So, the next few months will be a frantic blur of finishing school, getting packed/moved, taking a few fire classes, and getting in some last moments with the family before spending the summer in CA.

School is rapidly winding down, at least for this semester. I finished my last paper yesterday, and now only have a few finals to deal with. It’s really hard to believe that there are only really two weeks of school left before the winter break. While I’m looking forward to the classes I’ll be taking next semester, I’m also getting worn down by coursework. I’m awfully close to reaching that point where I really don’t want to write papers on topics I don’t care much about. I guess it’s all part if getting the education and earning that piece of paper.

87Mike flying on through the smoke

So I found this image on the Facebook page of fellow SWLO helitacker Jason Abul Jubein, and I thought I’d share it. I’m not sure when the picture was taken, but I think it was a member of the Missoula Rural FD flying in an NG Blackhawk who took it. In any event, it’s images like this that remind my why I like working in western Montana so much.

In other news, here’s a few more pics from the Swan in the fall. It’s grand to be in Montana in the fall. I’d find it hard to live somewhere without larch trees in the mountains.

Cheers.

Mom and Dad's house

Hemlock Basin

Daughter of the Sun

School is going well, and I’ve decided to make this year my last, and just finish the History BA instead of going on to the Geography MA. It just costs too much to go to school, and I really should be looking at getting a permenant job. That makes the short-term much less stressful - now I just need to find a job for next summer… I’ve got a few applications out for helitack jobs, and hopefully I’ll hear back from them by the end of November.

Here’s a few random pics from last week in the Swan:

Swan Range viewed from Hwy 83

Sign at the pullout on Hwy 83

The Swan Valley in the fall is something very special, with the larch turning as the mornings get crisp, and snow dusting the high mountains. The Swan isn’t the only place to look spectacular in the fall though. The Bitterroot Valley is also a sight to behold, as is the Blackfoot.

It’s my favorite time to be in western Montana, and is worth getting out and seeing on a sunny fall afternoon.

Turquoise Lake & Mount Shoemaker

To celebrate, this past weekend I went on a dayhike into the southern end of the Mission Mountains, to Turquoise Lake. It was about a 6 1/2 mile hike in, with about 2,000 feet of elevation gain from the trailhead to the highest point on the trail before dropping down into the lake. This was the first time since 2003 that I’d been into the Missions, and really the first time in more like 10-15 years that I’d been in the mountains just for fun. The last time I really visited the Missions I was working on several small fires in August of 2003, in the Hemlock basin just north of where I went on this trip.

Holland Peak (Swan Range) seen from Turquoise Lake. (Lace Lake in foreground)

As usual, I was reminded of why I love the Swan Valley (where I grew up) so much. There are very few places in the west where you can be a 2 1/2 hour walk from mountain lakes like this. Where my parents live is only about a 30 minute drive from the trailhead, so my entire journey (once out of Missoula and back home anyway) to the lake was about 3 hours long. The best part? I only saw 5 other people on the hike, and most of them where on the lower parts of the trail, going to Glacier Lake (1 1/2 mile hike) or Crescent/Heart lakes (about a 4 mile hike). There was only one other person at Turquoise, and he was way up the shoreline from where I was, so it was pretty much like being alone.

For more pics, visit my photojournal. I’ll have new pics uploaded today or tomorrow.