Back Home Again: Montana Priorities (trout fishing, backpacking)

I loved Hawai'i, I really did. But not as much as I love my home along the Continental Divide in the Rockies of southwest Montana. It's a tough place to leave in summer, and first two priorities upon arrival: troutfishing and backpacking.

Check the first one off, on day 1:

The Big Hole River fished well on dry flies, lots of brown and rainbow trout rising to small caddis flies and a white aquatic moth. Still, when you want to bring one fresh trout home for supper after a morning of fishing, tie on a stonefly nymph (this beautiful imitation was tied by friend Don Kieffer I think. Or was it Mike Morris? Or Chad Okrusch? At any rate, THANK YOU you guys for feeding my habit.):

Next day, a few nights of backpacking. Strangely enough, although I can see it to the south from my house, I had never backpacked into the Highland Mountains:

We hiked up from Hell's Canyon, above the old Forest Service Guard Station (it's available for rent):

This area is dry and therefore below treeline--sagebrush prairie, ideal habitat for this big-eared Mule Deer doe:

MollyTheDog & I found a campsite on an elevated point of dry ground, near the creek but breezy so the mosquitoes (the air is thick with 'em this year, following that long wet spring):

We built a fire and cooked a good supper:

And fell asleep cooled by the breeze from a snow cornice on the ridge above our camp:

Hiking upward through the twisted krumholz and avalanche chutes, I could see the cones of Whitebark Pines shining dark against the blue sky:

 A squirrel had cut a cone but not harvested it, so I enjoyed the pine nuts, a tasty if sticky treat:

In the woods, Heartleaf Arnica (Arnica cordifolia) carpeted the ground and Fritillary Butterflies find these flowers especially tasty:

Also in the woods, the occasional Pine White Butterfly:

There was lots of elk sign (such as this big wallow) and though we sent one huge bull crashing from it's bed I was not quick enough with the camera:

Several other widlflowers bloomed in the woods, including Trappers Tea (Ledum glandulosum):

And Green-flowered Wintergreen (Pyrola chlorantha):

As we began to rise above tree-line, wet meadows were still full of spring flowers such as these Shooting Stars:

In transitional (between wet and dry) areas, there was Arrowleaf Groundsel (Senecio triangularis ):

In drier areas, Silvery Lupine (Lupinus argenteus) dominated the floral community:

In the driest and rockiest areas, the star of the moment was Lanceleaf Stonecrop (Sedum lanceolatum):

Froma meadow leading to the saddle between Table Mountain and another, unnamed, ridge, you can see why this mountain deserves its name:

We surprised a herd of Rocky Mountain Big-horn Sheep. There were 12 in all (8 ewes and 4 kids); here are some of them:

Pausing to watch the sheep, my binoculars found a flock of robins mobbing something on the meadow past the roll of the ridge where we could not see. I thought maybe it was a Peregrine Falcon or other predator, so we hike closer. It was a Coyote, mousing and seemingly oblivious to the pesky birds. MollyTheDog and I hunkered down into some krumholz where I plucked a blade of grass and used it to make a high-pitched "dying rabbit" squeal. Coyote approached steadily but cautiously, coming to within about 60 yards before it scented us and bolted:

We continued our steep scramble up Table Mountain, pausing for breath occasionally, and taking in this view of Red Mountain:

When MollyTheDog finds a snow field, she KNOWS what to do. Oh the joy of life's simple pleasures!:

In the Alpine meadows and "rock gardens" of Table Mountain, I was pleased to find some new (to me) varieties of wildflowers. Who would think that the flora would be so different from the Pintler, just a few miles to the west? New species included Alpine Buttercup (Ranunculus eschscholtzii; lower left yellow flower):

Globeflowers (Trollius laxus):

A variety of Phlox probably kelseyi var. Missoula:

And Old Man of the Mountain (Tetraneuris grandiflora):

Familiar, though always welcome, were  Moss Campion (Silene acaulis), shown here with a Tortoiseshell Butterfly:

Tiny Alpine Forget-me-not (Eritrichium nanum), shown here with a buttercup for size comparison:

 Cushion Buckwheat (Eriogonum ovalifolium):

Cushion Phlox (Phlox pulvinata) shown here with a humblebee:

Once on top, it was time to hang out at the peak monument, enjoy lunch, and engage in soulful contemplation. Great views of course, including a view north to Butte (left) and the Berkeley Pit/Continental Pit copper mines (right). That's my house in the upper left of the photo ;-)

A hike down and back to camp, a good night's sleep, then the hike out. Back in Butte, were treated to an evening thunderstorm and a rainbow:

I think I already found that pot o' gold...

Roving the Big Island (Hawai'i)

I am loath to leave Montana in the summer: perfect temperatures of 80 deg F day/40 night; excellent trout fishing & backpacking; clear blue skies; and when rain does come it's usually in the form of a rousing thunderstorm. But daughter Emily has been in Kona, Hawai'i, since May working on her graduate research, so Mrs Rover & I wanted to see her work and have a good visit.  It's a wonderful amazing place, and we are grateful for the adventures Emily has led us on through competitive swimming, college in Boston MA and now Vancouver WA, and research in Hawai'i.

Yellow Tang Research

Syd Kraul of Pacific Planktonics generously shared his facility as a place for Emily to set up her research. She is studying the collection and treatment of Yellow Tang (Zebrasoma flavescens), the "most popular saltwater aquarium fish," in order to improve conservation/fishing practices and reduce mortality (Mila Zinkova pic of Yellow Tang on Kona Reef):

She went scuba diving with a local fisherman several times to collect fish, set up three pools with cages and plumbing to supply a flow of seawater, developed feeding techniques (fresh leafy algae), and is performing various tests to monitor parasites and stress etc. Here are the pools:

And here is feeding time:

Life is a beach,

and we visited a bunch of them from Pololu (north coast) to Punaluu (southeast coast). A big surprise: Hawai'i is relatively uncrowded. Easily reached places with exellent snorkeling such as Two-Step Beach (photos to come, as they are from an underwater film camera) are full of popular, but even some of the sandy, good swimming beaches near Kona are fairly empty on weekdays:

For sheer strangeness, a trip to Punaluu ("Black Sand Beach") was well worth the drive:

Be sure to enjoy the local bread after an hour or two of snorkeling:

And for sheer remoteness, take the hike to a place like Pololu. Heed the warning signs (lots of lawyers in Hawai'i?):

Enjoy the view on the trail down:

Enjoy the mist as it blows in from the wild Pacific Ocean:

On the beach, watch for exotic sea creatures like these tiny Portuguese Man o' Wars:

And even stranger, the creature that hangs with (and feeds upon) venomous Portuguese Man o' Wars, the nudibranch Glaucus atlanticus:

Green sea turtles are doing extremely well in Hawai'i, and they are a common sight while snorkeling or hanging out on the beaches:

Watch where you put your hands around rocks, coral, and tidal pools. Sea urchins are abundant, and there are other dangers such as this 5-foot+ moray eel:

 

Island creatures are famous examples of Darwinian evolution (see e.g. "Darwin's finches"), and Emily pointed out the way these Hawaiian crabs have evolved to perfectly match the color of the dark lava:

Like Montana's rivers, the Hawaiian shoreline is all public, with access points well marked (a good guide book such as Hawaii The Big Island Revealed: The Ultimate Guidebook is essential):

Pele, the Volcano Goddess,

created the Hawaiin Islands, and no visit is complete without seeing Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park. We lucked out with an exceptional park ranger/guide, a high school science teacher and Hawaiian native, who mixed his informative tour with animated stories that Grandma told and even a traditional prayer-song of thanks for the beautiful day. He explained the process by which vegetation colonizes lava flows:

And told us about the active Kilauea vent:

Hike around the rain forest of the park and enjoy the exotic vegetation:

We visited many of the lava flows, including the relatively new Mauna Ulu that flowed to the sea:

The massive Iki caldera:

And other sites along the Chain of Craters road. At the end of the road is the Holei Sea Arch:

Where the coast is lined with formidable cliffs:

My favorite site along the road was a hike out to Pu'u Loa petroglyphs, carved into the rocks by generations of First Hawaiian People over hundreds of years:

Kona Coffee's

reputation (and cost) is well-deserved given the unique weather that produces its tremendous flavor and the intense labor it takes to grow and process the beans. Many of the coffee farms, like this co-op, offer informative tours, samples, and of course merchandise:

In addition to coffee beans:

Every farm seems to have the obligatory donkee:

As well as macadamia nuts (again, with free samples--crack your own!):

Food and Drink

Well, Mai Tai's on the beach at sunset are a no-brainer, of course:

But there's also my favorite ("Go figure," sez Mrs Rover), the Kona Brew Pub:

Superb beer in a friendly setting:

Also good food and a very smart merchandising plan--you wait for a table next to the t-shirt shop:

For fresh fish, cook your own! We enjoyed ahi tuna, black marlin steaks, and this lovely filet of ono ("wahoo")--the tastiest fish I've ever put in my mouth (well, maybe it's equal with bluefish grilled fresh from the north Atlantic). Buy it fresh off the boat at the Bite Me! market just north of Kona:

Aloha!

 

Skywatch Friday: Hawaii and Montana

We visited daughter Emily who is doing research in Marine Biology near Kona on Hawai'i ("Big Island"). Lots of good memories (see separate post): snorkeling, hiking to remote beaches, touring the volcano/lava flows, and visiting the coffee farms. Ah, and the sunsets, whether from the rugged north coast:

From our hotel beach:

Or from the local Mai Tai bar with daughter Emily and Mrs Rover:

Still, it was nice to back home in southwest Montana, where I headed to the mountains, backpacking in the Highlands just south of our home in Butte. High elevation, crisp clear air, snow cornices, and the view of Red Mountain from Table Mountain:

And hanging out on Table Mtn with MollyTheDog for lunch and soulful contemplation:

Skywatch Friday: Hot Montana Rainbows

I love my fellow Butteians and their sense of weather. No complaints on the -30 deg F day when the air is calm and the sky so bright it hurts your eyes. No complaints on the 15th consecutive day of cold June rain. But, but but but: first July day it hits 80 deg F and everyone you meet complains about the unbearable heat.

The heat also lifts moisture into towering, photogenic clouds. And whatever goes up, must come down. Some as "dry rain," properly known as virga:

But the rains have also blessed us this past week with more rainbows than you could shake a stick at. Here are a few:

 

"Sure hope it cools down. 's been over 80 every day for more'n'a week, just too darned hot..."