Garnet Mt. Trail

Okay, so I'm not dead.

I haven't been eaten by bears or mountain lions.
I haven't been taken captive by crazed mountain men.

No.  I'm just a teacher approaching the end of the year and all its craziness.

But, next week is the final week of teaching.  From there, I'll settle in to my part time summer job at a local bakery and a lot of hiking.

Yesterday I finally got out again with Koda (and Nathan).  We decided we would try Garnet Mountain Trail.  The trail is 8 miles round trip.  You know you're done when you reach the top and see the Forest Service Lookout Tower (which can be rented out for a few nights here).  The total elevation gain is around 3,300' if you start from Storm Castle's Trailhead  parking area.  Some people drive around past Storm Castle/Squaw Creek and go to Rat Lake, which also has a trail leading up to Garnet Mountain Lookout.

We went by way of Storm Castle.

To be honest, the trail isn't terribly difficult or steep until the end, then there is about 0.5 miles of steep, gravelly road to walk on.  Part of this is because this portion of the trail is also used by 4-wheelers and dirt bikes.

(Side Note: I really hate having trails accessible to motorized vehicles like this.  I think it totally defeats the purpose of going out into "nature".  If you want to ride your dirt bike around, go into town.  Bozeman would do well to invest in a dirt bike track and keep these folks off of the trails, I think.)

It's a beautiful hike.  Arguably the most scenic one I've done in Bozeman thus far.  The trail is lined

with alpine wildflowers and it seems like you get a new and incredible lookout every half of a mile.

I wouldn't recommend it for anyone visiting from lower altitudes.  If I had tried this last fall when I moved, I would've gotten frustrated and not even enjoyed the scenery.  But, if you're feeling up for a good 4 hour hike (about how long it took us) and a bit of a workout, then I would say to give it a shot!

But remember, bring bear spray!

With summer will come more time to hike and blog, so I'm hoping  to get this blog up and running again.  One more week of school and then I'll be cruisin' through summer.

I have a few trips planned, but not too many.  I will be in the Black Hills at some point in July and running a 5K not too long after that.

Until then, enjoy the photos!

Best,
A

Recap: 2012

I thought a short, well-written (hopefully), summative post of 2012 would be good.  Obviously, the focus will be on Koda and working towards the Triple Crown.  But, hey, why not give this blog a slightly more personal touch and let you know about the entirety of the year?

January: 

J-Term class at Augustana College in Sioux Falls, SD called "The Wire".  It was my final course to take for Civitas Honor's.  Sincerely, I didn't really enjoy the course.  I understand what the professor's motive was in designing it, but think that it should have been a little better thought out. 

January also brought with it the Northlander's Jazz Band Tour.  While we didn't go anywhere exotic or crazy, the trip itself was highly enjoyable.  It afforded me the opportunity to get to know Dr. Schilf (a professor at Augie and also the professor who would be evaluating my Student Teaching) along with a few members of the Jazz Band that I really enjoy, but don't get to talk to outside of class often.

January also brought with it many trip so the Humane Society to look at and play with dogs.

February:

Started Student Teaching at Baltic under the direction/supervision of Linda Wilke. Lovin' it.

Still going to the Humane Society to play with dogs. I think this was the time that I ran into a dog named "Cartmann". Adorable and high energy.  I was instantly attracted to this dog and wanted to adopt him, but was not at a time in my life where that would work out.  I found out later (after talking to the inmate that worked with Koda), that Cartmann was a PitA (Pain in the Ass) and unruly.  

March:

Still Student Teaching.  I also took a trip with the Augustana Trombone Choir to the Eastern Trombone Workshop in Washington DC where we performed alongside other colleges from around the nation.  The thing that set Augie apart at this convention is that we were the only performers to have no graduate students performing with us.  We did well and made ourselves proud.  Similarly to the Northlander's trip, I was able to get to know a few professors and trombone players really well and enjoyed myself immensely. 

Senior trombone players and our fearless leader, Vance Shoemaker.

April:

A flurry. Finishing student teaching. Finishing my "career" with the Augustana Band, Augustana Trombone Choir, and Northlander's Jazz Band.  Planning for graduation. Applying for jobs and travelling for interviews.

I also met another dog (I know, it's like you're hearing about my love-life...only it's with dogs?).  This one's name was Jackson. He was a German Shepherd mix and strangely beautiful. Think: body of Alaskan Husky, coat of an all black husky but the under layer is blonde, so when you pet him against the "flow of fur" he looked blonde.

But, he barked a lot and was super hyper.  I later met him at a dog park in Sioux Falls and the owner was having issues with vocal commands.

May:

Completed Student Teaching. Graduated from Augustana College with a Bachelor of Arts degree, major in K-12 Music Education and Civitas Honors.  

Oh, and, of course:

Adopted Koda

Ready for an onslaught of Koda photos from when I first got him? If not, shield your eyes and scroll down quickly!

  

This was Koda's FAVORITE chair. We ended up not bringing it to Bozeman, as it belonged to Nathan's sister.

When I first adopted Koda, he was pretty sick with an infection and slept a LOT.  

But occasionally I could get him to play and we would run from one room to another chasing each other.

 June-July:

These months were filled with a lot of working with Koda and getting to know each other. I also gave a few private lessons on trombone, worked at Coffea, and worked on finishing my Honor's project.

August:

The application. The interview.  The acceptance. The presentation of the honour's project. The move.  First week of working and meeting staff. Saying "So Long" to family.  This month was stressful.

September - October:

Working and playing. 

November:

Birthday (both mine and Koda's).

Going home for Thanksgiving and leaving Koda in Bozeman.  Nathan watched him for me, and I think that was a good thing.  I missed the pooch quite a bit, but loved spending time with my family.

December:

Putting on the School Christmas Concert.  Learning to live (and, eventually, enjoy) the snow and cold weather. Going home for the Holidays and having to leave Koda at a boarding kennel.

Actually, I just picked him up about 2 hours ago.  He is tuckered and shedding like crazy.  I think he was really confused and really afraid of being put back at an Animal Shelter.  Thus, he didn't sleep very much (or eat, or drink) and the stress caused his hair to fall out a bit.  He is sleeping on the chair across from me now and finally looking very contended.  Poor guy.  I realized how much I missed him while I was gone, too.  I've decided that kennels are risky business with him right now because of his history and am planning on driving home and bringing him with for any trips longer than 3-4 days.

Sooo, Koda gets to go home in March!

Now, what will 2013 bring?  Hopefully a bit more stability.  I'm finally adjusting to Bozeman (I'm "reticent to change") and would like to get a better feel for the community.  I'm planning on doing most of my traveling throughout July.  My Dad's side of the family is getting together in Western SD, which is much closer, so I'll go to that and then drive on over to MN for a 3k that I'm doing with a friend later that month.

The goal is also to hike. A lot.

I don't start teaching again until the 3rd, so there will be another update later this week talking about another trail that must be completed to "Triple Crown".

Have a fantastic holiday and see you in the New Year!
Best,
A