Beauty & Beast
©Bert Gildart: Janie and I left Bigfork, Montana, several days ago and are just a little north now of Salt Lake City. The distance approaches 600 miles and during the entire time we have been engulfed by smoke created by forest fires in both Montana and in Idaho. If we saw these conditions in L.A., everyone would be jumping up and down and saying we’ve got to do something about all this pollution.
Smoke from forest fires creates a beauty and beast contradiction. The smoke has engulfed us now for almost 500 miles, as shown here in Dillon, Montana, which is in the southwestern part of the state.
Smoke, of course, is pollution, and global scientists have predicted that as the earth’s temperature rises, the occurrence of forest fires will increase. Well, folks, it seems as though that is just what is starting to happen, and for many it is not pleasant at all. Nasal passages clog up, membranes dry and nose bleeds increase. The consolation is that smoke dramatizes images of sunrise and sunsets, and from the looks of things, it appears we’ll be seeing much more of this type of beauty, because the 5% of those who do not endorse global warming scientists (such as Montana’s Congressman Denny Rehberg) seem to be getting their way. By that I mean that a willing society could reduce global warming and its effects, but we must listen to scientists and not politicians.
L TO R: In the first picture of the barn, mountains in the distance are completely obscured by smoke, which has engulfed us for almost 500 miles. In the next image, the mountains are much closer but still muted by smoke.
At any rate, the smoke was even intense at Monida Pass, and at times the area is intriguing. Adjacent is the old town of Mondia at which Janie and I stop every time we pass through. While in Dillon, Montana, we over-nighted at the home of friends and Chuck (who is a premier fishing guide) on the Bighole (and others) said the old barn has finally started to collapse. Links to pictures of the past show the effect of wind, rain and snow.
Yesterday, it and the little town of Mondia contrasted with the smoke enveloped mountains in the background, which at times were completely obscured.
We’re hoping that as we drive south into the deserts of the Southwest that the smoke will dissipate.
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(You can order our new books (shown below ) from Amazon — or you can order them directly from the Gildarts. Bert will knock a dollar off the list price of $16.95, but he must add the cost of book-rate mailing and the mailer, which are $2.25. The grand total then is $18.20. Please send checks to Bert Gildart at 1676 Riverside Road, Bigfork, MT 59911.)
