Birding has been quiet. I am learning that the dog days of summer are not prime birding times. Spring and Fall migrations are better. However, birds are out there, it just takes more effort to find them. I am not really a serious birder and don’t make a great deal of effort, but I love seeing new ones.

I already shared about camping at Dry Wolf, outside of Stanford, MT. I chose that area because of the bluebird trails. I learned that the trails are a driving tour, not hiking trails. So I drove around and saw many bluebird houses, but few birds. The drive was awesome anyway, through hay meadows and forests and along Dry Wolf Creek.

Bluebird Box

Another Bluebird Box

Next, I moved north to the Rocky Mountain Front , an Important Bird Area (IBA). I was especially interested in Freezout Lake, a world-renowned birding stop. Again, the area is mostly quiet, but I will try again to spot a few shorebirds before I leave the area. I need a foot pump to get enough air into my inflatable kayak, which I hope to find today. Then, Tango and I can paddle out at sunset.

Speaking of sunset, I am far enough north to notice longer nights. What we experience in Wheatland at this time of year–at 9 PM– goes on until 11 PM. I love it–I can work, wander around the mountains and/or sit outside longer. Doesn’t deter skeeters, though.

Anyway, last evening, Tango and I drove up Teton Canyon Rd (another Teton area!). I wanted to drive by a Nature Conservancy location up there, the Pine Butte Swamp Preserve. Wow, beautiful country. Stunning mountains, rushing creeks, the whole thing. I stopped at the Ear Mountain Trailhead, which goes miles into the back county. This is prime Grizzly country so I decided I would walk in only 1/2 mile and come back (Grizzlies are up high while it is hot).  What a thrill! It was the scariest and yet most thrilling hike of my life. Every shadow, every sound was a Grizzly in my mind. Tango paused to sniff the air, and I am thinking, Grizzly! We actually made it 1/2 mile on the winding trail and then turned back, never seeing a Grizzly (thank God).

The area is so beautiful I won’t try to describe it.Even the sign pointing to the Ear Mountain Trailhead builds anticipation:

I have seen a lot of Forest Service signs but never one that said, <em>Outstanding Natural Area!</em>

I got a few iffy photos

Cliff Swallows nest in those rock faces

Old Ranch

Some online photos of the area:

I am on the right side of this range, about 90 miles south of Glacier National Park

Grizzly print, front and back feet

High Country with lots of wildflowers still out

I am not brave enough to camp up there with the Grizzly bears. To my great delight I found a City Park in tiny Choteau, MT that allows camping. The city set up about a dozen sites with fire pits and allows 24/7 access to the bathrooms. The sites are under tall trees and a small creek flows through. Wheatland also has a camping section in the park, so this was a familiar and wonderful find. I like having my Internet working all the time and quick access to the wilderness and birding areas. I can stock up, hit the library, and walk all over town with Tango. Each site has a small stack of firewood and not one person has bothered me my camp site. My favorite places to camp are primitive NFS campgrounds (like Dry Wolf), but this is my second favorite set up and  a great way to go after primitive camping.

Next: to the other side of the Rocky Front and access to the Bob Marshall Wilderness.

The route shows me moving north along the Rockies! This is as far north as I will go, crossing over mountains into Seeley Lake area soon.