Woodpecker Lips

A story about a great friend, mountains, wild animals, trout rivers, danger, and adventure.

The Madison River Valley, Montana

At present time, I have no less than four posts written but not a one of which I like that much. The Muse… Maybe I will forget those for awhile just tell you a story.

Some of my close friends already know this story, parts anyway, some of you have certainly seen videos, but very few people know the exact turn events that led to the singularly most fantastic, exhilarating, and freighting moment of my life, to this point anyway. This is going to be a long one, so buckle in…

Part 1

It was mid June, I took that Friday afternoon off work and was pulling into the trailhead by 2 pm. One of my best friends and hunting partner, Stan was planning to hike in that evening after work. It was Stan who so kindly introduced me to this hunting spot and glassing knob, my destination and camp for the weekend. I had seen on two occasions, weeks earlier, a beautiful blonde color phase black bear glassing from this spot, along with a handful of other bears. There was also a sighting and encounter with two grizzly bears, so there was that element as well, it is the greater Yellowstone ecosystem. They all weighed heavy on my mind for different reasons. This place deep in the Madison Range of Montana is as pristine and spectacular of a place start to a hunt that exists any place in the world. On any given day you might see one or all of the big game species in Montana: elk, mule deer, moose, bighorn sheep, mountain goat, black bears, mountain lions, and last but certainly not least the grizzly bears. An amazing slice of mountains and wilderness.

If you have never seen a blonde color phase black bear, my words to describe it will fail miserably, it is simply amazing, it is the rarest of the black bear color phases. The bear glows in color as it effortlessly meanders over deadfall and boulder fields, over and across mountain faces, one of the natures most beautiful creations.

The destination was only a 2 mile hike in but with a formidable climb of 1500 vertical feet, and 50lbs of camp, food, water, and hunting gear, you work up a nice lather going up. I was packed in, had my camp setup, water heating for my freeze dried B&G dinner, and glassing for my bear by 5pm, it was all business. My plan was to spend the weekend, locate and go after that blonde bear that had consumed my thoughts for a number of weeks.

Actually, I should probably back up and start the story earlier, weeks earlier. Montana, late May to be more exact. I was amped up to do some bear hunting, mostly I was just jacked to be back in the mountains. Freshly tanned from chasing bonefish in the Bahamas, full of piss and vinegar, feeling like I could conquer the world, my 2006 Tacoma was loaded and I was headed out of Bozeman through Four Corners, Montana over the Gallatin River. As I passed through Ennis, along the banks of Madison River and down the valley, it just felt like good bear weather, it was cool wet day, not cold but not warm either, not raining but a light mist occasionally. A heavy dampness hung in the air. I was optimistic about my first hunt of the season.

My friend Stan that I mentioned earlier is from west Texas, Amarillo to be exact and he is as hard as woodpecker lips, but we will get to more about him later. We were set to meet at the formally mentioned glassing knob the next morning. I was planning to pack in that evening and spend the night, hopefully finding some bears for us to chase in advance of his arrival the following morning.

To be continued in several forthcoming parts.

My kind of room with a view, camp.

Feeling optimistic.