Spring Snow Peaks - Near Three Forks, Montana

The one thing you can predict about springtime in Montana: it’s never boring.  Ides-of- March storms ousted the beatific sunny days of early March, adding much-coveted snowpack to many of our mountain ranges.

Spring Rain, Vibrant Foliage - East of Lincoln, Montana

Spring rainfall last night and into this morning punched up the colour vibrancy east of Lincoln, Montana, and made for a gorgeous Montana road trip day. (Now we just need those fruitful clouds to head north and tamp down Alberta’s wildfires and smoky skies, please Lord.)

Mission Mountains Marsh Melody - Near Ronan, Montana

“The marsh, to him who enters it in a receptive mood, holds, besides mosquitoes and stagnation, melody, the mystery of unknown waters, and the sweetness of Nature undisturbed by man.” - Charles William Beebe (1877-1962), The Log of the Sun

Mountain Shadows - Mission Mountains Near Arlee, Montana

Mission Mountain views - or those of any of Montana’s mountain ranges - never get old. Just when you think you have a level of familiarity, shifting sunbeams and shading clouds reveal layers and canyons previously unnoticed. It’s like a whole new view with any change in timing or weather. 

Reflecting Experience Mission Mountains Near St. Ignatius, Montana

“We do not learn from experience... we learn from reflecting on experience.” -

Truthful Reflection - Hamilton, Montana

"When you are on the river, ocean or in the woods, you are the closest to the truth you'll ever get." 

-Jack Leonard (or maybe this Jack?)

 

Quiet Reflection.- Missoula, Montana

Today's gorgeous evening view overlooking Missoula is courtesy of Pat Richards, who also shares her hands-on India / Asia perspectives at JourneysWithGod.com.
Thanks, Pat, for always making the time to share your guest blogger Montana perspectives!

In moments of quiet reflection, I begin to see clearer the depths of who I am. 
Are the waters of my soul still, clear, reflecting light?
I pray it is so.

For the world beyond deserves to see beauty, light and life in me.

Big Sky Reflections - Near Browns Lake, Montana

The fishing access sign just up the road announced three miles to Browns Lake, where it's reported by those who know such things that "...Trolling is best done using weighted flies such as Wooly Worms and standard spoons and spinners." But shore anglers can find success with marshmallows and cheese. Bring some graham crackers and chocolate and you'll be set for the campfire, too.

Guest Post: Bitterroot Haven - Corvallis, Montana

Hooray for guest bloggers! 

Today we hear from Pat Richards (aka Big Sister #3). Since Las Vegas is their home base. Pat has been soaking up the outdoors and relishing Montana's summer daytime temps that are well below their accustomed 108 degrees Fahrenheit.

To see more of what Pat has been up to this year, check out their humanitarian travels at www.JourneysWithGod.com.

Thanks for sharing today's lovely thoughts and scenery, sis.

-------------------------

Early morning stillness creates a haven where my heart reflects on the beauty of creation.  A tiny ecosystem filled with vibrant life.  Nature's beauty refreshes my soul.  I leave, ready to face the day.

Unlike my walking companion, an energetic short legged Pembroke Corgi named Trixie,  who pauses only to consider the next tantalizing scent along the path. 

-Pat R.

Green Pastures - Corvallis, Montana

"...You have bedded me down in lush meadows,

You find me quiet pools to drink from.
True to your word,

You let me catch my breath

and send me in the right direction...  
Your beauty and love chase after me

every day of my life...."

- King David, from Psalm 23, The Message Translation

Leaves Floating - Stevensville, Montana

"...And the formal customs we once had,
like wearing red during hunting season,
are only signposts pointing the way
in and out of the territories—
Colored leaves floating on the water
hesitant, before the rains com." - from 'Field Guide' by Cynthia Zarin

Read the entire poem here.

Seasonal Signs - Stevensville, Montana

More signs of impending autumn...right next to the new pencil crayons and fresh notebooks in aisle 17.

Reed Shadows At Dusk, Charlo, Montana

Do you ever favour something so much that you want to save it - the best for last, in a sense? Perhaps the magazine you must read entirely before anyone else paws through it? Or a best-loved book that you hoped could be your own special copy?
 
As a kid, I did this regularly with food on my plate - mashed potatoes and gravy at family dinners, partly because I‘d scooped out a little moat and filled it with Mum‘s great gravy. And French fries when we ate out, guarded against sneaky sibling thievery - still my weakness; the French fries, I mean . (No comment on what this quirk might say about me.)

This photo was taken during an earlier fall drive up the Flathead Valley. Ninepipes Reservoir's shining waters beckoned me to stop and see what there was to see, which included a mystically shifting sunset, for starters (and dessert). I first walked out on the little pier in the fishing pond next to the parking lot. Trout were rising, leaving concentric rings to ripple a different surface section every few minutes. The dusk-shaded depths of the water were intense, with the last of the fish rings fading on the edges. It was so pervasively peaceful. 
So, I savoured this favourite photo, keeping it all to myself for a few weeks. 
But today is a good day to share. 
Happy Friday. 

(But the French fries are still all mine - unless you've got a bite of something else good to trade!)

Share your very own personal favourites (pretty please with a cherry on top!) or fill in the blank:  "Don't even think about sharing my ________________!" in the comments below. 
Enquiring minds want to know. 

(Time-Saving Hint: If you're in a hurry & want to avoid log-in rigamarole, submit comments as "Anonymous"; you can type your name at the end of your comments.)

Pelicans, Fort Shaw, Montana

Just east of Fort Shaw, Montana, I pulled onto a side road running along the wetlands where the pictured American White Pelicans lounged. I did notice a small orange windsock, but only fleetingly wondered why a bird sanctuary might need to know wind direction and strength. The long, straight dirt road was just the right distance away to observe yet not startle the floating birds, and a beautiful place for an early evening photo stroll.

After my fill of photos, I backed up my car and turned around to exit onto the highway. As I waited for traffic to clear, a serious, wiry senior lady on her green lawn tractor idled over to my passenger window. Imagine my horror - I, whose childhood farm home included a grass airstrip and varied flying activity - as I deciphered her words from the rumble of her mower motor, “You know the windsock means that this is an airstrip, don’t you?“ 

Yes, in mere nano-seconds, all manner of “could have happened” thoughts raced through my brain, yet I managed to spout profuse apologies. Thankfully, this watchful airstrip angel let me off with a grace note: “But it’s okay that you were taking pictures”, then revved up into gear, efficiently checked left and right for traffic, and moseyed back across from whence she came. 

Thank the good Lord for those who watch over idiots.