Butt Burning Jaunt

I went hiking with Lisa, Helen and her dog, Gracie, yesterday. Patrol Mountain Lookout was our destination. Ten miles round trip with an elevation gain of 2600 ft. Those 2600 ft were gained in about 2.5 miles and there's just two words - butt burner. On a scale of 1-5 with 5 being most strenuous, I would put this at a 4. We climbed it in about three and a half hours but could be done in three. Two and a half going down. We went slow and steady.

Lisa and I met Helen and Gracie in Augusta, MT at Mel's Diner where you can get a cup of coffee for .50 and a fresh homemade cinnamon roll for $1.50. Delicious!
We reached the trail head around 10AM. Perfect timing.

I had attempted Patrol Mtn. last October but couldn't reach the summit due to weather. The mountain was socked in with clouds and knew a hike up the mountain was not worth it without a view.

Yesterday was a beautiful weather day and perfect for hiking. Clear, blue Montana sky and mid 70's.
Starting out on the hike takes you about 2.5 miles on flat, tree-covered trail which follows Straight Creek. The trail forks off to the right and leads to Straight Creek. Water shoes are necessary if you don't want wet boots for the remainder of the hike. The water is refreshingly cool on the feet.
We kept our watershoes at the creek which is easy to do in Montana. No one has ever bothered anything I have "stored" along the trail. Please note, I have never left my pack or food unattended due to bears.

Once you cross the creek, it is truly all uphill from there. The trail is beautiful, mostly tree-lined and easy to follow. A great resting or snack place is in Honeymoon Basin and from there you go above the tree line. In Honeymoon Basin there is a small natural spring on your right as you head to Patrol Lookout. There are three spruce trees and if you look beyond them there is an obvious trail uphill which takes you directly to the spring.
Once you return to the Patrol Lookout trail, there's a very large tree trunk to rest on.

Once you depart Honeymoon Basin the Lookout is about 30 minutes uphill and out of the tree line. Views are breathtaking. There's a Forest Service Lookout at the top and if you go during the summer months someone will most likely be there. Sam was there with her dog, Riley. She has been "living" at the lookout for the past 12 summers. Not something I could do but would like to spend a weekend up there.

It was an awesome day to be out in the woods. Good therapy. Truly a wilderness orgasm.

Mouse-capades!

Yesterday afternoon I donned my mighty gloves and started out on my search for mutant mice or bug spray soaked mice.

I had to move some extra baseboards out of the way before I could start my search. I removed each piece one by one. Finally, I see two little mice huddled against the remaining stack of baseboard.
I take a board and nudge the first and it squeaked. Whack! Next mouse, nudge, squeak, whack!

I search other corners of the basement and I see another. Whack!

Three down, two to go. I'm sweating bullets.

I go back to where I killed the first two and see another mouse snuggled in between a stud and pipe. Just its tail is sticking out. I try to place the board on its tail and drag it out but no success. Hmm, what to use? Got it! I'll get some pliers and pluck the sucker out that way. Pinch the mouse on the back and pull it out. Whack!

Four down, one to go. Can't find the other so I start my clean up process by placing all carcasses in a grocery bag for proper disposal. Next, I swept the floor to remove all mouse evidence so I know if more come around. Then I placed three mouse traps along that wall because I just know that fifth one will scamper this way soon.

During my cleanup process, I dropped a quart of black paint on the floor and of course, the lid came off and black paint oozed onto the floor. Shit!!!

Fast forward to this morning. After feeding the dog, I took a trip downstairs to check out the traps. Success! There's one flipped upside down. As I approach, I notice a mouse sitting next to the trap but then realized its tail was in the trap. I quickly turn around to grab my trusty board. Whack! Number five! I won this round of whack-a-mouse.

Until the next family moves in.

If You Trap Mother Mouse, Watch for Babies

I live on 20 acres in the middle of nowhere Montana, by choice. I live far enough outside of town to still be close enough. With country living comes wildlife, snowdrifts +5 ft, dust and no real protection from the elements (eg. no trees)

Growing up, I was a city girl or a major metropolitan city girl. Lived in the same city for 40 frigging years (wish I would have left sooner but that's another story). Never had a mouse problem, worry of rattlesnakes or even hearing coyote yelp each night.

Mice, I really don't like dealing with them, seeing them or hearing them chew especially in my house. Rattlesnakes, on the other hand, I can kill without hesitation and be calm as a cucumber (thankfully only outside). Mice, I'm ready to jump on a chair and scream. Coyote can give me the creeps in the middle of the night but I know they aren't going to come carry me away.

We dealt with our first round of mice back in July and eliminated twelve. Whew, I'm glad that's over. Well, two days ago I hear scratching in the garage somewhere on the shelves. Obviously, the mouse is trapped in something because the scratching continued for two days and finally subsided. By the way, mouse traps remain set at all times in the house since our battle in July.

I started scoping out the basement for any "signs" of mice because I had cleaned the basement thoroughly so I would know who's been where. I notice a bunch of insulation in a corner that wasn't there before. I walk to the opposite side of the basement and see one good sized mouse with its neck snapped. Woo hoo!!! Empty the trap, reset trap and take carcass to trash. When flipping mouse into the plastic bag I noticed that perhaps this was a momma mouse. Hmmm...

Next morning I go downstairs to same corner and there's more insulation there. Uh, oh! Look between the studs and there's a "bunch" of mice bundled together wriggling and writhing. What do I do? Leave them? Set traps closer to them? Here's what I come up with: put on gloves and grab the little guys by the tail and place them one by one in a plastic grocery bag. What the hell was I thinking??? When I first attempt this humane way, I got all squeamish because they started to squirm and squeal when I grabbed a tail. EEEEEEEK!

I return to the garage (stopped to listen for anymore scratching which I conclude has ceased) and I notice the can of bug spray. Yes! This will stun them and I will be able to grab all of them.
Well, when spraying mice with bug spray, they scatter! One mouse got so coated with bug spray that it looked like an albino. Others escaped from their hidey-hole. I didn't catch one. So, now I have five baby mice running around in my basement and they haven't gone to the traps yet. I guess I must go find them. If you hear a loud, blood curdling scream, it is me and I'm looking at a mutant mouse right in the eyes.

25 Years of Being an Adult

Labor Day weekend I went back to St. Louis for my 25th high school reunion with much hesitation. I made a pact with my best friend, Gina, from 2nd grade that if she went I would go also.
We hemmed and hawed for quite awhile. The breaking point for me was when I could find airfare for under $200 and well, I guess I did want to go since I searched for airfare.

Gina came over to my parent's house to get ready so it felt like high school times all over again. Do I look okay, does this dress make me look fat, can you help me with my necklace, do these shoes go...

We were both very nervous about going, however, Gina was totally freaked out. There was a happy hour the night before which I went to and was able to re-introduce myself to unrecognizable classmates and Facebook helped also. Gina was afraid she wouldn't know anyone. I reassured her that there were many people at the happy hour that I had to ask who they were. I don't understand why Gina was so nervous since she was one of the most popular girls in high school and has a rocking hot body.

We entered the reunion and my stomach did flips. Immediately, I needed some hard liquor to calm the nerves especially after I saw the guy I dated after my 10 year reunion. I never forgot about him and was really hoping to see him. I wasn't sure if he would talk to me but gave me a big grin and hugged me. Thankfully, I knew the evening was not going to be awkward.

I never imagined I could have so much fun! I talked non-stop to old friends and also to those I barely knew in high school. I received tons of compliments which was a great ego boost. I often have self-esteem issues but after hearing very sincere, genuine compliments (or perhaps I'm just a big old fool and gullible) I figured I wasn't half bad.

The reunion went off without a hitch except for one girl passing out around midnight. She hadn't had too much to drink but just fainted. 911 was called and an ambulance came and carted her off. The next day she posted on her Facebook page that she just fainted, no seizure. Perhaps an alcohol allergy or low blood sugar.

We shut the reunion down at 2AM and about ten of us went to Denny's for breakfast at 3AM. I got back to my parent's at 3:45AM. I lost my voice I talked so much.

If you are ever in doubt of attending a reunion, do it! At the 25 year reunion there's no big competition of what you have achieved or how much money you make unlike the ten year mark. People have mellowed out by the time you're in your 40's.
It doesn't matter if you are fat, thin, bald, buff, flabby or out of style. No one there to judge. There's more apologies and compliments handed out than anything else.

Driving jaunt in Montana

Mentioned in my previous post I passed a covered wagon on my drive to Billings. Lo and behold on my return drive from Billings I passed this dude again this time getting a not so good photo but a photo nevertheless.

I was on Hwy 87 heading north when the pickup towing a fifth wheel came to a crawl and I do mean crawl. Speed limit is 70mph and we were doing 0-5mph, in a no passing zone and going uphill. Due to the monstrosity in front of me I could not see what was the issue. However, in my rear view mirror the traffic was lining up. All cars behind me were bobbing and weaving to try to understand the near standstill speed limit. I bobbed over towards the shoulder and could only see a shadow in the grass. Finally the pick up goes to pass and I say out loud "oh, it's the same covered wagon I passed last Wednesday". I had my camera handy because I had taken a picture of a sign in Ryegate, MT for my "Signs That Make Me Chuckle" album on Facebook.

I knew it would be difficult to get a photo as I passed so I got one of the rear and there was a website painted on the back. Once I downloaded the photos to my computer I was able to zoom in on the back of the wagon to find the website and here it is (drumroll not needed/necessary or warranted):
http://leehorselogger.com/

A Haunt - Denver Int'l Airport

I'm in the middle of my trek back to my hometown for my 25th high school reunion.

I have a new Blackberry phone, aka Crackberry, to play with. I also need a 12 year old to show me some tricks.

I actually started my trek yesterday. I drove to Billings to fly out since it was over $200 cheaper than Great Falls.
Anyhoo, while driving I passed a team of horses pulling a "covered wagon". In Montana, anything goes on the road. This was on a very busy two lane highway (by Montana standards). I couldn't believe my eyes. How would you like to hit horse shit at +75 mph?

Now for traveling and having a two hour layover you tend to witness some fabulous people watching and observing complete stupidity of the human population. Do people check their brains at their front door as they leave their respective homes or check them with their luggaga?

I watched an elderly woman fallas she exited the moving sidewalk. I guess she couldn't hear the friendly recording that she was approaching the end. Her friends did stop to help her along with a helpful passerby. However, there were two elderly women getting close and one began to shriek "Excuse me! We are coming! We are coming!". Complete panic on her face. I was waiting for the "cotton top pile up" in concourse A.
Thankfully, helpful passersby got the fallen woman out of the way before catastrophe hit.

More later...

An Organized Jaunt to Corrugate Ridge

I was granted a "get out of jail free" card from my husband and I love him for that. Reason: My in-laws are in town.

I chose to utilize my free day with an organized hike with some friends and strangers. An early start was required due to: drive time to trail head, 18 mile hike and days are getting shorter here in Montana and there would be nothing worse than still walking in the woods without daylight (not my kind of fun).

I picked up Lisa at 6:15AM since she is on the way to Colleen's. We were told to arrive at Colleen's at 6:30 for omelettes (Colleen's early morning specialty and after seeing Julie & Julia, Colleen now understands that BUTTER is what makes it so yummy, delicious).
At 7:15 we meet others in a parking lot and head for the trail head outside of Choteau, MT towards Teton Ski Hill for Bruce Creek.

Colleen has a brand spanking new 2010 Subaru Outback which she couldn't wait to get out into the mountains so she offered to chauffeur me, Lisa and Sandy. Sandy lives in Columbia Falls but will drive any distance to participate in some of the more challenging organized hikes.

As a side note, I don't care for the organized hikes because typically there are individuals who sign up and are NOT physically fit for any type of hike no matter how it is rated. I am not on these hikes to assist the unfit liars. I sound harsh but I'm not out in the woods to pamper, baby, carry or nurse the unfit. If someone gets injured, no problem, I'm happy to help in any way I can.
Now back to our regularly scheduled program.

The car ride, to and from, is just as much fun as the hike, if not more. The things we talk about are just hysterical. I don't care much for the small talk with strangers once on the trail because I enter my zen time.
Some of the funny lines from our ride:
Are you a member of the gorilla society?
Do you have a Coco connection?
I want hot, juicy meat.

9:30AM we arrive at the trail head to utilize the facilities then don our boots and packs for our trek to Corrugate Ridge.
10AM hitting the trail. 12:20PM sit for lunch. 3PM we are above the Crazy Creek Pass in the Bob Marshall Wilderness looking onto Mt. Patrick Gass, Corrugate Ridge.
Talk about feeling on top of the world. Truly paradise.

It took us only 3.5 hrs to get back to the car with VERY few stops. Typically it doesn't take nearly as long to get out as it does going in. Why? We aren't stopping to gawk at the scenery, take pictures, or comment on interesting sites along the way: mushrooms, flowers, plants, rocks, scat, etc.

The end of the hike is the icing on the cake, the cherry on top. We relax with a beverage of choice and nosh on salty, crunchy snacks. I have acquired a taste for Chelada Bud Light. Bud Light beer with Clamato, lime and salt. So very refreshing.
If there's a creek nearby and the air isn't too cold we plunge our feet, legs and knees in the icy cold mountain stream. Today, it was a bit chilly so we chose to hang by the cars.

We get back in Colleen's car at 8:30 for our return home. We are ravenous so discussing where we could eat in Choteau. Being small town we were certain what few places were available would close at 9PM. Colleen high tails it out of the mountains which isn't the safest way to drive due to all the deer that could pop out at us at any moment. As Colleen maneuvers the car on the gravel road, Lisa and Sandy watch for deer, I stare at my cell phone waiting for one tick in order to call and place an order. Finally! One tick! I call Elk Bar at 8:51PM to ask what time they close. 9PM is the answer so I ask if I promise to be there in under 15 minutes could I please place an order. Sure! Three cheeseburgers, please. Lucky us. They were obviously closed when we arrived but there sat our cheeseburgers waiting. We drove to another bar in town which was still open to eat our burgers and enjoy a cold beer (Colleen drank root beer).

What a fabulous way to end the day with great friends. Our minds full of the beautiful scenery from the day and our bellies full from a greasy cheeseburger. We had another hour on the road before we returned back to Great Falls. The time was filled by rehashing our day and talking about future adventures.