Cerulean Lake in Glacier National Park

Almost no one has seen Cerulean Lake first hand (much less swam in it!). The reason is that there is no trail to this beautiful blue lake in Glacier National Park--you have to bushwhack there. Jeremy and Carolan did just that last week. They hiked from Bowman Lake to Quartz Lake, paddled up Quartz, hiked to Cerulean Lake, then floated on that lake. Then they both dove into this lake, fed by glaciers.

Diving into chilly Cerulean Lake

Carolan and Jeremy on Quartz Lake

Cutthroat Trout in the hand!

On the Bear Creek Trail, Bob Marshall Wilderness

Who Will Defend the Wilderness? I Know a Few Warriors!

On my recent visit to Montana I started to think about the importance of defending Wilderness, defending the natural environment. We need to explain the importance of Wilderness to people of good will--and then stand up and fight for it! If not us--then who? I know there are a dozen other critically important things to think about. Please include the natural environment and true wilderness among them.

I am proud to say that my daughter Carolan is one of the defenders. She works much of the time in the Bob Marshall Wilderness, a gigantic and important wilderness complex just south of Glacier National Park. A couple weeks ago we met her after she hiked out (I think that morning it was a 15-mile hike) to the Spotted Bear Ranger Station. She had been supervising and training trail maintenance crews in "The Bob," as the Bob Marshall Wilderness is called. Sometimes she works at the Kalispell office of the Montana Conservation Corps (MCC). Other times she's in the field--The Bob, Glacier National Park, the Kootenai, or some other park or forest in Northwest Montana.

Carolan and Bob at Spotted Bear Ranger Station

Carolan's friend Jeremy Rust is also a defender of Wilderness. He works for the U.S. Forest Service and is Carolan's companion-in-adventure. They recently hiked in Glacier NP from Bowman Lake to Quartz Lake, paddled the length of Quartz Lake, then bushwacked their way up to Cerulean Lake. I don't think many people have had this firsthand experience! I recently saw Jeremy in the Two-Medicine area of Glacier:

Jeremy and Bob, by Running Eagle Falls, Two Medicine area, Glacier NP

I have met many other MCC and Forest Service workers: Lauren, Cliff, Elisheba, Beth Hodder, and many others. They are the hardest working people I know, tough as nails, and vigorous defenders of Wilderness and the Wilderness Ethic (which I will talk more  about in the future).

Sabido Cabin in the Bob Marshall Wilderness

Last week my daughter Carolan, and two of her friends, Lauren and Elisheba, hiked 16 miles from the Swift Reservoir, on the Blackfoot Reservation in Montana, to the Sabido Cabin in the Bob Marshall Wilderness. Their goal, as far as I understand, was to winterize the cabin--button it up and secure it for the long and harsh mountain winter in northern Montana. The 16-mile hike involved approximately 3000 feet in elevation gain, at times through muddy trails and cold stream fords--it took 7 exhausting (yet exhilarating) hours. These are extraordinary young people, tough, fit, and dedicated to taking care of our nation's great wilderness legacy. They look upon this work as a privilege, not as a burden. Hurray for the Montana Conservation Corps, the US Forest Service, AmeriCorps, the National Park Service, the Bob Marshall Wilderness Foundation, and all the people and organizations taking care of our parks and wilderness areas!

Photos below taken by Lauren or Elisheba:

Lauren, with Buffalo Mountain behind her

The girls at Sabido Cabin

Carolan before the long hike

This might be Birch Creek in "The Bob"

The low sun along the trail

Sabido Cabin, near Buffalo Mountain and Gateway Pass--The Bob

Carolan-Moose, at Sabido

Buffalo Mountain, Gateway Pass--in The Bob

The girls at Sabido Cabin

On the trail, Swift Reservoir to Sabido Cabin

Chainsaws, Ax, and MCC Crew on US-Canadian Border

Tell me this isn't scary!

Lauren, Cliff, Sonny, and Carolan were cutting up fallen timber at the Glacier Institute, up the North Fork of the Flathead River--adjacent to Glacier National Park, not far from the Montana-Canadian border.

Snow Angels in Crested Butte--Sarah Dean

There were three snow angels in a cemetery in Crested Butte, Colorado this weekend, created by Carolan, Elaine, and Heather, friends from the Montana Conservation Corps. Right there in two feet of snow by Sarah Dean's grave. Right there in one of the most beautiful places in the world.

Along with the snow angels, I suspect there were real angels there too, as her parents and friends remembered Sarah, how she blessed the earth for her thirty years. Lots of tears, but also story telling and abundant laughter.

"Let perpetual Light shine upon her, dear Lord."

Montana Conservation Corps and Disaster Relief for Hurricane Sandy

I just saw this news release from the Montana Conservation Corps. Carolan is one of these relief workers (she's now in the borough of Queens, stationed at a relief shelter at York College (Jamaica neighborhood of Queens):

Montana Conservation Corps Deploys for Hurricane Sandy Relief Efforts

November 2, 2012
For immediate release
Contact: Jono McKinney, MCC President and CEO
Office - 406-587-4475


Montana Conservation Corps Deploys for Hurricane Sandy Relief Efforts

Bozeman – Montana Conservation Corps (MCC) announced today that nearly 40 of its AmeriCorps national service members are set to deploy as part of the response effort to Hurricane Sandy. MCC will deploy members on a 30 day disaster response effort in coordination with the Corporation for National and Community (CNCS) Service and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

Utilizing the existing National Service infrastructure allows a rapid mobilization of volunteers into areas of critical need. State and federal agencies, partnering with local disaster managers, are able to leverage national service member expertise to clear fallen trees and other debris, move sand, distribute food, coordinate volunteers, and support other general relief efforts as they arise.

MCC crews gathered Friday for deployment orders and will arrive in affected areas this Saturday with tools and resources to begin work immediately. Accompanying the crews is Mario Colucci, MCC Regional Program Coordinator for Missoula. He is expected to assist local personnel in coordinating the extensive relief efforts.

“This is an all hands on deck scenario and AmeriCorps members are uniquely suited to provide immediate assistance. They have a level of efficiency and skills that make them a great resource to bring stability and aid to the beleaguered people affected by Hurricane Sandy,” stated Colucci.
Earlier this year, MCC applied for and was granted designation as a CNCS Disaster Response Corps.  Disaster Response Corps are pre-approved for CNCS’s disaster response deployment list, enabling a rapid response of boots on the ground.

About Montana Conservation Corps

MCC is a nonprofit organization that inspires self-discovery in young people through hands-on conservation service while empowering them with the skills, values, and confidence to be leaders, stewards of the land, and engaged citizens who strengthen their communities. MCC AmeriCorps members complete diverse conservation and community projects including trails, weed management, stream restoration, tree planting, home energy retrofitting, and building improvements for local organizations. For more information, visit http://www.mtcorps.org or call 1-866-JOIN MCC.

About the Corporation for National and Community Service

CNCS, a federal agency, provides strong support, expertise, and trained and dedicated volunteers to help communities to prepare for, mitigate, respond, and recover from natural and man-made disasters. From forest fires and floods, to hurricanes and tornadoes, to terror attacks and oil spills, participants in CNCS programs have provided critical support to millions of Americans affected by disasters since 1994.

Carolan to work at a shelter in Staten Island

Carolan and her colleagues from the Montana Conservation Corps will arrive in New York City tonight and then go on to a shelter in Staten Island where they will work for at least the next month. Staten Island has sustained terrible damage from Hurricane Sandy and we hope Carolan's crew can help out.

Montana Crew to New York for Rescue Work

We heard from my daughter that an excellent crew from the Montana Conservation Corps (Carolan included) will fly to New York tomorrow to assist in the recovery  of the city from Hurricane Sandy. About 11 young people, including 2 crew leaders, will go to New York. These are all outstanding workers (they can outwork me and you in a heartbeat--they're used to long days of hard, physical work). The first indication is that they will work in emergency shelters in New York City, but I'm betting the mission could change as needs change.

I'm so proud of all the young women and men that serve our country in various ways. Some serve in the military; others in AmeriCorps or the Peace Corps. And here's a group of forest and wilderness workers who will fly from the Glacier National Park/Bob Marshall Wilderness areas to densely urban New York City. I'm betting they will do just fine in their new environment and will help both the people of Greater New York City as well as themselves. Hurray for them!

Carolan and an MCC Crew Save a Man Mauled by a Black Bear in the Bob Marshall Wilderness

My daughter Carolan called tonight with an incredible story. Yesterday, September 14th, near the Black Bear Creek area of the Bob Marshall Wilderness, Forest Service worker Mike Revis, Carolan, and the Montana Conservation Corps crew she was leading back to Spotted Bear, encountered a man who has just been mauled by a black bear. Mike came upon the man on a trail near Black Bear Creek. The man was bloody, dazed, and hurting badly. Twenty minutes after Mike came upon the man, Carolan and the MCC Crew arrived. The bear was still very close by, probably waiting around to finish the kill.

Mike and Carolan had radios and called for a medical helicopter to evacuate the injured hiker. Carolan, who has EMT certification, and Mike administered emergency first aid as they waited for the copter. The other MCC crew members helped with the first aid and and tried to secure the trail in case any other hikers would try to pass through (the bear was lurking very close by).

It wasn't that long before the helicopter arrived, with an EMT and a nurse aboard. Mike, Carolan, and the MCC members helped lift the injured man into the helicopter. Carolan tried to keep the man calm and warm  before the take off. Fairly quickly  the helicopter left for a hospital in Kalispell, Montana.

Meanwhile another radio call went out to the Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks Service. They soon arrived in another helicopter and decided that this dangerous bear would have to be put down. They located the beer very close to the site of the original attack, and dispatched it. The bear had bloody claws and was covered with bear spray. Sometimes you can't defend yourself with bear spray or even a gun when an attack happens suddenly. The dead bear was then loaded onto a helicopter and taken to a lab where the blood on its claws, the contents of its stomach, and other things will be analyzed.

Carolan got back to her home in Kalispell about 10:30 PM Friday after a day full of terror--and considerable excitement. The man who had been attacked survived and will be OK.

There were lots of heroes in this story--people who had been well-trained and who responded to the emergency properly: Mike, Carolan, the MCC crew, the Forest Service, the emergency medical helicopter personnel, and the crew from Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks. Courage plus training yielded a successful outcome.

The Bob Marshall Wilderness has lots of predators at the top of the food chain: wolves, mountain lions, grizzly bears, and black bears. In my mind, the black bear is the most dangerous to humans.

Carolan on Montana's Flathead Divide Trail and in "The Bob"

Montana Conservation Corps crew working on the Flathead Divide Trail

Carolan on the Flathead Divide Trail, not too far from Spotted Bear. That might be Glacier National Park in the distance!

Carolan on the Big River Trail, Bob Marshall Wilderness, near Schafer Meadows. Note the 4th of July bandana!

"Hail, Holy Queen" A Prayer for Those in Deep Sorrow. Mourning Sarah Dean.

Today my daughter Carolan asked me to say the prayer "Hail, Holy Queen" for her--over the phone, as she drove from Portland, Oregon, to Kalispell, Montana. She had just found out that her great friend from the Montana Conservation Corps, Sarah Dean, had been suddenly killed Saturday, August 11th, in a collision near Gunnison, Colorado.

Sarah had been living in Crested Butte, Colorado, and we got to meet her last summer when we visited Carolan in Crested Butte and Salida. I felt a special link to Sarah through her mother, who was a student at St. Mary's College around the time I was a student at neighboring Notre Dame. My heart breaks for Sarah's mother and father, back near St. Louis, and her grandparents, who had lived in Crested Butte. And for her brother, her brokenhearted friends throughout the country, in Americorps, the Montana Conservation Corps, and all her friends in Crested Butte.

The "Hail, Holy Queen" (called "Salve Regina" in Latin) is not a prayer for modern sensibilities, it would seem. It is a prayer edged with despair and a deep sense of loss, a sense of exile, spoken from the "vale of tears." Here are the words of the prayer we said at the end of every rosary (which we said every night when I was a child):

Hail, Holy Queen,
Mother of Mercy,
Our life, our sweetness, and our hope.

To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve,
To thee do we send up our sighs,
Mourning and weeping in this valley of tears.

Turn, then, most gracious advocate,
thine eyes of mercy toward us,
and after this our exile,
Show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

O Clement, O Loving, O Sweet Virgin Mary. Amen.


Sarah's funeral and burial will be at the Queen of All Saints Catholic Church in Crested Butte this Friday, August 17th. She will be buried in one of the world's most beautiful spots, a place where Sarah's heart danced.

Here is the official obit:

Sarah Elizabeth Dean

July 20, 1982 - August 11, 2012

Sarah Elizabeth Dean was born in Gunnison, Colorado on July 20, 1982 to Jim and Barbara Dean. She was a glowing bundle of light, love and joy (and feisty spirit) from the moment she entered the world. Sarah died in a tragic car accident outside of Gunnison on August 11, 2012 while headed to her favorite place -- the great outdoors -- to go camping in Lake City with her beloved friend, Jill McCord, and pooches they so loved, Dozer and Koocha. Dozer, the fun-loving St. Bernard, and loving companion of Tyler Hammer, joined Sarah in the eternal outdoors and sunshine.

Sarah loved life to the fullest and loved all things Crested Butte where she spent a good portion of her young life with her grandparents, Jim and Sue Dean, or Granny and Pa as they were known to Sarah. Sarah and family (Mom, Dad and brother Jimmy) moved to Arkansas in the early 80's and this is where she would stay until she graduated from Fayetteville High School. Sarah attended college at the University of Arkansas and eventually got a degree in Classical Studies after years of enjoying life, travels, outdoors and returning to where her heart was -- Gunnison County. While in CB Sarah did as all locals did, worked too many jobs (Town of Mt. CB, Acme Liquor, Wine House, CBMR, CB Community School, etc. etc.) and was an avid outdoor woman who hiked, camped, skied, fished, and played as much as possible in the beautiful lands. Sarah loved gardening and cooking, putting love and light in everything she did. In 2010 Sarah did a stint with the Montana Conservation Corps as a crew leader and absolutely loved her time in Bob Marshall Wilderness area. Simply put -- Sarah enjoyed every minute she got to spend outside, whether for work or play.

Sarah is survived by a world that so loved her, as she gave freely and openly of her love to all she came into contact with. Sarah will be deeply missed by her grandparents, Bill and Mary Jane Duensing of Kansas City, Missouri; grandparents, Jim and Sue Dean, now of Cheyenne, Wyoming but formerly of Mt. Crested Butte, Colorado; parents Jim and Barbara Dean of University City, Missouri; brother Jimmy Dean and his loving wife, Lindsey and the apple of Sarah's eye, niece, Eliza of Dayton, Ohio; her companion and boyfriend, Tyler Hammer of Crested Butte; numerous aunts, uncles and cousins from every corner of the United States. There will be an empty place in the hearts of all who knew Sarah, but rest assured she will look over all she loved and shine down from the heavens until we meet her on the other side.

Pallbearers are Jimmy Dean, John Dean, Paul Dean, Tyler Hammer, Tyler Dean and Ericka Smith.

Memorials in Sarah's honor can be made to: Adaptive Sports Center of Crested Butte and Crested Butte Land Trust.

Services will be held at 1:00 p.m. on Friday, August 17th at Queen of All Saints Catholic Church in Crested Butte with graveside burial to follow at Crested Butte Cemetery (camp chairs welcomed for seating.) There will be a reception to follow at the church Parish House.

Holy Saturday Prose-Poem by Carolan

Carolan wrote this to me in an email:


Here is what I wrote on Holy Saturday. 

I just watched the most beautiful moon rise over the valley, edged by the mountains that hide the vastness of The Bob Marshall from the curious masses.  I stood under a huge Ponderosa, feet mounted in crusty snow, hands pocketed, eyes reverent to the hungry moon.  He devoured clouds on his proud rise, bit one right in the middle, a snack en-route to all things miraculous.  

"Jesus Christ," I whispered in wonder, and I remembered, hey, that's right, Jesus Christ rises from the dead in a few hours, just like this magnificent moon, and there will be a curious light in the darkness and all shadowy things will take on a grand beauty to stage the rise.  

Let me glow in the light of the moon, the God, the Savior, the love and the soul of the mountainous sky.  

Too much?  But my heart overflows.

That's all!  As I read over it, it seems a bit dramatic ... it was glorious.  Right behind the Rich Ranch. 

Text of Letter from Those Helping (Death of Mark Slovich)

For those interested in helping the family of Mark Slovich and the 2 boys who tried to save his life, Landon Decker and Jeremy Rust, my daughter Carolan forwarded this email to me:

Hello all --

 As all of you probably know by now, Mark Slovich died in a tragic and violent accident last week while hiking with Jeremy Rust and Landon Decker.  Among one of the things we are trying to do to support Landon and Jeremy in this particularly serious event, Erika and I purchased round trip flights to Philadelphia in order that those two could attend Mark's funeral. 

 Jeremy and Landon flew out of Spokane this morning.  The total cost for the tickets was $1300.  If you are friends with Landon, Jeremy or Mark, we are humbly asking for donations for reimbursement.  We will reimburse ourselves up to $1100 - $1200. 

 We will donate any overflow/excess to the Churchville Nature Center in Mark's memory.  This charity was recommended by his parents.  Additionally, as we track where and who the donations come from for these flights, a proportional overflow may be used for to purchase something for the employees at Spotted Bear in Mark's memory, if we as an employee group decided to do so.

 You can mail donations to :

 Aaron or Erika Klug
 c/o Spotted Bear Ranger District
 PO Box 190340
 Hungry Horse, MT 59919

 Thank you for the consideration, and please share this message with any relevant friends or family of these three men with whom I am not Facebooking this message --

 Aaron and Erika

Four Heroes in the Tragic Death of Mark Slovich

I don't have the whole story on the accidental hiking death of Mark Slovich, but this is what I heard: two friends were hiking with Mark Slovich in Utah a couple weeks ago when Mark fell and severely injured himself. Mark was an experienced hiker and outdoorsman, but anyone who has been in the wilderness knows things can happen. One of Mark's companions, Jeremy Rust, stayed with Mark, giving him first aid and comfort. The other fellow, Landon Decker, ran for help--some twenty miles!

Unfortunately, Mark Slovich died when help could not get there in time.

Mark's funeral would be held in his hometown of Holland, Pennsylvania, just outside of Philadelphia. Some of Mark's companions in the US Forest Service, in AmeriCorps, and in the Montana Conservation Corps wanted to attend the funeral but didn't have time to drive or funds to fly. This is when Aaron Klug and Erika Klug, a couple who worked at Spotted Bear in the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex, stepped up and gave money to Jeremy Rust and Landon Decker, allowing them to attend the funeral.

I sure hope that Mark's other friends will step forward and try to reimburse the Klug's for their generous act. I for one will send them a check. Here is where donations can be sent:


 Aaron or Erika Klug
 c/o Spotted Bear Ranger District
 PO Box 190340
 Hungry Horse, MT 59919

There were heroes amid this tragedy; I hope these acts of heroism bring comfort to the grieving Slovich family.

Lake Koocanusa--Carolan's Home for the Week

My daughter Carolan and some of her colleagues in the Montana Conservation Corps are working in campgrounds along the banks of Lake Koocanusa this week (see the image below). This lake/reservoir straddles the US-Canadian border and is very close to the Montana-Idaho border. The name of the lake comes form KOOtenai +CANada+USA. Pretty clever!

I'm sure Carolan and her friends are thinking about their former colleague Mark Slovich, who died a week ago in a hiking accident in Utah. Mark's funeral mass is tomorrow at St. Bede the Venerable Church in Holland, PA, just outside of Philadelphia. We light a candle for Mark and his family.

Top image is Lake Koocanusa; bottom image is Libby Dam, with Lake Koocanusa (from Wikipedia).

An Accident Takes the Life of Carolan's Friend Mark Slovich

Carolan received word of the the death of her friend Mark Andrew Slovich, a young fellow who worked with her 2 years ago in the Montana Conservation Corps. Mark died a couple days ago in a fall in Utah. After he fell, one friend, Jeremy I believe, stayed with him giving him first aid while another friend ran 20 miles to get help for Mark--but, alas, to no avail.

Mark was from Holland, Pennsylvania, near Philadelphia, and was a genuine mountain guy--beloved by his fellow mountain and wilderness workers in the US Forest Service and the Conservation Corps.

This was a terrible blow for Carolan and all Mark's former colleagues. They become a tight family in their work in the wilderness--it's like losing your brother.

Our prayers are with Mark, his family, and his many friends and co-workers.

Here is an obituary:

Mark Andrew Slovich of Holland, PA died suddenly in a hiking accident on Wednesday, April 18, 2012, in Utah. He was 22.

Born in Langhorne, PA, he was the beloved son of Richard M. and Marie T. Scanlin Slovich.

Mark was a resident of Holland for 20 years. He graduated from Council Rock South High School, Class of 2008. An avid outdoorsman, Mark joyfully hiked the Appalachian Trail. He joined the Conservation Corps, a division of AmeriCorps, and served for two years in Minnesota and Montana. Presently he was employed as a forest technician with the U.S. Forestry Service. He was an experienced hiker who sought out beautiful and serene spaces to play musical prayer from his Indian flute. He will be sadly missed as a loving son, brother, grandson and friend to all who knew him.

In addition to his parents, he is survived by his brother, Michael J. Slovich and his wife, Jessica, of Mohnton, PA, his two sisters, Katharine G. Slovich of Philadelphia, PA, Anna E. Slovich of Holland, PA, and his cherished girlfriend Emily Hayes of Duluth, MN. He was the maternal grandson of Helen Scanlin of Buckingham and John J. Scanlin of Tioga County, PA and paternal grandson of Rose R. Slovich of Erie, PA and the late Frank Slovich. He is also survived by many aunts, uncles, and cousins.

Relatives and friends are invited to call on Thursday, April 26, 2012, from 10:00 AM until his Funeral Mass 11:00 AM at St. Bede the Venerable Church, 1071 Holland Road, Holland, PA 18966. Interment will be private.

In lieu of flowers, contributions in his memory may be made to Churchville Nature Center, Churchville, PA.

Southwest Conservation Corps Members--Tough Hombres!

There are not many young Americans (outside military members and others serving in Iraq and Afghanistan and similar places) who work harder than the members of groups like the Southwest Conservation Corps, the Montana Conservation Corps, and similar groups working on the wildernesses, national forests, and national parks throughout our country.

My daughter Carolan is one of those people, a crew leader for a Southwest Conservation Corps working in the Sangre de Cristo Wilderness in Colorado. Carolan, her co-leader, and her crew work 9 straight  days in the wilderness, a tenth day back in Salida town, and then get 4 days off to rest and recuperate from their tough hitch. They live in tents in the wilderness, carry all their food and tools on their backs, secure their water from mountain streams, and do hard, physical work for 10 hours per day maintaining and repairing the mountain wilderness trails. Often this means swinging a double-jack (double heavy sledge hammer) all day long, pounding large rocks into smaller rocks. Because of wilderness regulations, they do not use power tools--this is pure human power and ingenuity at work. I don't think that one of 100 American youth could (or would be willing to) do this work.

On Carolan's last hitch, one member had a personal crisis, a bear got into their "bear hang" and stole some of their food, and they were belted by a vicious mountain hail storm. Despite all these difficulties, this SCC crew managed to get their trail work done. It's no wonder they were exhausted walking out of the wilderness this past Tuesday. I bet they are looking forward to a steak, a cold beer, and a comfortable bed!

These are amazing amazing young people--among the best our country has to offer. And I salute all of them!

Below are a couple of the hand tools used in the wilderness, the "double jack" and the "pulaski." The double jack breaks up large rocks, which can really hurt horses on the wilderness trails. Pulaskis serve many purposes, but are really good at cutting roots and digging through dirt.

There's a Wikipedia entry on the pulaski tool: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pulaski_(tool).
There are images on the Southwest Conservation Corps' website that show crews maintaining trails with these and similar tools: http://sccorps.org/

I located a cartoon illustrating a "bear hang" here: http://www.trailspace.com/articles/2009/10/07/book-review-bear-essentials.html. Apparently a smart bear can outsmart even these bear hangs!

Montana Conservation Corps--A Dad's Perspective

My daughter Carolan has worked as an MCC (Montana Conservation Corps) crew leader this summer and has lived in the Bob Marshall/Great Bear Wilderness. This past hitch she was near Inspiration Point and Sunburst Lake, rerouting and maintaining trails. I found this out last evening when she called me from the Spotted Bear Ranger Station. During the past ten-day hitch, she and her crew have lived in tents; in fact, they have lived in tents most of the summer. Most of the summer Carolan, Adam, and their crew (Lemmy, Evan, Barry, Elisheba, and Mark) have lived and worked near Strawberry Creek, just west of the Continental Divide. At times they camped by Sabido Cabin, and other times near a branch of Strawberry to the north of Sabido. If I understand correctly, Sabido is about 20 miles from Schafer Meadows Ranger Station, which is about 14 miles from the Morrison Creek/Skyland trailhead, where Carolan has parked her car most of the summer. In other words, she and here crew have lived a 2-day walk from what we in the "real world" (Carolan's words) think of as civilization.

As a Dad, I glory in the stories and photos that have come back our way to Northeast Ohio. I love that her food and mail come via mule train. I love the way these seven young people have learned to live and work together. They have done such good work in the Wilderness, a service to the state of Montana, the United States of America, and even Planet Earth itself. Presuming to speak for all these entities, I'll say, "Thank You!"

In the beginning of my daughter's MCC adventure, I worried about grizzly bears, mountain lions, black bears, grey wolves, and all the wild things that can potentially harm a person living in the wilderness. Turns out that they haven't had many encounters with dangerous wild animals, and when they see one they feel lucky, blessed. Carolan and her companions won't forget that rare glimpse of a grizzly browsing along Strawberry Creek. So I have stopped worrying so much about bears and mountain lions (still worry a little, I admit).

I've also worried a bit about their health. Say they broke a leg two days from help; or someone suffered a burst appendix or a thousand other health emergencies, big and little. So far they have escaped major medical problems. But I'm sure they've lived with a lot of minor problems, colds, headaches, sore throats, stomach aches, etc. These guys are tough hombres, who can't run to the medicine cabinet or doctor for every complaint.

Every day I check the weather in Carolan's vicinity, using the Weather Underground website. Of course there usually isn't a weather station right nearby, so I end up researching the weather in Hungry Horse or East Glacier Park or Choteau or someplace like that. I've noticed that fall is approaching in the Montana mountains and that night temperatures are often in the 30's (and these guys are usually in tents!). I guess the next hitch they will be sleeping at Spotted Bear, in cabins. On actual mattresses, for God's sake!

Another thing I do is study maps and handbooks about trails in the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex. I also use Google to find images near where her crew works. I've even located some videos on Youtube that help me picture their work and living environment (there are several videos of small planes landing at the Schafer Meadows airstrip). I do other things, like check in with the MCC Krew blog, http://mcckrew.blogpost.com/ (which I think is so interesting and wonderful that it should be published as a book), and go to the Glacier National Park website and look at their many webcams. These images are not exactly what Carolan is experiencing, but she is not far away from these places.

My wife and I have discovered two mystery novels set in The Bob, near Schafer Meadows. One story, by Beth Hodder, is called The Ghost of Schafer Meadows; the other, just out, is called Stealing the Wild. Beth and her husband worked for the Forest Service for many years, living at Schafer Meadows and working throughout The Bob and know this landscape intimately. These books have also helped us understand my daughter and her crew's working and living environment. In a strange coincidence, we have discovered that Beth Hodder and I both grew up in Euclid, Ohio, and graduated from high school the same year. The website for her books is: http://www.grizzlyridgepublishing.com/.

So I have vicariously followed the adventures of Carolan and Adam's wilderness crew. And once this summer my wife Linda and I were able to visit the MCC office in Kalispell and then actually meet up with Carolan for a day at Glacier National Park.

All in all it has been great fun, a wonderful trip!

New Grandbaby, New Aunts

Above, Baby Colin with two of his aunts: Aunt Emily and Aunt Carolan. Emily came up from Athens, Ohio, to visit Colin; and Carolan took a break from her work with Montana Conservation Corps to visit her new nephew.

Grizzly Attack in Yellowstone

My wife and I were concerned to hear about the recent fatal grizzly attack in Yellowstone--very much because our daughter works and lives in prime grizzly bear country (she works for the Montana Conservation Corps in the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex, just south of Glacier National Park).

I have read estimates that there are about 1000 to 1500 grizzly bears in the contiguous lower 48 United States and they can be found in the wild in Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, and Washington (some claim they exist in Colorado, too). Maybe 750 of these bear are in the Northern Continental Divide area (which would include Glacier National Park and the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex). I believe Glacier is about a million acres in size and the Bob Complex about 1.5 million acres. So maybe there are 750 grizzlies in those 2.5 million acres; that would be about 4000 square miles. If my rough calculations are anywhere in the ballpark, that sounds like about 5 square miles per grizzly bear. In other words, your chances of encountering a grizzly in Glacier or the Bob Marshall are slim indeed--but not impossible. My daughter saw a grizzly near Strawberry Creek in the Bob Marshall, where she and her crew were doing trail maintenance for the Montana Conservation Corps. She viewed the sighting of this bear as a privilege indeed.

Do you need to be afraid of grizzlies? Hell yea! Grizzlies are huge bears (those in Alaska who feed on salmon become gigantic). But even in Montana, they are big enough, with females around 300 pounds and males much larger. They have very long claws and powerful legs; they can outrun any human; they can outswim humans; and they can climb trees (though probably not with the facility of black bears). If you want to read about how unstoppable grizzlies are, read the journals of Lewis and Clark (see Stephen Ambrose's book Undaunted Courage). As Meriwether Lewis found out, a gun is no guarantee for your safety in the face of an angry grizzly.

The scientific name for a grizzly bear is ursus arctos horribilis. The term "grizzly" actually means "grey-colored." The grizzly is actually a subspecies of brown bear that often has a grey tinge to the thick fur. I, with my grey beard, could actually be called "Grizzly Bob."

I have translated the term "Grizzly Bear" into Irish-Gaelic as Béar Mór Uafásach (you could also call it something like Béar Bricliath—the second word here implies half-grizzled, gray-colored). The other Irish expression means bear + big + terrible, that is, "big terrible bear." The big terrible bear is a big wonderful bear, and a characteristic sign of a healthy wilderness. It is good luck to spot a grizzly--at least most of the time!