I was lucky to get out into the Montana mountains a few days ago. This image was the result. There is no place in the world more beautiful than Montana in spring.
Category Archives: Ruminations
Stray dog tries to save man from injured bear as people hang back and film his death.
This story really, really pissed me off. And that doesn’t happen very often.
In India, a taxi driver spotted a bear along the road, and got out to take a selfie. Sure, this was dumb. There’s almost no commentary required here. To make things worse, the bear was injured and likely felt threatened. So it charged the man.
Here’s the part that gets me: in the video, the man is *slowly* being killed by the bear, while the onlookers (five to six people) *do nothing*. Well, okay, to give them “credit”, they were filming. And one boy tossed a big rock.
This bear could’ve been scared away by several people ganging up on it. Instead, they filmed. As the man died. Slowly.
Yet, there was one animal in this scene that actually tried to do something. A tiny stray dog desperately tried to save the man, and attacked the bear. Unfortunately, the bear seized the man by the head, gave two good shakes, and likely broke his neck.
Cliches are cliches because they’re often true. Man’s best friend is a dog, not people.
You can watch the video at this link. But be warned, it’s distrubing.
Bears.
This mammoth black bear surprised me while I was busy taking a landscape image in the other direction. Of course, it wasn’t the bear’s fault. I was down wind, and not making noise. As visitors to the bear’s home, we must be aware at all times. Fortunately I had my telephoto lens and was able to grab a crisp shot.
Filmed in Glacier National Park.
Rivers.
I need to get back to this river. As much as I like Montana west of the divide, my heart is in the Gallatin National Forest. I first discovered this amazing spot in 2001, and have tried to make it back every year since.
And big thanks to my grandfather, who got me hooked on fly fishing. When I was 19 or so he took me into a fancy sporting goods place in St. Charles, and bought me a Sage fly rod. That’s a pretty sweet fly rod for a beginner.
Certain places remain in your blood…the sense of land, of place. Palpable, forever.
Song Among the Pine
in 2010, I made my first trip to the Pacific Northwest. I left Missoula at sunrise, and drove across the Oregon desert. As the sun set and I approached the remote Winema National Forest, I swore I could taste the Pacific Ocean in the air despite being a long way from the coast. I remember only seeing a few cars that day, out of hundreds of miles. While I drove, I played this song. A lot.
“Song Among the Pine” was written by an artist called Gravenhurst (multi-instrumentalist Nicholas John Talbot). The album “The Western Lands” soon became one of my favorites after that trip. So much so I even recommended “Song Among the Pine” for THE PULLER movie.
Sadly, I just found out that Nicholas John Talbot passed away in December of 2014. So I’ve been playing this album all week, thinking about how much his music moved me artistically. Thanks for the inspiration, Nicholas.
Song among the pine
Cones and needles lie atop the dark soil
They will come for me
With searchlights streaming through the cedar trees
Cold ash smother the fire
Cold ash smother the fire
The ripple of the stream
Is just one way the forest speaks to me
The anger in the streets
Is just the way a broken city breathes
