montanapalooza 2002

“Chief! a sierra trading post but no greyhound bus? what's up with that??? kidding
is the sierra tp open on Sunday?”

“I'll check. I don't think it is right now, but when the touristas hit town, probably.”

“aero - you may see me up there too - if I am still out of work that is”

“Prowler and JOSH! I keep posting and you keep forgetting!

owell, ill stay at home then.”

“dam, my name appeared!???? wow!”

“I'll need fuel and I'm sure I can think of something else.”

“Prowler thats great it will now be even better for the driveing part!

More people less time driveing.

8)”

“What are you not allowed to take on the plane with you? As far as gear. I mean carry on and checked luggage. I've never flown for a backpacking trip before.”

“just drive!! ROAD TRIP!!”

“I hear that dude!!!!!

8)”

“I would like to drive, but my plane ticket is free and my wife wants me home as quick as possible.”

“Pepperdog..did you see?.....no rei...but a sierra trading post in Cody....o mi gosh....hee hee.......those after flight fuel buying trips to the gear shop can turn into extra packweight and lighter wallet in about ten minits......heh, maybe I could stand outside the door and give somebody money to go in and get the canister for me....so i am not distracted...:)”

“If goats are present, it is recommended that one pees on rock. Goats can reak havoc on the fragile dirt areas where they paw piddle puddles.

Are marmots there, too? They can reak havoc on yer belongings. They have a habit of chewing on sandal and pack straps, stinky shoes and socks, etc. Sarabelle is a "perty good marmrat getter", but she can't guarantee protecting more than 12 tents.


We'll be close enough to Yellowstone to where I'm thinkin' we'll have a pretty good chance of spying a griz. Whoo-hoo!

I would imagine the above info is mentioned on the flip side of the maps.


If you wanna spy wildlife, you'll prolly hafta walk point to keep the noise behind you. Quiet side hikes from camp are another good way to see'em. You could prolly sit quietly at a good vantage point and get some pics.

Oh yeah!
What about fishing? I'll have my tackle (in the truck) - should I get a MT license and pack my little rod?”

“yer a gawddam goat expert aint ya? yeah that info is on the back of maps. thats where you got it!! yep youll see lots n lots of wild life when theres 30 fukin drunks trompin around the woods.”

“om, I don't think you will need to stop for fuel OR a fuel bottle. I'm sure that there will be plenty of extras to go around, you'll probably have to carry them for everybody though. LMBO

gojo, the fishing was excellent in Fossil lake. The only other time we fished was at Russell (slow) and at Rainbow (pretty good).”

“I just saw a display at the check-in at the Denver Airport last week of outdoor gear you can't take on the plane. Stoves were one. They had about every liquid fuel stove in the dsiplay case.

I've got plenty of white gas at home and at the cabin and we can pick up ISO/PRO cannisters either in Billings or maybe in Red Lodge on Sunday. The Sylvan Peak outdoor shop in Red Lodge will most likely be open. As a last resort, the Cooke City Bike Shack will have some stuff as well for last minute items.

You can mail (almost) anything to me and I promise you won't have to go down to the local pawn shop to get it back!”

“i finally found my maps....that drive from cody to cooke city looks awesome! once i start lookin at maps....i can no longer focus on the now....
ahhhhh back to the budget due tomorrow...sigh....
all this talk about moose and goats and lakes and mountains .....and meetin folkses.....i love it”

“OM- are you coming over Sunday 7/14 from Cody? If so, I'll email you directions to the cabin.It's pretty easy to find, right off Hwy 212. We should be there by mid- to late-afternoon Sunday. Let me know if there's any gear you might need here.

BTW, the Cody to Cooke City drive IS beautiful; Sunlight Basin and the valley of the Clarks' Fork of the Yellowstone! I hope it's still daylight when you go through!”

“i will be arriving in cody early sunday afternoon your time, but prolly by the time i get into a car (that part is not set yet..the rental...got my travel guru workin on the details) and meander thru that sunset cruise, it will be late into cooke city, so, yes...directions would be great.
i am on the fence as to fuel, i have a trangia and a primus...i have to ponder more on that one and will prolly have to mail you the primus if i am bringing it....
i will email you when i know more.....

"tell 'em (the cowboy outlaws) i'm coming and i'm bringin' hell with me" :) :)”

“om- check your addy. I sent the directions.”

“Oops! Heeheehee!”

“DOH!”

“It's ok, your secret's safe with me! LMAO!!!”

“Busted!!!!”

“"What about fishing? I'll have my tackle (in the truck) - should I get a MT license and pack my little rod?"
gojo"

Gojo,
When I did this trail, I spent a week and fly fished every day. We caught trout every day. A few of the lakes are barren, but most are full of fish. Mostly brookies on the Cooke City side of the divide, and mostly cuts on the Alpine side of the divide. I prefer stream fishing to lake fishing, so I spent most of my time fishing the streams that connect the various lakes. I highly reccomend the stretch of stream between Dewey Lake and Twin Outlets Lake--I caught a bunch of nice cuts on elk hair cadis flies.

There is a great book called "Fishing the Beartooths" which tells you where the fish are. It's a Falcon Press book; you can get it from Amazon.”

“That is something to think about for me.I would very much like to go fishing on this trip.

Does Mt sell week long fishing licences?

8)”

“One of the first rules of trolling, 'young grasshopper' is to remember to loooooooooog out! You need more practice, back to the rice paper!”

“Hey! Watch out OM, that's Captain Underpants- not me! Good try CU, but I'm not you, er whatever...”

“Crazy Mike,
Yes, MT sells week-long fishing licenses. We picked ours up in Red Lodge at the Hardware store (good source for flys, stove fuel, etc.).”

“You can also buy them at the General Store in Cooke City. And, it is actually a three day license, then you buy additional days after that. I'm thinking $25 for the 3 day and $5 per day after that. But don't quote me on it.”

“Everyone is talking about it but what is it?”

“It's a week long hike in Montana.

July 13th to July 20th.”

“I was getting to think it was some huge party. Like woodstock only for hikers!”

“Chief -
That sounds about right. In WY, you pay per day. You can even select the days - they don't have to be consecutive (if memory serves - Y2K). In ID, it's $10.00, then X per day (last year). I'm talking non-resident freshwater licenses, here. The non-res saltwater licenses are astronomically expensive! LOL!

I will bring an ultralight spinner rig - I don't have a fly rod. I figured to pack a few Panther Martins of various colorations. I've had pretty good luck with said tackle throughout the Rox - lake and stream.

Mebbe I'll do a prehike fishing trip in those parts to get more familiarized with tackle and tactics. If all goes well, I'll plan and pack for palooza with the intention of eating fish a couple or three nights. If I catch a surplus, we'll barter...

If enough of us fish successfully, we can have a fish "fry". Seriously.

Anybody have a backcountry hushpuppy recipe? Heh!”

“Gojo,
Many of the lakes on the Cooke City side (eg, Ouzel) have too many Brook trout in them. They are easy to catch, small, and very good to eat. They would be good targets for a meal. I bet you could slay em with a spinner.”

“I will plan to eat fish, then.”

“I think I might just do that thank you for the info gearjunkie...

8)”

“Here, now it's at the top for you to read.

Geeezr lives in Billings also, unless it's Aero posting as another troll.

Captain Underpants, Geeezr, Aero, who else?

LMBO!!!!!!!!!!!”

“It just keeps getting deeper and deeper!!!!!

8)”

“I'm indeed in Billings and did this very trip in '02. I believe I tols someone that I did it last year, but Malinda, my wife, corrected me. Must be old age! This trip sounds great and wish I could join you all. Unfortunately I'll be leaving For the Bridger-Teton National Forest on the 27th and doubt I can get MORE time off. We'll see.”

“Actually, it was 2000. I'll get it right yet.”

“Aero,
Please don't force me to search ALL these posts . . . What are the dates for this hike????? I beg you, make this easy on me. I probably won't be able to make the hike itself because of commitments in late July but might be able to help with transportation, etc. I'm in Billings.”

“People will start arriving on July 13th and leaving on July 20th.”

“What in the world? I'm gone for 2 days and all the sudden everything goes all weirdo on me. Who's Captain Underpants and who's Geezr and what is a hushpuppy recipe?

Guess What? I went and bought one of those fancy-schmancy Kelty kid packs. Me and Newergirl are going to start practicing for Montanapalooza!!!!”

“That's great, Newgirl! That will give you time with her, and you'll get that training in.”

“hush puppies are a southern treat of corn meal, spices, deep fried and often served with fish. mmmm...mmmm....”

“Are fires allowed where we're going? The only way I've ever cooked fish in the backcountry is over a fire.

If no fire:
Does anyone have another way to prepare fish? If so, I'll catch and you cook. Teamwork!

Legend has it that hushpuppies were first made by hunters to appease their dogs. They would fry-up leftover corn batter and feed it to the dogs so's they'd hush their barking.

The batter is spooned into golf ball size chunks and dropped into the hot oil. When the bottom side is done, they roll over on their own. Kewl!

The way this thread is going, we'll have nothing left to talk about on the trip. Heh...

I suppose we could gossip about whoever doesn't show up...

Grits are good with fish, too, BTW.”

“Can't you just batter and pan fry in a little oil on you stove top? Pack a little non stick griddle or something that can work double duty for flapjacks in the morning.”

“Well some of my more pressing questions have been answered then. Now about the Captain Underpants guy . . . .”

“Fires are allowed up until the drainage diveide at Fossil Lake and then they are banned until below Dewey Lake, if my memory serves me right. That is why we camped at Mermaid Lake and at Twin Outlet Lakes.

Side Note: The fish in Mermaid were HUGE. But, they wouldn't bite.

We took some extra heave duty aluminum foil with to cook our fish in. Everybody was responsible for 2 pieces big enough to cook about 3-4 fish in.”