Elk Hunting Montana's Gravelly Mountains

For those that grew up in the Rocky Mountain States (Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Utah & Colorado) Hunting is a tradition and for many a means of survival. Elk season, which usually opens in late fall, is an opportunity for many to harvest an animal to help feed their family in the coming year. In early November I  was invited to accompany my friend Matt, plus his uncle and a few others, to pack in to the Gravelly mountains just South of Dillon, MT. Like many Montanans Matt's Family had been hunting in their secret spot for somewhere around twenty years without seeing another soul for weeks at a time and always having a plentiful harvest. After hearing about the adventures and stories of years past, I felt privileged and excited to be invited. Joining them the night before we packed in at Matt's home in Whitehall, MT we all ate a good dinner and hit the bed early, our goal was to leave by 5:30 am the next morning. Like an early morning mission it took lots of coffee to get things rollin'. Within an hour of being awake we had 12 horses loaded in trailers and were well on our way driving down the Jefferson Valley to Dillon. Stopping briefly to grab a greasy spoon hometown Man-tana breakfast we continued South out of Dillon on a dirt road for about 40 miles to the trailhead. Stepping out of the car and beginning to unload the horses and supplies I am reminded of how exciting it is to get away from the masses and embark on an adventure.  To Be Continued.......

Early Season Night Skiing Bridger Bowl

Last night Oct. 28th, Steve Jay, Zach Jay and I decided to take advantage of the two feet of new snow that fell in the Bridger Mountains the day before. Just like every early season adventure everyone had to take a little extra time to gather gear which had been in hibernation for a couple of months. We finally loaded all the skis, boots, packs and some celebratory beers into Steve's Jeep and left Bozeman around 7:30pm. Arriving at Bridger Bowl we were impressed on the coverage the base had, they have really been gettin' with the snow making up there. We quickly geared up, slapped on our skins and started the climb up the hill. The moon was in its waxing stage glowing a bright three quarters making the fresh snow illuminate the entire mountain range. Reaching our half way point we stopped into one of the Alpine Smoke Huts to discuss safety and to enjoy a frosty beverage. After resting for about 15min we continued on, breaking trail up slope to the bottom of the Apron, stopping from time to time as we continued up to take in the beauty of the glowing landscape and crystal clear sky's. Reaching the top, we clicked out and de-skinned stoked to ski the couple feet of PowPow. I went First, to set up my camera to get some night skiing shots, the snow was sort of wind buffed in spots with some weird layers already existing that will more than likely propagate some small slides in a couple months. I set up, got my exposure and signaled for Steve to "Rip It". Skiing straight towards me, he slashed a big turn right in front of the camera. Perfect! Zach went next making beautiful powder turns following Steve's route, click..Flash... Dang! I just missed him. Night Shooting is Definitely an art that I have yet still to Conquer. After one more half lap we headed back to the car stopping in at the hut once more to enjoy our time out and of course another brew. Great Early Turns!....Come on Ullr! give us some more white stuff!
-Steve

Two Summers Team Marginal DVD Cover

I just got done designing this dvd cover Ben Kisella and the boys with Team Marginal / Bozeman Paddling Film Festival. This is an excellent kayaking movie based on enjoying life's adventure with great people! The boys kayak rivers and creeks from Montana to Argentina with a few side adventures and experiences along the way! It should be for sale soon so get out and buy a copy!

More Hanging Garden

Steve Followed me across this to the saftey zone where hen down climbed and ski traversed across

The Hanging Garden off Beehive Peak

Me and Steve Jay Skied this line off of Beehive Peak near Big Sky on Saturday May 2nd.

After some Ass Clinching exposure we made it to the top of the line where Steve and I peered down the roll-over to what could either be a shaded North facing chute or a couple hundred foot cliff. Steve Commented "I am 85% sure that this is the line." In the end it was our line and the snow was the best I have skied in the month of April...Ever! Yeah Montana! Here I have posted a number of my photos from our trek.

For a trip report Check out Steve Jay's web Page:

goskiing.wordpress.com/2009/05/04/the-hanging-garden-2

Wild West Photos

Check out a bunch of my pic's on Wild West Photos website!
click on featured artists and then find my name "Steve G."
-or-
Here is the link to my profile:
www.wildwestphotos.com/search_results.php?photographerID=35

Hello Everyone!

I have found that is difficult for me to share my Photos and Adventures with everyone in a convenient way. This will be a way for me to share where I am, what I am doing and the Stellar new photos I have been taking.
So...Check 'em out, Make comments, and Enjoy! Just remember all images are copyrighted!
Cheers
StevO