August 2008

I’ve just returned from a quick camping trip to Montana.  My youngest son, Sam, lives and works in Bozeman so we loaded up all our camping gear and headed west last week.  A good audio book put us safely in Bozeman and ready for adventure.

 Sam had spent the weekend before up at South Meadow Lake above Ennis.  It’s about 1 1/2 hours from Bozeman including the long 4 wheel drive up the canyon road.  Arriving at the lake we found ourselves all alone in the campgrounds with trout jumping all over the place and eagles playing on the winds.  It was so beautiful!  We set up camp and proceeded to explore and pick up wood for our fire.  Sam has 2 dogs, Marley and Sky, who came along to protect us from bears and provide the free entertainment for the weekend.

 Sitting by the lake with a glass of wine while our dinner cooked on the open fire was perfection! We had nothing better to do than watch the lake, marvel at the full moon rising through the forest and enjoy getting caught up with Sam.  There’s something magical about sitting around the fire, being mesmerized by the flames, and letting go of everyday life stresses. 

 We spent Saturday hiking around the bay to get to the other side of the lake.  It’s basically a “C” shape wrapped around a tall rocky penisula so the back bay is hidden from view.  The wild flowers were in full bloom, almost as if all of them for the whole season were blooming together.  Early spring bluebells along with Indian Paintbrush and many more, some I had never seen before.  There were some serious snow fields still on the upper peaks and a beautiful waterfall all the way across the lake.  Sam spent time casting his line out but never caught any fish. It didn’t seem to matter, the pace of the day was all about having nothing better to do than follow the trail up and around to see what there was on the other side of the mountain.

We only had 2 days to enjoy the lake but I know Sam will be back.  And I’ll be there with him in my mind, maybe I’ll find the same peace thinking of him there that I knew when I sat by the lake.

Yesterday morning I opted for a bike ride instead of my usual morning walk.  Gail was out of town and I was on my own.  I went out to a local park that has a 7 mile loop through meadows and woods.  My goal was to work on my pedaling and shifting, I’m not very efficient at either one and frankly I’m still a little leary of my clipless pedals and shoes so the practice on a safe and quiet trail is good for me.

 I was essentially alone on the trail, one other biker, an inline skater and a photographer trying to catch the birds on the tall grasses.  It was a beautiful morning with lots of animals moving around and I was really enjoying the ride.  As I rode out of the sun and into the shade I suddenly was aware that the shape on the side of the trail was a big white tailed doe, just watching me approach.  I had visions of colliding with her when she would decide to bolt so I slowed down and called good morning to try and get her to make her move. She waited until I was about 8 feet away, already unclipped and ready to stop, before she leaped across in front of me and dashed away into the trees. 

Although deer are numerous in our area and we often see them on the property it is still a thrill to get so close to one and share that eye to eye contact for just a moment.  I hope I never get to the point that these encounters fail to make me hold my breath and wonder at the beauty of life surrounding us.