oh, in the what ever it's worth department we kinda semi-ran -into Kevin Costner and his bunch filming Yellowstone. And I have some advice for you Kevin. Get rid of the black Suburbans and get some White or better yet maybe even some different colored ones so people won't think you're either a politician or a narco...or somewhere in between....

That would be a rocking Y

Humbled

That's the word for it. I've fly fished the Bitteroot River at least 10 mornings now and have yet to catch a trout, I'm about ready to do what I've always suggested to the unsuccessful...hire a guide 😏. It's beautiful to fish here and you know me, the morning is when I'm at my best but theres just so much to learn. I finally have the right floating line and I'm getting some distance, the challenge is getting the 4 pound tippet through the eye of the fly when you want to and ought to change baits. So then if you can't thread a #10 you end up fishing a #12 or #14 and ol slimey don't like that. So then you get it tied and you find that it isn't buoyant enough and looks fake to slimey so it's off to the store for fly ' dressing '.  Chuck the Fly Guy shared some simple strategy " if nothing works keep it simple and use caddis "...mmmmmm, I walked away without asking what a caddis was.  So what to do ? Road Trip !

My first Montana fish in 45 years. Spring Meadow Lakes are just chucked full of them and even with the Bass I had to call in support. Dan Stewart said use plastic fished slow so I got the rubber swim fish Ernie loves to use in the surf and Walla, Tom and I caught 10 in two hours. Next time we're going to keep some to eat so I could use some counsel on if they're any good etc. They bite great, they jump and on 10 pound test it's a noble little  fish. Here's Tom with one and a selfie.

You notice his shorts are wet ? Well he had an errant cast and had to lock the hubs in to try and retrieve the swim bait.

Being a boat guy we decided to take a trip to Kim's Marina on Canyon Ferry Lake and see what we need for the Big water, I kinda figure that more tools = more fish so I gotta know what kind of craft the locals use. The dock was mostly full of Ski boats, Pontoons and Sailboats .

But I found the weapon...this is big water Lund, a Pro V. 21 ft. long with a 6 and 1/2 ft beam, 250 hp Yamaha 4 - stroke and one of those sweet 8 horse Yamaha kickers. This guy looks like it's take some lettuce but it's just what you need to get 20 miles down the lake to where the Walleyes live. Here they are considered invasive and they have a liberal limit of 30. Ya know I've butted heads with this ' invasive ' thing a bit with ADF+G poisoning out me and Keith's favorite Pike lake etc....seems to me it's kind of a make work project. It seems to me the invasive species around here is us....

One thing was obvious to me at Kim's Marina...I stink at business. Now these guys know how to turn a dollar. I went into the office to see about boating and was handed their list of services and prices. Wow not only do they do a lot but they charge a lot...and they charge for EVERYTHING except maybe the air. Enlarge this and you'll see, makes Stewart's Landing look a revenue free zone.

We found the Blodgett Canyon Overlook trail and for the first time here I was feeling the elevation. Hamilton is at 3200 ft. and we were easily 2000 ft. more up the mountain. The hike was 1.6 miles in and 1.6 miles out and although short it wasn't for the unfit. We came across your basic black bear skat in the middle of the trail, we all know what it looks like when they're on the berries. A half mile after we see the fresh bear sign the trail hits an area with absolutely no visibility. The brush is high and thick and you can't see ten feet to the side or to the front...just the way people get killed in Alaska. But, this day it felt just right , the chances of finding a Brownie here are a fraction of what we're used to....but that's not saying that next time I'll have the Heater along.

This morning we had a couple of these guys climb the tree in front of what we're calling ' the small house'. They spent the day sleeping like they've done it a hundred times and I guess they have. They're kinda cute but I got the feeling they're nasty little buggers. I have no experience with them but in Mexico we have their larger cousins they call coot-a-mundy and I know for sure that they're nasty critters that'd chew your arm off if given the chance.

And in the ' no matter where you go, there you are ' department here's pic of a sign in town...Now what kind of coward uses 8 pages ?.....mmm.... I guess the one that has a lot to say.

One ruled out,, 2000 to go

In Jeff's world the chase, the expectation, the anticipation is the best part...what I'm saying is that reality and my life don't usually collide in the same sentence and a good plan turns into a...ahhh....an experience. Kinda like the vision I had of 5 days on the Alaska State Ferry, we'd stroll the decks and hold hands, we'd chat and play music for the passengers, we'd eat nice food and see whales....NOT...it was like a prison ship, with rain.

So having said that part of our new plan to find happiness ever after was to look around the Pacific Northwest for the idyllic town nestled in the woods and a river city to boot. Well, Salmon Idaho ain't it.We'd been around western Montana but had never gone down to Salmon Idaho which is only 100 miles form us here in Hamilton. The drive is gorgeous and Lost Trail Pass is steep and exciting and lush with Pine and Aspen  forest. But as you get down into the Salmon River valley it gets arid and high desert looking, it certainly doesn't look like salmon country much like the middle Columbia River. I'm sure there were salmon here at one point but I didn't have to ask. As we picnic ed in the City Park across from the City Hall and took in the river the left side of my brain said to little water, to many people, to far from the ocean to....darn hot, it was 88 as we had Heineken and Vienna Sausages with Swiss cheese.

But like Sloooowdotna Salmon is a river city, nobody has an exclusive on that deal. If you think we have the fish theme compulsion in Soldotna let me tell you, it spread or maybe we even stole it ourselves. Lotsa fish in the this river city.

So as we drove the streets we see Salmon is a little more of a working city than Hamilton. Hamilton is more lush and full of affluent retiree's of which we aren't one. But the Bitteroot river just blocks away is way prettier, quieter and cleaner. I'll show you what I mean.

I fish and then we walk our 3 miles every morning, it's the active lifestyle we've talked of. We've found several different river trails and a one hour bike ride that looks down on the river valley and then it drops down and  we ride along the river and canal's right back to our house. Because of the braided nature of the river and Montana stream access laws you can walk and fish virtually anywhere, I have yet to fish around a single person ....of course I've also yet to catch a fish.

So all of that is cool, metaphorically, it's been really hot here... But what isn't cool and which is something I don't know what to do about so maybe somebody can offer some advice. What isn't cool is my neighbor. She has no idea how rude she is when she goes to work and her yapping  Heinz 97 type dog sits in the window and barks all day. Now day time maybe I can handle but he barks all night long as well when she's in the house. How in the hell can somebody live like that. The dogs barks at me every time I leave the house, every time. Then to give you an idea of the hood here her next door neighbor has the year round yard sale going on so we have traffic and people walking around all the time.....yikes, maybe I'm just not a city guy and our experiment with civilization ain't going to work and we'll end up buying a house away from town...darn it, because theres something to be said about walking to the market and the river like we do everyday.

At the Saturday Market I met the ' Fly Guy ' . Chuck gave me good counsel and sold me some ultra expensive hand tied flies. And he even offered solace when he said that even the guides ( of which I'm gonna hire one ) are having trouble as the warm air = warm water = no bite and like every dedicated pescador he said it would get better and fall fishing will be red hot. In the meantime I'm using worms tomorrow at a new place I gotta drive to.

Finally, maybe, hopefully we're getting Century Link internet tomorrow so in a week or so I'll post video of a new song and I'd bet a few fish pics. Like everything it ain't what we're used to but right now nothing is....Hope everyone stays safe and happy.💚😎🐟🐠🎵🎵🎸🎸 OH, how's about that haircut ? At least I'm tucking my ear lobes into my shirt yet like my grandpa and my dad did.