MATR had a great time in the "Bob" thanks to Greg "watch me set myself on fire" Gilchrist of Lake Upsata Outfitters. Wanna job riding a horse in paradise?

I wanted to let everyone know that Alexis and I returned safely from a wonderful week to celebrate our 25th anniversary in the Bob Marshall Wilderness Area http://www.wilderness.net/index.cfm?fuse=NWPS&sec=wildView&wname=Bob%20Marshall

We were lucky enough to have been guided by Greg "watch me set myself on fire" Gilchrist and his crack team of wranglers, Brandon, Jason, Nick and the seasoned veteran (3 weeks in the saddle – Gunner – happy 21st guy) from the Lake Upsata Outfitters http://www.upsata.com/ "dragging mules" through some of the most beautiful country in the world.

Greg’s great cooking was supported by his marathon runner wife,
Julie, who is also a exceptional baker. Huckleberry coffeecake, sweet
potato cake, muffins to die for and Julie’s special cookies came with
us on the mules.

Surefooted horses carried us up Haystack Mountain to the Chinese Wall in
which we were sure we could see the faces of Native American warriors,
hawk nosed trappers, bawdy women and totem animals. I’m sure we could see
all the way into Canada and most of the states south of Montana. Its
sheer, towering granite face made the Continental Divide real at a viceral
level. Here, one sees striations in stone which show the power of the
forces which caused the continent to rise, peak and buckle. Unlike other
barriers, the impregnability of this granite front forces water inexorably
either East or West. Snow on the mountain tops and cold temperatures at
night were a wonderful respite from the hot Montana summer days and the
fire on Mount Sentinel.

Mother nature was abundantly generous to us by sowing a thick carpet of
wild flowers. Graciously, she included a bounty of Morel mushrooms
under many trees in last year’s burned areas.

Morels are oh so delicious in scrambled eggs or with a fresh caught
cutthroat trout seasoned with nodding onions and wild chives. Breakfasts
like these got us off to an amazing start to the day. Unlike Elk hunts,
our group’s Morel hunt had a 100% success rate. After that, burned areas
take on a charm most seductive. But this is strictly a post burn, early
season activity, so don’t expect it later in the Summer or Fall.

My wife and her cousin, Linda Zarko were able to identify over 40 flowers and logged an uncountable number of belly laughs during the week.

Rivers were running high but the horses were surefooted and
nobody got wet the entire time. Wildflowers and the local resident elk,
deer, big horn sheep etc. were everywhere. Game was completely unafraid
of us while we were on horseback. Two deer patiently watched the women
do yoga one morning, probably wondering what kind of whirling disease had
gotten them. While we heard coyotes yip, the wolves were noticed by their
silence. We also saw lots of sign of bears but our talking and noise
kept them out of sight. All in all, an amazing week.

Greg (Upsata Outfitters) still has a few openings for the elk and deer
hunting season this year. So, if you’re a Montana resident who never had
a chance to hunt the Bob Marshall Wilderness, or you’re a non-resident
who drew a tag this spring, give him a call. 1-800-594-7687
He has a limited number of openings for hunters with a 2008 tag who want
to hunt The Bob. But be prepared for an amazing trip with no whining
allowed (or you face the "mousetrap").

The highlight of the gastronomical events was the night Greg set himself on fire…

He was going to celebrate the last night of our trip by preparing his world famous peach cobbler and we were salivating at the thought of such a wonderful desert in such a great setting.

He had been working with his new four burner stove the whole trip and tonight was no exception. He had the cobbler and a big pot of hot water on the back to burners and the ever-present pot of strong coffee was on the front. Alexis and Greg were talking as he fussed with the dinner when another guest walked up to get a cup of coffee. When he saw her reaching for the pot, he didn’t hesitate to gallantly offer to pour her a cup. At the same time, Alexis was saying, "Greg don’t pick up…" when he picked up the pot….

The entire stove, cobbler and all, went over backwards because of the sudden lack of ballast on the front burners. It was a symphony of "oh no" from everyone as the tapestry of peaches, pine needles, and mud spread out from the scene of the disaster.

Everyone ran to the scene of the crime when they heard the outcry. Disappointed was an understatement as we all had our taste buds set to maximum peach.

Greg was mortified and immediately set to coming up with a substitute desert which we all appreciated.

As he was fussing around the reconstructed stove, Alexis continued her discussion with him about all sorts of topics.
He’d lit several of the burners to make sure everything was working and reached over the stove to adjust the back screen. Again Alexis started with a warning: "Greg, you’re going to set yourself on fire if you reach back there."

Greg either didn’t hear her or didn’t believe her until he saw the smoke coming from his shirt. He’d set his sleeve on fire and a nice little blaze was coming out of his armpit.

He managed to put it out quickly with no body damage but the shrieks of laughter from all of us easily scared all the bears away.

We all decided to rename him Greg "watch me set myself on fire" Gilchrest. What a dinner that night….

(Disclaimer: No horses, mules or packers were injured during the course
of this activity… but all of the guests and wranglers nearly busted a
gut laughing.)

During our adventure, I learned that there’s a very active educational
business in Montana training packers and guides who are much in demand
after they’ve been trained. What a way to spend some of your early years
if
you have a love of horses and big open wilderness. I don’t know all of
them but here’s a couple if you’d like to see some gorgeous Big Sky wild
country from the back of a horse and get paid.

USFS Ninemile Wildlands Training Center- Packing and Horsemanship Clinic Hosted by Smoke Elser in Missoula (406) 406-549-2820 (Couldn’t find a website for Smoke but here’s a bit about him http://www.fs.fed.us/r1/centennial/forumawards.shtml )

Royal Tine in Philipsburg: http://www.royaltine.com/

Western Montana School for Guides in Darby: http://www.guidetraining.com/

Mills Guide School of Augusta http://www.millswildernessadventures.com

Here’s a full list: http://mt.gov/dli/bsd/license/bsd_boards/out_board/pdf/GUIDE_SCHOOLS.pdf

It was a great week but now back to seeing if we can develop a few more "gazelle" startups in Montana. And thanks to all of you who sent in articles and events. I know the newsletter is a little long today but as we like to say around here: "The State with the Best Education Wins!"

Russ