Christine September 1st, 2010
Near the shore on Flathead Lake,
the best rocks shimmer under the surface
while the water reflects back late summer sun
and plovers hop along beside me on a rough run.
I like finding stones while drifting in my kayak
to look at them, but then carefully place
the brightly colored jewels back in the lake
to their rightful spot in the water mosaic.
Christine August 27th, 2010
winter not far off
ignore those dry falling leaves
lake water glistens
~~~~~~
A paddle north at Yellow Bay on Flathead Lake’s east side two evenings ago. Sky Watch Friday is here and thanks to all who make it a fun time.
Christine August 17th, 2010
Some of the most lovely river canoeing and kayaking is only about an hour away from us. We drove up to Flathead lake on Sunday hoping to put in somewhere, but the white caps and the numbers of people on the lake detoured us up the Swan River drainage. We only drove just a few miles to put in at a a small river park. There was no one there except the fleeting glimpse of another kayaker just taking off upstream.
The day was warm but not unduly so. Still, the sun was not to be forgotten, so on went our sunscreen and off we paddled up river too. Downstream, right behind us at the boating access, was the dam and restricted white water rapids, so what was the intrepid paddler to do? Here, as you can see, the river is more like a small lake. The camera doesn’t really like that much sunshine but wasn’t the day dazzling?
As we paddled up river there were dozens upon dozens of Bohemian Waxwings feeding on a mayfly hatch along the river banks. Their acrobatic sweeps kept me amused the whole time. Ducks complained at us and kingfishers scolded us even more. We stopped once to stretch our legs only to find the Belted Kingfisher’s leftover lunch. Way leftover. They do like their crayfish.
Lazy afternoon and lazy water; it was slow going further up river where there was more current. Mostly we just meandered along.
The Swan – mountains wherever you look on either side and soon they will have snow up high once again. For now, we will continue to enjoy those lingering, yet waning summer days. Can’t think of anywhere else I’d rather be.
Christine August 12th, 2010
SWF is here. Thanks to all who make it possible!
When you see the sky reflected
blue
in calm water
pillow deep clouds passing over
what do you think about?
Christine August 8th, 2010
Along the mountain trail up in BC (where we had our family reunion) were thousands of wild flowers. The Paintbrush was in full glory. Matthew hauled both little boats down to the small lake the first evening we arrived. Summit Lake lies in a steep descent below the dormitory-style center where we were all staying. The trail was narrow with quite a sudden drop in places so you had to have a good reason to hike down it. My Dad and Auntie came down the trail with us at one point but then they had to go back up… they did okay with the climb — sturdy stock and my Aunt Flo had new knees!
The boats were either sitting among the wild flowers or paddling in the lake with us. We never would have been able to cart the Red Raven down that trail, so these small (i.e. light) boats came in handy.
Here is an evening shot of the lake and the surrounding mountains. And, I do mean surrounding.
Christine August 3rd, 2010
Just insert the daily morning litany of loons here and you will enjoy the complete experience.
Christine July 13th, 2010
Here are more photos of our paddle up in the Missions. I wanted also to show off the spray skirt which I made a couple weeks ago for the Red Raven. Matthew cut out the pattern and sewed on the fasteners. So, it was more like we made it together. You can click on these to enlarge the photos. A spray skirt helps keep water out of the canoe, but more, it shields the boat from wind resistance. We tried it out in some hefty gusts and it worked very well.
In the springtime wind is usually not an issue out on the water, but as soon as July hits then one really seems to be fighting it on the lakes around Montana, especially Flathead Lake. Early morning is best but sometimes we simply can’t make it; for instance, McDonald Lake started to get windy about 11 a.m. We will be sewing a front and a rear piece later for the Raven, but the mid-section is the most important piece for us now. Just a reminder, the boat is 18 feet long.
Here I am looking up at a very large waterfall behind McDonald Lake. With all the snow melting it was really rushing and loud! I kept my eye out for bears but didn’t see any, thank goodness. I love knowing they are here but I don’t want to have any kind of encounter with them. I am totally and completely respectful of the fact that they are on top of the food chain when we are in their space, especially when I’m happily munching down on my turkey sandwich…
There is not much snow left up on these mountains but then they get the full sun. Majestic Mission Mountains.
Christine July 11th, 2010
These photos were taken late last week. We canoed McDonald Lake in the Mission Mountains outside of town on one of the warmer days we’ve had so far this summer. Was it not a beautiful day? (I don’t have pics from the National Folk Fest yet because our camera battery went dead yesterday. Someone left the camera on ~ I will have to beg photos from Ian’s sweetie instead. So, those photos will be upcoming.) Thus…. let’s back track a little to this beautiful paddle we made just twelve miles from our house.
McDonald Lake is part of the Grizzly habitat management region of the Mission Mountain Wilderness and the lake will be closed in a few days so the bears can feed freely in their range without human interference. We paddled all the way to the end of the lake and as we rounded each corner there was another stunning view of the mountains. The lake, which is also a dam, was very high due to all the rain we had in June. There were very few places to land so we stayed in the canoe most of the time except for our lunch which we ate on one very soggy island!
Everywhere we looked were towering cliffs overhead and small waterfalls could be heard in the ravines.
Truly a remarkable day in many ways. It was so quiet! The experience of being in the wilderness so close by to our home was well worth the cost of the Tribal permit. And, I don’t mind at all that this spot will be closed soon. The bears need their respite from the outside world….
Christine June 29th, 2010
From on the water at Lake Alva looking towards the Bob Marshall wilderness.
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