Yellowstone Clean-up
I spent a wonderful Saturday morning in Livingston, taking part in the annual Yellowstone River Cleanup, sponsored by Trout Unlimited. A friend and I worked the banks near Livingston, where we found a decent bit of trash, but these guys had a literal boatload.
The Yellowstone is one of the premier trout rivers in America and a damn fine piece of scenery to boot. It was great to participate in some small way.
A crew heads over the Ninth Street bridge to clean up along Ninth Street Island in Livingston.
Snake grass along the riverbank.
Powwow
We read a lot about the extreme poverty, drug abuse and violence that many American Indians live with.
But, like most sweeping generalizations, that’s not the whole truth. There are strong efforts being made to revitalize the admirable familial, spiritual culture that once was a vital part of many tribes and many Indians are a part of this effort. And the 37th annual Montana State University American Indian Council Powwow here in Bozeman, I think, is one example of that.
It was a privilege to be allowed to witness and photograph this celebration, to see people expressing themselves in this way. I’m the richer for it.
Angels With Four Feet
This is Buckaroo Sue Stone, 65, whom I photographed on the Crazy Cayuse Ranch near Powell, Wyo., back in early February.
Sue told me she was calving heifers on a ranch near Lewistown, Mont., in 2003 when she was attacked by one of the cows. The cow pinned Sue against a fence, broke eight of her ribs, punctured a lung, ruptured her spleen and put hairline fractures in her vertebrae before her dog Smokey raced in from a nearby pasture and attacked the heifer’s face until the cow backed off.
Smokey saved Sue’s life, but Sue still had to get up, get herself to the house and call herself an ambulance.
During a snowstorm.
And the ambulance’s brakes went out.
Sue made it to the hospital in Lewistown, spent four days in Intensive Care and was out working a herd of 350 cattle a month later.
“Sometimes,” she said, “angels have four feet.”
Yellowstone Perks
One of the best things about living in Bozeman is our close proximity to Yellowstone. So last Friday, the family and I celebrated Katie’s last day of spring break with a quick trip. Even in the rain, Yellowstone is amazing.
Winter Kill
I was walking along a local river with a friend recently when my friend’s dog uncovered this duck carcass. As spring arrives here in the northern Rockies, scavengers are finding food like this duck beneath the melting snows. Sad for the duck maybe, but happy for a coyote or fox.
Wildlife Biology
Jennifer Ramsey is a highly-regarded wildlife biologist working in the Bozeman office of Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Also a veterinarian, Ms. Ramsey’s job includes necropsy on wild animal carcasses like the wolf pictured above. She’s looking for possible disease outbreaks, among other things, that can be checked before they get out of hand.
These pictures were made for FWP and are in the current issue of their magazine, Montana Outdoors.
I Don’t Fish
I’m not proud of this, living as I do near several world class, blue-ribbon trout streams: I don’t fish.
I tried to learn when I first arrived in Montana about 15 years ago, but I got skunked for an entire summer. And as much as I enjoy standing in beautiful surroundings throwing fuzzy hooks all over the place, it just wasn’t enough for me without at least occasionally catching a fish. Hell, a bite would have been something. Besides, I told myself, I can spend tons of money on photography, who needs fishing equipment?
So I was elated to meet and photograph renowned fishing guide Pat Straub a few weeks ago for Big Sky Journal. Pat is a great guy and we had a blast working together on the Milesnick Ranch north of Belgrade.
And Pat didn’t make fun of me even once. Thanks, Pat.
Chevy Runs Deep
Last week I had the distinct pleasure of meeting 97-year-old Ernest Hoffman, shown here with his new 2012 Chevy Cruze. Mr. Hoffman and I were working together to make pictures for Danhoff Chevrolet, where he has been buying Chevys since 1946. “I started on a Chevrolet and I always liked ’em. That’s all there is to it.”
Mr. Hoffman says his first car was a 1927 Chevy Coupe, and with the exception of a 1932 Ford and a Pontiac Bonneville, he has owned nothing by Chevys ever since. He was a mechanic for Danhof for two 12-year stints, retiring in 1986 at the age of 72, but engines have changed a lot since then. “I don’t even work on my own anymore. I look under the hood and I slam it back shut.”
Instead, he says he started a small engine repair shop when he retired, and that still gives him something to do. “I fix a few now and then yet.”
Champion of Owls
Here’s Denver Holt, whom I met and photographed in 2008 tromping through the brush near Missoula’s airport looking for long-eared owls, and leading a field trip from some local high school students.
Mr. Holt was recently named a “Champion of Owls” by some of his peers at the 10th annual International Festival of Owls in Houston, Minn.
In a recent story, the Missoulian said Mr. Holt’s Owl Research Institute has been researching owls throughout North America for more than 25 years. And they quoted Owl Festival Coordinator Karla Bloem as saying, “Denver stands out head and shoulders in North America for getting the public involved with wildlife.”
High praise, well deserved.
A Real Mother
Denise Malloy is one of my favorite people on the planet. She’s bright, funny and genuine. And she’s compiled her best columns and blog posts into a book coming out near the beginning of April, A Real Mother. It was great to make some portraits of Denise the other day for her book and promotional uses. Best of luck, Denise.
Thomas Lee True West 