Some of you may remember that the Amazing Sleeping Man (ASM) and I have Epic ski passes this year–we can ski at all Vail properties with a single pass. Vail is having a big anniversary, and to honor their beginnings, they gave a huge discount to military members and veterans. Since our lift tickets are…
Category: Life is Good!
Putting the Wild in Wilderness Research
On an unusually warm and beautiful (if windy) Bitterroot morning, I hiked up Blodgett Canyon trail with wildlife biologist Rebecca Mowry (Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks) and three fellow volunteers to maintain a fisher research site. This is a joint project between Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks and the Defenders of Wildlife. Volunteers from local…
Happy Thanksgiving!
I’m grateful for every day, but today the entire USA gives thanks together. What am I grateful for? Glad you asked! My new creative career as an author All my wonderful readers! My husband, the Amazing Sleeping Man The rest of my family My Team Rubicon family My friends and community here in Montana and around…
Where in the World is AM now?
Believe it or not, Las Vegas. Anyone who knows me also knows Vegas is not my kind of place. Loud, smoky, too many people, too much crime, etc. But there was a book marketing conference, so off we went. Yes, the Amazing Sleeping Man went too, which is even more surprising than me going there….
Hiking Chaffin Butte
We usually hike the Bitterroot Mountains. With fall bringing cooler temperatures, we can hike the Sapphire Mountains across the valley and enjoy seeing them in all their glory. Chaffin Butte is very short but steep and strenuous. The trail is rocky and doesn’t have nearly enough switchbacks; my hiking poles came in very handy on the…
Chainsaw Operations with Team Rubicon Disaster Response
For the last week, I’ve been deployed to New Bern, North Carolina with Team Rubicon to help Hurricane Florence survivors clean up. Florence isn’t in the news anymore, but there’s still plenty of work to be done. I had the great fortune to work with an outstanding, fun group of sawyers to remove hazard trees….
Winter Is Coming
GoT reference? No. Winter in Montana reference. We’ve changed the furnace filter, pulled the hoses off the outside faucets, and today, we burned slash. The Amazing Sleeping Man calls it “Praying to the Snow Gods” and I prefer a more practical approach. No matter what, winter is coming. The mornings are below 32 degrees F,…
Fall Hiking – Blodgett Canyon Overlook
Fall in the Bitterroot Mountains is magical. The colors are bright and beautiful, the temperatures are perfect for hiking, and the crowds are gone. Not that it’s ever that crowded here, but it’s even better now. We hiked the Blodgett Canyon Overlook trail on Tuesday. It’s a mere 1.5 miles and 400-foot elevation gain, with…
Hiking Sweathouse Falls
One of the best things about living in the Bitterroot Mountain–a beautiful hike is never far away. Yesterday, the Amazing Sleeping Man and I hiked up to Sweathouse Falls. It’s a fairly easy hike, 2.5 miles with less than a 1,500 ft elevation gain, but it’s lovely. The biggest challenge of this trail is starting…