This May we had a stretch of abnormally warm weather. All the snow started coming off fast, and the rivers were up. Hot weather and lots of water means only one thing -- time to put the boat in a river. My friend Stan Bradshaw called and asked if I would like to paddle the Dearborn with him and his wife, Glenda, and some friends. I jumped at the chance. It is one of my favorite rivers, and only floatable for a short window.
Just down from the put-in there was a rope swing dangling from a railroad bridge. It was currently unoccupied, but I figured by noon it would probably be in motion. Every kid should have opportunities like that when growing up.
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| Kids' Summer Recreation Spot |
The Dearborn reminds me of the Smith, only on a smaller scale. It is a small canyon, cut through the hills of the prairie. Rock cliffs studded with Ponderosa Pines. All of the cliffs and draws just scream to be investigated.
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| Typical Dearborn country | ||
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| Down we go |
Stan and Glenda were paddling one of their many canoes. It was refreshing to be on the river with someone in a canoe who actually knew what they were doing.
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| Stan and Glenda |
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Stan and Glenda's friends, Sue and Jay, were on a small cataraft. Sue was the boatperson. I guess I should say boatwoman; boatperson sounds like a refugee from the far east. Jay was the designated sloth, and did an admirable job.
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| Sue and Jay |
As the guy who helped build the barn always used to say, "It doesn't get much better than this!"
The Dearborn flows through private lands, so there are very few places where it is legal to get out. There are almost no campsites when the river is floatable, as the campsites have to be below the normal high water marks. But it's a great day float.
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There was a commercial outfitter on the river ahead of us. They had a pretty decadent set up on one of their rafts. Deck chairs! Not exactly a big water rig...
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We didn't see a lot of wild life, but we did see some geese with little squirts. Unfortunately, I forgot that my camera would focus on the willows I was shooting through, so they are a bit fuzzy. An SLR (or more attentiveness on my part) would solve that problem... They're in the background, waddling away up the hill.
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We also found a couple of small owls in a cave about 20 feet above the river. Anyone know what kind these are?
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On my way home I saw a pronghorn. I don't see many of them here in Western Montana. The east slope seems like ideal habitat; I also saw a few on my way over.
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| Pronghorn |
All in all a great day, and I'm hoping to do it again soon if the water stays up.
Gary's home page
This page last updated on 2013-10-23.
