by Merle Ann Loman | Apr 29, 2009 | Bitterroot, hunting/fauna/flora, i Spring
Right click the photo and choose “view link in new window,” it is worth the view of the elk in the trees!
We woke up to snow today. We were hoping for cooler weather to keep the snow in the mountains but this is a bit much. Like Jack said, “It isn’t going to flood in April this year.” The cool weather this spring will help the snow melt in an orderly fashion, if it warms up enough to actually melt!
Today we took a hike when it was the warmest, about 47 degrees. At the beginning of our hike, we saw a herd of elk. What a nice start. Then we hiked into a bit of a snow flurry.
by Merle Ann Loman | Apr 28, 2009 | Bitterroot, Friends
I am a bit behind on blogging some photos sent in by friends. Here are two photos from Billy Burk of Pueblo, CO. He is coming up to fish with his (and our) friend, Jeff in June. They are thinking they will fish on the Big Hole.
Billy’s message:
Attached are photos of a recent catch, close to home, on the Arkansas River, and Walter the Wapiti; finally mounted on the wall in our living room. He was harvested from Jeff’s Dad’s ranch in western Colorado last October. Take care and God Bless…………..Billy Burk
by Merle Ann Loman | Apr 26, 2009 | Bitterroot, i Spring
I am experimenting with a new photo site and wanted to embed a slideshow from SmugMug. I haven’t figured it out yet so I will post a photo of the Osprey that caught the fish (I am not sure if it was a trout or whitefish or what) and give you a link to the slideshows. I hope you like them!
One caught fish, the other did not even after a few tries.
The fish in my earlier blog DID NOT catch the fish. This photo is of a different Osprey we saw about 15 minutes later and down river. It was a really fun bird sighting day not to mention great fishing.
by Merle Ann Loman | Apr 24, 2009 | Bitterroot, i Spring
I forgot to mention in the earlier blog that we were fishing with Jack’s dry imitations of skwala and mayflies. These photos show why. We saw them on the water. The first is a photo of an Ameletus mayfly dun. It is beautiful in it’s grey color and upright profile.
The second photo is, of course, a female skwala on my wader pant leg. She stayed with us in the boat for most of the trip.
Below is a fish Jack caught while wade fishing during a mayfly hatch. I can’t tell you what fly he was using, it is too obvious.
When you fish the hatch, you will have to match the size.
Jack also caught the brown trout in an earlier post during this hatch. AND with my camera around my neck, I caught one of the biggest fish, another brown trout, right at the end of the hatch. Now that I am learning to set my hook better, it is getting a lot more fun!
by Merle Ann Loman | Apr 24, 2009 | Argentina, Friends
Merle and Jack,
Martha and I back from BA and trying to catch up after two weeks away. Our hunt for red stag in the Pampas was very interesting. Very different ground to Patagonia. The country is open savannah with gentle rolling wooded hills mixed in. About 400 miles SW of BA. Very like southern Africa or northern Australia savannah country, quite dry, good cattle country.
All hunting was for free ranging animals, no fences. Stags were in full ‘roar’ which is always a remarkable natural event, just like the experience of witnessing our elk bugling. Shot a nice stag as well as a cull and a small (young) wild boar, all with the little 6.5mm, Jack, which did the job in each case with one shot and with as much aplomb as any .300 magnum. The 6.5mm is a fine hunting rifle, my favorite caliber for deer sized stuff at present.
The estancia barbecued the little boar in a typical Argentinian asada, it was amazing, the best meal of the whole trip, with natural vegetables from the estancia’s garden. Homestead was an old Spanish style from the late 19thc, early 20thc, very authentic feeling.
Then BA for a few days including a night at a traditional (versus a Las Vegas type) tango, and another at a wonderful Flamenco theatre with a Flamenco guitarist you would have loved, Jack. Martha finished her wedding shopping (shoes and a shawl to match her wedding dress). You have to love the Argentinians and their priorities: barbecued red meat, red wine from Mendoza and dulce de leche (on everything) and chocolates (after everything)!
Couple of pics from the estancia are attached. I couldn’t post this on your blog, you are welcome to use any or all of it if you wish.
All the best to you both,
Alan Pilkington
Alan Pilkington is a wonderful writer. See his website at www.alanpilkington.com to check out his books and learn more about him. To see all the posts we have done about Alan, click here: Alan Pilkington posts by Wapiti Waters.
