It has been far too long since we’ve checked in with the cheeky Badger, so here he is in all his snowy glory! Nicky was a bit worried that he wasn’t showing off his impish side, but I think he’s just biding his time here with the snow, dreaming of the springtime daffodils that he’ll…
Category: Montana
Bring ’em Boys, or Why Oh Why Did I Listen to My Mother
Why oh why you should always listen to your mother…
Indoor Days with Outdoor Dogs, or What I Miss Up North
Ode to winter hiking, mountain sunsets, and dogs underfoot…
Good Black Cows, or a Bastardized Version of the Cowboy’s Blessing
What I see when I see good cattle…
The Gathering, or Why It Is Good to Be an Early Riser
The joys of waking up early to gather cattle in Montana…
In Memory of Karen
In memory of Karen Hoaglund Hauge…
Fall Gathering, or Sagebrush Meditations
Sam and Monica still do lots of things the old way, using horses to gather to gather up the cattle. Sam may own a four-wheeler, but he is much more at home on a horse. Dad once described him as a “pretty fancy calf roper,” and I think he still is. But last weekend, Sam…
The Wearing of the Orange, or Hunter Safety for Dogs
Thanks to my mother-in-law, this photo popped up yesterday in my Facebook feed. Once I finished laughing, I got to thinking that these dogs actually had the right idea. See, mum and I have been known to be avid autumn, winter, and spring hikers (no snakes, and beggar’s lice and cheat grass haven’t cropped up…
Burn Baby Burn!
Bridger’s Volunteer Fire Department must have spent the weekend on high alert as my dad finally torched the funeral pyres of Russian olive trees that had dotted the pastures for several years. Why was the fire department at Defcon 5, its highest state of readiness, you ask? That would be because of dad and his…
It’s Rodeo Time, or Celebrating 50 Years of the Bridger Youth Rodeo
Every year, midway through July, the town of Bridger does two things right: Jim Bridger Days and the Bridger Youth Rodeo. Jim Bridger Days has the usual small-town festivities of a parade, a demolition derby, and a street dance at night that shuts the town down. (You’d think that this would cause more traffic problems,…
Gardening Violence, or How Sunfish Makes Use of His Ridiculously Strong Lips
Alas, poor Nicky and her woes of gardening in Montana in the spring. Being English, she likely thinks of carpeted green fields studded with daffodils, crocus, muscari, friendly hedgehogs, and quaint talking bunnies. Then, of course, she married Barry and moved to Montana and spring has never been the same since. Now she has porcupines,…
Going to the Dogs, or How Yellowstone Dog Sports Makes Mattie Happy and Agile
Believe it or not, we do read the mail. So last year when we received a flyer that a new dog center had opened over in Red Lodge, we took note. After all, it’s not too often that new businesses open in our area, let alone businesses specifically geared toward dogs, so we read that…
Strayhounds 