Fall 2016

Tuning in to Yellowstone’s wolves. The alarm shrills in the frigid morning air. I work my way, hands first like a mole, from the synthetic tunnel of my sleeping bag, and poke my head out of the tent. The moon has vanished…

Trophy trout, heavy-handed cops, and small-town hospitality. A Madison River fishing story. Kind of. I leave early on this particular Friday, bumping into Boston Steve, whom I’d recently met. Steve’s a maniacal fly…

Ethics in sport.  Surely elk-hunting is good for elk. Otherwise we’d have to defend killing as sport.  Climbing in the dark against icy wind, after a tiring day that had shown me no elk, I saw antler tips before the bull…

A fishing guide's dilemma. It’s a fairly typical fall day on the Yellowstone River. We’d managed a few whitefish, a few trout. I’d told my one and only joke and it had gotten mixed reviews. We saw a bald eagle. We saw some…

Winning honor (if not companionship). It’s Saturday night, late, dark, and chilly, with dry leaves rustling on creaking tree branches. And as the reality of the season sets in, single people everywhere begin the annual…

Montana FWP explains the delisting.“We didn’t work on this for over 30 years to see the bear disappear.”That was the initial response from our regional bear expert Kevin Frey when asked what he wanted people to understand…

A field guide. Montana attracts eccentrics like Wall Street attracts crooks. We have a long and storied tradition of weirdos, wackos, and wankers: the Unabomber, the Church Universal Triumphant (still waiting on that…

Guarantee a better pump. Ice climbing is super fun—at least, that’s what ice climbers will tell you. Of course, those of us who choose to spend hours in the mountains post-holing through snow, dangling from an ethereal…

Comparing Montana's big game species.Here in Montana, majestic ungulates occupy our imaginations—not to mention our freezers—year-round. We scour the hillsides for them while hiking, dodge them on the roads, and sometimes…

All about the Sphinx. By the time the first storms hit and the elk begin to bugle, Sphinx Mountain is sporting the first ice of the season. In a good season, there are a multitude of excellent, three-star pitches scattered…

When Big Sky opens for another winter season in November, veterans of the ski area will hardly recognize the place, due in large part to the resort’s major lift expansion that took place this past summer. Two new lifts, one…

Bullock invests in outdoor economy.This past summer, Montana Governor Steve Bullock announced his plans to create a new Office of Outdoor Recreation, to be housed in the Governor’s Office of Economic Development. The new…

A land and people being conquered by money. When driving the backroads of Montana, opulence is not a word that comes to mind to describe pastoral scenes of hayfields, barbed-wire fences, and black Angus grazing in grassy…

Montana's inaccessible public land. Montanans are the proud owners of millions of acres of public land, but some tracts are less accessible than you might think. Patchworks of public and private land, and illegally blocked…

Fall's prismatic brook trout.Come early autumn, I reflexively turn to streamer fishing, but as the season moves along, hunting large, secretive, predatory browns somehow gives way to searching out brook trout. Brookies are…

Tips for backcountry emergencies.In the woods, there are many ways to get in trouble. But if we let fear of the unknown dictate our lives, we’d miss out on all the excitement and adventure that fall has to offer—like…

Exposing camophiles.Hunting is one of the most basic and elemental activities that we engage in as humans, so why is it that we’re continually trying to complicate things? Take, for example, hunting clothing—specifically…

Saving a Montana ethic.  You may not know it, but your rights are being eroded. We visually understand ground erosion, the damage to the land and water. Yet how many people perceive access erosion when fishing or floating…

Autumn trail runs.For many Americans, the term “fall foliage” induces thoughts of an endless sea of red, orange, and yellow throughout the mountains of the Northeast. Montana’s deciduous plants, like many of its people, are…

Ten years of Huffing for Stuffing.For the past nine years, the Gallatin Valley Food Bank (GVFB) has been getting Bozeman folks to put down their forks and lace up their running shoes on Thanksgiving Day. Huffing for…

Fishing and hunting by paddleboard.Canoes, kayaks, and rafts are all time-tested crafts for fishing and hunting the various waterbodies around Bozeman. But we like trying new things, so we rigged up a paddleboard—and it…

A guide to local liquor. Maybe you’re just getting off of your bike after an early-fall ride, or you’re inviting your bird-dog into the cab of your truck after a day of grouse hunting in a secret cover. It could be you’re…

Making autumn count. “Don’t it always seem to go, that you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone.” ― Joni Mitchell There is an urgency to autumn, as the vast, bright horizon of summer narrows and dims, and it becomes…

Getting your fall fill.Ski season is right around the corner, and that means excitement is high. But if you want to get after it this winter, you can’t just pull your junk out of the closet and hit the hill. Here are a few…

Caving, Montana-style. Crazed subsets of people will always seek Earth’s most inhospitable environments: the jagged, ice-covered, oxygen-starved heights of the Himalaya; the terrifyingly sheer granite walls of El Capitan;…

A beginner-friendly bikepack.Fall is a great time for mountain biking in the Bozeman area; riders are in shape, temperatures are milder, and the trails are dry. These conditions are ideal for a quick bikepacking trip on…

In 2013, the Gallatin Valley Land Trust led an effort to obtain funding for a paved, multi-use pathway along Bridger Dr. to the M and Drinking Horse Mountain trailheads. GVLT partnered with the City of Bozeman, the Forest…

Out-of-town fall trips. For most Montana residents, Labor Day to Thanksgiving is truly the best time of the year. With the bulk of the tourists gone, and the general hubbub of summer fading into another memory, we’re once…

Bozeman dog mortality.Like car crashes and cardiovascular disease for humans, pets have their own unique mortality statistics. While no actual data has been compiled, our field research shows the leading causes of death for…

Well-behaved humans make well-behaved dogs. Humans and dogs have been rolling together for centuries. Cultures all over the world utilize dogs for work, protection, and companionship, and dogs are the only species that…

Preventing fly-fishing shoulder injuries.For folks who find solace at the edge of deep pools, fooling fish with chicken feathers and squirrel tails, southwest Montana is heaven. I’ve met “honest” aficionados, heard…

Getting ski-fit.Soon, Ullr—a Norse god associated with snow and skiing—will be visiting our beautiful mountains, covering them with snowy goodness. This means that it’s almost time for skiing. At Swiss Fit Montana, we train…

DIY European mounts.There comes a time in almost every hunter’s life when he or she harvests something that is considered a trophy. While this critter’s measurements may fall well short of any record books, to the hunter it…

Madison River geology. A hike, run, or climb in the crisp autumn air is something we all enjoy, along with the inevitable moments when we stop to take in the surroundings. As a geologist, I do this all the time. However,…

Impactful fall photography.Montana—we’re lucky to live where we do. With snow-capped mountaintops, alpine lakes, dense forests, and all four seasons, it’s one hell of a place to be a photographer. Although, it seems that…

Fall stargazing.One of the most iconic figures of the Old West, who spent time in Livingston and Bozeman during her notorious life, is Calamity Jane. How Martha Jane Canary acquired her provocative nickname is a matter of…

Respecting a Montana tradition.With time, comes change, and with change, comes conflict. Some conflict is small and manageable, like installing a new stop light; and some conflict is cumbersome and dynamic, such as…

Opinions on the grizzly delisting.Grizzly-bear recovery is one of the great success stories from the conservation movement. On the brink of extinction in the 1970s, the species now thrives in the Greater Yellowstone…

Enjoying our beautiful public land is the Montana way of life, but with more trophy-home and hobby-ranch owners piling in each year, we are slowly losing access to the places we love most. And we think you ought to know…

Fall camping trips to the river offer an opportunity for quiet reflection before the storms of winter. In the high country, snow begins to pile up, but down in the valley, the fire keeps us warm for one more night…

Two things are paramount in a ski boot: comfort and performance. And the sock you choose to wear affects both significantly. Which is why I’ve switched to the Precision-Fit Ultralight from Lorpen. It’s extremely thin, which…

After renting equipment last winter, I was determined to spring for a full setup for the upcoming season. Luckily, K2’s products integrate seamlessly, making for a killer set-up perfect for beginners. Their BOA dials make…

High-end coolers may be all the rage, but they come at a cost—in both price and portability. The IceMule Pro soft cooler, on the other hand, is lightweight, roomy (the 20-liter model accommodates 18 cans plus ice), and…

Mystery Ranch is at it again with their newest gift to the expedition hunter, the Marshall. Set to haul and last as long as needed, this 6,400-cubic-inch monster is fit with two torpedo pockets and a full-length side-zip…

If you’re like me and you drive a small car but love to ride, then you’ve probably been faced with the dilemma of what to do with your bike when it’s time to load the car. There are lots of bike-carrying racks out there,…

If you shoot photos in the outdoors, there will come a time when a protective case is a necessity. When that time comes, reach for the Nanuk 933. It’s impact-resistant, lightweight, and rugged. It’s got a PowerClaw latching…

The lightweight and compact Brinno BCC100 time-lapse camera captures and converts thousands of photos into a time-lapse video immediately. Along with a host of time-interval options, the BCC100 comes equipped with a F1.2…

When you’re deep in the backcountry chasing game, the possibility of an unexpected bivouac is ever-present. Maybe you followed a big bull all day, only to find yourself 10 miles from camp at dusk. Or maybe a lightning storm…

Built for adventure, the Roo Hammock is ideal for anyone who wants a hammock but doesn’t want to deal with the fuss of setting up and taking down. The Roo’s easily compressible, water-resistant sack is lightweight, making…

Fall is difficult, from a headwear standpoint. One day it’s warm and sunny, the next cold and windy. That’s why I love the Holy Swift Toque from Sauce. It’s lightweight with a hole in the back for my ponytail, which means I…

there once was a cowboy named Stu who traded his horse (as you do) when the big sky was tamed he couldn’t be blamed for riding a red Subaru  there once was a rancher named Ben who divided his spread into ten as the masses…

Fall. Frosts at night. Days, unseasonable warmth suffuses willow, aspens, brush: saffron, ocher, gold. Foothills loom and swarm, scat steams. And in the high school, kids on cells are joined by tall, black, pungent, furry,…

I pregnacy test 1,000 mother cows under a warm, sweet wind. Spilt milk clouds. Green grass in November. Ring-tailed hawks perch over the emptiness on the cottonwoods of Little McGinnis Creek, waiting for death that will not…

Howdy there, folks. Love your mag — usually great fun and good info. We have a nephew at MSU, so your mag sorta helps keep me and my brother Will in touch with him. However, your summer issue, in our view, was less than the…

Over time, people change, and after reading Toward a Natural Forest (Oregon State University Press, $20), it’s clear government agencies do too. In Jim Furnish’s memoir about the United States Forest Service, we’re treated…

If you find yourself searching for a comprehensive guide to local birds, there’s no doubt Birds of Montana (Buteo Books, $79) should be in your reference library. This book is a grander compilation of exactly what you might…

Briana Wile’s Mountain States Foraging (Timber Press, $30) is the only guide I’d want in my pack on a backcountry trip; the author’s colorful run-down of local wild, edible plants is refreshingly accessible and detailed.…

If you spend 43 years in any one place, you’re going to know it pretty well. And that’s how long Orville Bach has been a seasonal ranger in Yellowstone National Park. In Reflections from Yellowstone & Beyond (Morris…

The best defense, as the old adage goes, is a good offense. In the backcountry, that means preparing for emergencies before they happen—and there’s no faster path to preparedness than Rod Alne’s new guide, Help Yourself: A…

Some things aren’t intuitive, and behaving properly around bears is one of them. Luckily there’s a vast library of material on the matter, including a new book by Montana bear expert Tim Rubbert. Hiking Safely in Grizzly…

Interested in reading more about the Park? Pick up Yellowstone Ranger (Riverbend Publishing, $23). This captivating memoir of Bozeman resident and longtime Yellowstone Park ranger Jerry Mernin is an exciting new addition to…

Australian writer and legendary fisherman Greg French lays it all out for us in his new book The Imperiled Cutthroat (Patagonia, $25), where he spins an enchanting narrative of a trip to the U.S. and his first exploration…