.. The recent unseasonable warm weather has increased river flows and impacted our low and mid level snow pack. It's not to the worrisome stage yet but, the long range temperature guess suggests a warm and warmer Spring and Summer.
.. You can follow the daily squiggles for yourselves with these resources:
>> USGS Firehole,
>> USGS Madison,
>> USGS Gallatin,
>> USGS Below Hebgen.
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.. Just a couple of notes:
1) Yellowstone National Park is still closed,
2) The old town site of Grayling is upstream from Hebgen Dam,
3) The gauges are in drastic need of maintenance.
unfair cartoon from 'paulschicklercartoons.com' all lies and fake news
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.. The fake news is loading up on our dear president. He has done so much for America; they should worship at his feet. History will record President Trump as our greatest president of all time. We should be proud that we had the insight to elect such brilliance.
.. We heard that he is going to use military money to dig a 550 foot deep hole in Washington, D.C. He calls it the 'Martha Washington Monument.' Such brilliance.
.. We don't think that Randy Rainbow is being very nice to our beloved president:
..
.. This is in the most unlovely spirit of patriotism. We know that all fly fishers denounce this kind of attack on the president: they just don't say it out loud.
.. The latest episode of 'Trump The Opera" is, without a doubt, the most fake of all news ever spun against our fantastic social general - "Grab 'em by the p . . . ."
..
.. We use this space to warn presidential supporters against watching these fake news videos. This is a disgrace and should be outlawed by an executive order of KING TRUMP!
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THESE SHOULD WORK
.. We're headed to Notellum Backwater for some out time. The fish are becoming atrophied from the lack of dance partners and we need to help them.
.. We have a jar full of winter fly rejects that should work wonders for the poor deprived fishes. The sun should feel good and the breeze delicious.
.. See you around the campus.
.. Gov. Steve Bullock has announced a
gradual and phased reopening of the state beginning April 26 for
individuals, and extending to businesses April 27, (That's tomorrow and the next day.)
.. Main
street and retail businesses can become operational on or after April
27 if they adhere to requirements to limit capacity and maintain strict
physical distancing.
.. Restaurants, bars, breweries, and distilleries can begin providing some in-establishment services beginning May 4.
.. Businesses
where groups gather without the ability to social distance including
movie theaters, gyms and other places of assembly will remain closed.
.. Montana's
travel quarantine will remain in effect, and out of state travelers and
residents arriving from another state or country back to Montana for
non-work related purposes are required to quarantine for 14 days.
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.. With two flights a day, West Yellowstone receives largest federal grant among Montana airports, (LINK.)
.. YNP superintendent: "no chance of immediate full open," (LINK.)
.. Sheriff disputes claim inmate tied to West Yellowstone murder has coronavirus symptoms, (LINK.)
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.. Fishers on the lowland Madison River are having to change their waders - the fishing is just that good and the caching is running apace with the fishing.
NOT MUCH COLOR YET
.. The weather is wonderful and, with 70's in sight over the next few days, should make for grand days on the water. .. Right next door there are some shirtless folks on Hebgen Reservoir. They are following the rapidly receding ice edge and taking a good number of very big fish. Even the neighbors are impressed. Some license plates are from Utah. .. Duck Creek and the upper Gallatin River are just waiting for some adventure. 'Taint normal but it is good.
.. Then we would be safe from Covid-19. Yes indeed!! Our stable genius, the imperial president, tells us to inject or, ingest disinfectant. He, who went to the best schools, tells us to ingest ultraviolet light. Fox News is silent. We are without a compass.
.. We are distraught. Out anxiety level is high. We would follow the leader if we could. However, our grocery store is out of Clorox and Lysol. Perhaps Roundup will work. We don't know the correct dosage. We do think that more is better.
.. Then again, the ultraviolet light will be easy. We shall just turn on our fly light and use it as a suppository for the great leader.
.. It's a blessing to have a president with such insight and veracity. We thank the lord for his leadership into the ecology and economics of the future.
.. Each year at about this time we note the hot emerger pattern that the neighbors embrace.
.. Especially on the lowland Madison River, where the spring flows are on the cold side, the emergers hang in the film for an extended period of time.
.. Clustered in the shore-side slicks the emergers and, the submarines congregate in a ballet of ingest and die. The late mid day sun marks the end of the easy catching. The early sunny side of the river is a pure slaughter zone. This simple pattern will do you well.
.. Some of the more mature neighbors stick with the Shuckster Cripple for their go to pattern. We tie up a double floater using one of each. Some call it cheating.
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WALLPAPER: WWI SMITH & WESSON .45 ACP REVOLVER - 1917
.. The lowland Madison River is providing good catching and, the boats look good on the river. No "Stay At Home" for the intrepid fishers.
.. Our state-wide emergency declaration is in force until the end of the month.
.. Gallatin county is the most Covid-19 affected county in Montana.
.. The neighbors are taking long walks. Kids on skateboards are visible. Yellowstone National Park is still closed. There are still holes in the grocery stocks at the store. Milk is scarce, toilet paper is scarce, ice cream is getting low.
.. Our Spring mix of light rain and flakes of show is adding some nitrogen to the exposed portions of the garden. Planting looks to be delayed this year. Need some short growing time crops.
.. We're substituting busy work around the house and dreaming of clear and cold Spring waters. We may not get out to the water before the dirty stuff clouds those cherished waters. Discharge is above seasonal norms but not to record highs yet. USGS DATA: Madison River - Firehole River.
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.. Because of our rural status and the dispersal of our population we are not experiencing the mass numbers of Covid-19 cases that the rest of our nation is. This is a blessing and a curse. The infection demographic is centered around our large population centers and university campuses.
.. The blessing = it is possible that the slow spread and relative isolation of small population communities will allow for appropriate and timely treatment of infections.
.. The curse = our health care community is small because of our small population. It is stretched thin, overworked, and exhausted. Given the vast area they are tasked with covering, they have a monumental task to deal with .
.. National information is available from the CDC. Just click on the virus image for information from the Centers For Disease Control.
.. Montana has two primary sources for information about the virus:
>> Department of Health And Human Services
>> Montana Response: Covid-19
.. Currently, Gallatin County has the most cases and deaths attributable to the infection.
We are scared shitless!!
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WALLPAPER: BLT PILED HIGH WITH TOO MUCH MAYONNAISE
.. The ice skating rink is a mud puddle. There are many other puddles around the village. Could this be an honest harbinger of Spring?
.. The neighbors are still shouting at each other. This is a good thing. The sneaky fishers are now sloshing through deep mud and slush.
.. There is milk at the grocery. There is toilet tissue at the grocery. There is still a five pound limit on ground beef. There are holes in the cookie shelves. It's no way near normal and, we wonder at the impact for shoppers come the visitation time of year. Time will tell.
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THE EMERGENT GARDEN
.. We won't live to see it - BUT - the national genome will change. The genetic structure of our population will be impacted to a greater or lessor degree depending on the number of fertile breeding adults that are removed from the population. Food for thought.
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.. We can see the garden. The strawberries are producing greenish/rust colored leaves. The wet snows smashed a couple of cherry bushes. The damn raspberries are limber and showing swelling buds.
.. Native grass and weeds are already poking through the snow. Plenty to do around the house.
..Today I extended my Directives through April 24 to
protect Montanans from COVID-19 by slowing the spread of the virus in Montana. .. These extensions include
my stay at home order, school closures, on-premises dining and beverage
operations, eviction and foreclosure suspensions and service disconnections and
the mandatory 14-day self-quarantine for travelers coming into Montana. .. We don’t have to become
like New York, Louisiana or Idaho. We know that staying home will help to
flatten the curve. For every person we take out of the chain of transmission of
this virus, the more likely our health care facilities can handle the capacity
to respond, and the more likely we can beat back this virus sooner rather than
later. .. We stay at home to ensure
that our health care workers and first responders have adequate time to receive
the supplies to keep them, their patients, and their families safe. We stay
home to protect Montanans in our rural communities and our rural health care
workers who face long distances to access care. .. Stay home.Avoid gatherings or hanging
out with people outside of your household. Only go out if you are an essential
worker, or to take a trip to the grocery store, or to enjoy some fresh air... I would also encourage you to wear a cloth mask
or face covering, consistent with CDC guidelines, in public settings where
other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain, such as at grocery
stores or pharmacies. Please use cloth face coverings and not surgical masks or
N95 masks which are desperately needed by our health care workers and first
responders. It’s also important to know that while cloth masks do help protect
those around you, they should not be used as a replacement to social distancing
or other protective measures such as washing your hands. .. We stay at home for the Montanans in our rural communities
and for our rural health care workers. We are a state where there can be long distances
to access care. It’s easy to look at the map of COVID-19 cases and see that
many Central and Eastern Montana counties don’t yet have a positive case. .. While this seems like a bright spot, an outbreak
in a rural community could overrun a local healthcare facility. The distances
between critical care access hospitals in Montana are far between. It is
already difficult for our fellow rural Montanans to access care, and we ought
not make those challenges more cumbersome. .. And we stay at home so that we can more quickly
rebuild our thriving economy. It is not a choice between a healthy population
and a healthy economy. The two go hand in hand. .. Managing this public health crisis now will help
to prevent long-term consequences that could upend our economy for a longer duration
and with a worse outcome. .. I know this is an extremely challenging time for
small businesses and workers alike. We continue to strive to do everything we
can to help support those businesses and workers during this time. .. I can’t stress enough that every step Montanans
take now and in the following weeks will make all the difference in stopping
the spread of COVID-19 and getting our economy back up and running. Thanks so
much for everything you are doing to slow the spread of this virus and care for
the members of your community. ..You can view all my Directives that have been
extended online at: https://covid19.mt.gov/joint-information-center
.. Madison Sasser, 18, is jailed in Conroe Texas, being held on an out-of-state fugitive warrant. Sasser is the aunt of James Alex Hurley, 12, who was found dead in the family home in West Yellowstone in early February. [Link To Story.]
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.. A federal judge sided with environmentalists in a lawsuit over a timber
project on the north side of Hebgen Lake. U.S. District Judge Dana
Christensen ruled that the U.S. Forest Service needs to take another
look at the 'North Hebgen Multiple Resource Project’s' potential impacts
on habitat for wolverines and elk [Full Story Here.]
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Sneaky Devils
.. Must be Spring. 60's in the bullseye. 50's happening now. Rain, (in drizzly amounts,) keeping streets damp. Snowpack holding. Discharge rates climbing. All face masks in place. Lots of parking places. Summer folk arriving in droves = refuge from crowded cities. Food quantities stable = limit one item and no more than 5# hamburger.
.. Neighbors cautiously breaking the law and fishing near - AND - in the Notellum Creek willow forest.
.. Catching is reported as spectacular.
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