Cervius Canadensis

Most of your are wondering what is the significance of these 2 words. It represents the species of moose, elk, and deer. When Marty and I visited Yellowstone National Park las week we saw lots of elk, some deer, and no moose. As we entered the park at Mammoth Hot Springs, Marty suggested we travel to the top of the "hot springs" to see if there might be some elk. After traveling as far as we could, (the road south was closed for the winter), we turned the car around and look what we saw.
These ladies were very content, sitting on the top of the hill, but there was one that looked quite attractive, as if she were posing for me. I did not wait, focused my camera and took several pictures, this is the one I saved.
We then headed east toward Cooke City to see if the boys were around their normal hang out which is usually about 5 to 7 miles from Mammoth Hot Springs. No one was there, in fact we didn't see anything of interest or near enough to the road until we were almost ready to turn around. It was a Big Horn sheep, you'll see him on the next post. We started our return and we did see a bull elk, but he wasn't posing and we went on to Chico for a great dinner.

The next day, we headed toward the "hot spot" again for the boys, and we found them. Not 1, not 2, not 3, but 4. Three of them were lined up as if they knew we were coming to take their photograph.

The 4th one was near by, still grazing on what was available. He was also doing all kinds of antics, face in the snow, scratching his head with his hind hoof, butting the ground with his rack, and then he stood still for this photograph.

He eventually must have either got tired or was full and decided to rest. I focused on his antlers as I felt he had just a beautiful rack. Looked like a trophy to me. I am not good enough at comparing pictures and antlers but I am suspicious that this may have been the bull elk that I photographed over 2 years ago.

Day one was the girls, day two was the boys, and after we left the park, Marty wanted to drive to Jardine, mostly a ghost town about 5 miles outside of Gardiner high in the mountains. We were almost back to town, when on the top of the horizon we saw this deer. It posed until I could get this photograph.
Come back again soon as we will see more wildlife from our trip to Yellowstone.

Super Saturday for Barlo

Marty and I left for our daily walk through the pastures with Kenya and Barlo today. We decided to head toward the Grove Creek and see if the "wise ole owl" was in it's home in the old tree trunk. Unfortunately it was not there, but the dogs did cross the creek with us and were soon off on a venture of their own. I had noticed a few days ago that there was a carcass in the nearby field and Kenya was off to check out the bones and Barlo found the hide close by. We called, asking them to join us as we returned to the house. It was a difficult task to get them to come, and as they arrived we noticed that Barlo had claimed the hide as his own. It was too cold to have my camera with me, but this is what we saw coming through the bushes down by the creek.
This is all that we saw for the 1/2 mile trip back to the house. Usually, Barlo is lagging behind with Kenya in the lead. Not today, Barlo was proud of his trophy and was in a hurry to get to the house. Marty and I suspected that he probably had a place near the house or barn where he wanted to hide his hide. For a dog that has been crippled for the last year, he was moving at a very rapid pace and showed no signs of his debilitation. When we all got in the yard, Barlo got to examine his prize.
As you can see, it was quite large, in fact the hide and the bone pile looked like the deer was at least as large as Barlo. This was his and it wasn't until later that we realized how special it was to him. However, dogs have a language of their own, and you can tell by this next picture that Kenya was curious but knew this was not hers to share.
Now it was time for Barlo to determine if there were any morsels still attached to the hide. Sure enough there were and he was having a very enjoyable time until Marty observed his actions. Her direction was to take the hide away from him. I mentioned that it wasn't fair, especially after all of the work it took for him to get it to the house.
Marty approached Barlo to take his prize to the barn, so that later in the day, he could re-visit his trophy and at least she would have some indication by then if the snacks he was enjoying would have created a disturbance in his stomach. As she approached him, she discovered from the loud growl that it was off limits to her as well. Ultimately, Marty prevailed and the hide was taken to the barn while Barlo entered the house for a nap.

WHAT A HAPPY DOG HE IS TODAY

A football player in the family

Based on his size, we have an up and coming lineman. Number 56 of the Wreckers has started his career in Westport, CT. Patrick McCarthy is his name, and playing football is his fame. We have added a couple of his pictures which tells the entire story. The first part, he enjoys the sport and looks forward to practice and playing in the fall.
and when he isn't playing, he's watching. 2010 started with a great time and total excitement at the McCarthy home, when his favorite, Ohio State Buckeye's won the Rose Bowl game. Soon thereafter he and his father went to New York City to watch the NFL Today. After the show, he was invited on stage with his father for a picture with football celebrities and the show host. 11 year old Patrick is the person on the left in the picture, check out the size of this young man. Also, note his shirt. Jim Tressell, coach of the Ohio State football team would be proud . Patrick was not only bragging, but he also would like to be a Buckeye someday. His father, John, is the person on the right on the back row.

GO PATRICK, GO BUCKS

Kayak Jack will be going to college this fall

This is our grandson, Jack Teegardin, a resident of Boulder, Colorado. Several years ago, after spending many years and hours on the ice in a hockey rink, he migrated to another water sport as illustrated in the picture. As you can see from these pictures, he loves the sport and has become a very accomplished "kayaker".

In the past month, we received an e-mail from him that he had been accepted at Montana State University in Bozeman and more recently his father, Jeff, advised me that he has been offered a fairly substantial scholarship as well. As the decision time for selecting a school draws near, he will be joined by his mother and father on a trip to Montana to visit Bozeman and determine if he is a fit with the "Bobcats".

As Marty and I have told our friends that there is a possibility of Jack being a student in our great state, each and everyone has started talking about the rivers where Jack could kayak, ski slopes where he could speed down the slopes, and have told us at length what a wonderful school MSU in Bozeman is. If you knew Jack, you know that Montana State is not his only option

We all know that this is the first big step in your future. The pressure to make the right decision may be overwhelming at times, but we can all assure Jack that there will be much more difficult decisions in his future. We have all been in his shoes, we have all survived, and the dedication that he has shown to those that he loves and the things that are important to him will prove that this next big decision is the correct one.

Vern, the ranch manager

People have asked over the years, who manages the Circle B Bar T ranch. For those of you who don't know, it's a quiet kind of creature that is normally in the "great room" when we have company. He looks like a Montana rancher with his plaid shirt, his alligator boots, a bandana around his neck, a nice vest, and of course his cowboy hat. If you look carefully, you'll find his only vice is his corn cob pipe which most often is in the left pocket of his vest. He found out that his eye sight is deteriorating about 2 year later than Clint's and usually wears Clint's used trifocals.

He came from Texas about the time that Marty and Clint moved to Montana. Good friends of theirs, Dick Kane and Gretchen McBeath located him and arranged for his trip to Montana. There are a couple of poses of Vern that were taken recently. The first one was on Barlo's new couch. Vern insisted that he check it out and in fact spent a night sleeping with Barlo. Vern gave Marty and Clint a thumbs up and the couch stayed.
Marty helped Vern write a note to his mother, shortly after his arrival. The response which was received from Texas is filed in our archives. We got it out to share with you.

Dear Vern;
Since your brothers seldom write, you can image how thrilled I was to hear from you. I always knew you could do anything you put your mind to. Just remember, always be honest and hard working and don't let your job go to your head.
Your family sounds like my kind of people. I would love to get to the Big Sky country some day to meet them in person.
I'm putting together a family album for you but it will take awhile. Your Uncle Larry and I have been busy volunteering at the Therapuctic Assisted Riding Center. It is very exciting for me to work around horses again (Uncle Larry spends his time cleaning tack)
Well son, as your Dad used to say, "Keep Sweet", write when you can.
Much love, MOM

You now know why Vern is such a special character at the Circle B Bar T. He is shown in the next picture getting prepared for the day ahead of him. He has Clint post updates on the digital picture so that he can view what is happening and doesn't have to leave the warmth of the house, at least in the winter. His favorite prop for his left arm, is a pillow that Marty had made with a picture of Clint riding his goat when he was a youngster at the Brookfield Farm in Ashville , Ohio. The picture on the screen is a look at the south pasture next to the Grove Creek. Based on this image, Vern has told Marty and Clint to be sure the horses get an extra bale of hay today and they should have access to the indoor arena tonight.
Be sure and say Hi to Vern on your next visit to the Circle B Bar T. He asked that I remind Dick and Gretchen that it has been several years since they visited and when they were last in Fishtail, they promised to return with one of their lady friends. Vern does get along with Barlo and Kenya but has looked forward to that special visit from Dick and Gretchen and their friend who they promised Vern would be alot of fun.

Sunday morning at the Circle B Bar T

The sun was shining, the wind wasn't blowing 25 mph, the temperature was in the 30's, the horses and dogs have had their breakfast, let's go to the barn and put the horses in the pasture and take them some hay. Whoa, what is that?
I know you can see it, but can you smell it. A skunk has crawled under the barn door and is hiding under the hay. The smell is terrible. Don't let the dogs near there, I'll get the hay and Marty you let the horses out. You can see the snow is mostly gone, the ground is either still frozen in places or muddy in others, so I'll take the hay out in the pasture where there isn't any mud.
Almost every morning we take the dogs for a walk and get our exercise, so lets head down toward the Grove Creek. Marty and Kenya posed as we headed south.
We walked this way today for a couple of reasons. The horses were on the north side of the property and I wanted to see if the owl was in it's nest. The picture that I posted on the blog several days ago, ended up framed and donated to the Beartooth Stockgrowers for their auction which is held during their annual meeting and dinner dance, which Marty and I attended last nite. I wanted to tell the owl that it had become famous as it's picture was shown to the crowd and then sold for $170. I was hoping it would be waiting to hear the news. As we headed toward the Grove Creek, we looked back and guess what, the horses had decided that the pasture east of the barn had enough grass that they didn't need to graze on the hay that I had just delivered.

and on the way to the owl tree, I observed a wagon wheel, half buried in the ground. I have probably tripped over it a number of times, but this morning I stopped to capture the image. We have owned the Circle B Bar T for almost 20 years, the wagon wheel has been here for at least that long. It's near the creek, not in the field where we bale the hay, so it has survived Clint's clean up activities.
Is the owl in the tree? Yes, there it is, you can tell it's armer if you compare this picture with the ones I have taken earlier. It's not all hunkered down trying to stay warm or is it just listening to me as I tell it that it has become famous. If you look closely, you'll also notice that the eyes are slightly open.

We headed back to the house, got the Billings Gazette, and had breakfast.

Have a great day.

Do you ride in the winter in Montana?

A friend, Charley Suarez, who lives in Florida asked me a couple days ago what the weather was like and the next question was, "do you really ride the horses at this time of the year?". As I started to answer his question, I looked out the window to see . . . . .
The temperature was in the 30's, the sun was behind a cloud, there was snow on the ground, and this was 4 of the 5 horses and riders that had accumulated in our outdoor arena. Does this happen often? At least several days a week. What if it's snowing, colder, or the wind is blowing?
They can be found in our indoor arena. Do they just ride? At times they jump the horses, indoors for sure and outdoors when there is no snow and the footing is good. How are they dressed?
Several layers of clothes. The horses have grown their winter coats and as long as they don't work them too hard, the horses do not perspire and are quite comfortable. This picture of Melissa Ranstrom on Gracie certainly tells the story.
How long do they ride? The day I took these pictures it wasn't long as the combination of the snow, cold, and lack of sun did not agree with either the horses or the riders. So, did they call it a day? No, they headed out to the pastures for a ride in the fields and along the Grove Creek.
By the time they were finished, the sun was out. Another great day in Montana.