Columnist Paula DelGiudice: Visit to Montana cleanses the spirit

Paula DelGiudice

Wednesday, Aug. 18, 1999 | 12:17 p.m.

Paula DelGiudice's outdoors notebook appears Wednesday. Reach her at PDelGiudice@compuserve.com

Everyone's got their end-of-the summer, cure-the-August-doldrums vacation spot that they look forward to all summer: The spot that keeps them going every day in 100-degree temperatures, knowing that there will be a break in the heat soon.

It's a time-honored tradition. Some like going to the beach, others to the mountains. This year our getaway spot was western Montana.

If you like the climate of the Pacific Northwest set among towering mountains, Missoula is the town for you.

Though I was stuck in meetings with the National Wildlife Federation's board during much of two days, Mike and the kids enjoyed a trail ride one day -- the kids' first time on horseback. The rain that fell every day we were in town managed to hold off until the group was well under the tent set up for lunch. The lush green hillsides and the Clark Fork River were a wonderful contrast to the hot sun of Southern Nevada's Mojave Desert and, though some may have tired of the rain, we rather enjoyed the different climate.

The next day the whole group headed for Lolo Pass. We talked about the Lewis and Clark Expedition and learned about the trials and tribulations of the men who first explored the area looking for the way to the Pacific Ocean.

We passed by the spot where the expedition ran out of game animals to kill for food and had to kill pack horses for meat as desperation was setting in. It was great to have a history buff on NWF's staff discuss the dates and details of the journey as we drove to put it all into perspective.

The day included a discussion on the future of grizzly bear reintroductions in the Selway-Bitterroot ranges of Idaho and Montana, including the innovative work NWF has accomplished with the timber industry and other nontraditional groups who are interested in grizzly bear recovery.

The rain poured down but didn't dampen anyone's spirits. This fact was quite evident when we stopped in Hamilton in the Bitterroot Valley for a presentation on wolves, complete with a visit by Kawani, a captive wolf used for educational purposes. Kawani's owners use the wolf to help teach the public, particularly children, that the myths and legends about wolves attacking people and as menacing villains are just that -- myths.

We practiced our wolf howls in unison and then celebrated the wonderful success of the releases in 1995 and 1996 in Idaho and Yellowstone National Park. From the original two releases, more than 120 animals are now inhabiting these areas.

Though surveys show the American public (including residents of Idaho and Wyoming) strongly supports the reintroductions of wolves into these areas, the livestock industry has filed a suit against the "experimental population" and hearings were heard in Denver two weeks ago. The suit contends the releases violated the Endangered Species Act because there are actually remnant populations of wolves remaining in these release areas.

The "experimental population" designation was derived as a compromise to allow the wolves to be brought in yet provide for management of the animals should they stray outside release areas and get themselves into trouble by developing a taste for domestic livestock. The acrimony over this issue is far from over.

As I write this, we're hoping to see some of the wolves as we head south through Yellowstone in a day or two. We drove down from Missoula to Emigrant, a small community south of Bozeman, where my sister-in-law and her family live. So here I sit, enjoying modern technology with the use of my laptop computer, high on a hill overlooking the Yellowstone River with the Absaroka Mountains in the background.

It's quite a gift to be able to relish the peace and quiet of one of the most famous fly fishing spots on earth: near where the Madison, Gallatin and Yellowstone rivers line up in three consecutive drainages, separated only by some of the most beautiful mountains on earth.

Before we head to do a little of our own fishing, we're stopping by the famous Dan Bailey's Fly Shop in Livingston.

As we head down through the Yellowstone Valley, through Gardiner and into Yellowstone, we'll be looking for antelope, elk, bison, moose and wolves. Yesterday, we saw white-tailed deer, mule deer, and sandhill cranes in the river bottom.

This morning, for the first time this summer, my sister-in-law noticed that the first signs of autumn are in the air: The sun is a little lower in the sky, shadows are just a little longer, there is just a slight hint of morning chill that wasn't there yesterday and the sky and air feel just a little different. Fall is on the way.

So it's time to start our trek back home. We'll head out the east side of the park for a camping spot in Wyoming where we'll camp for a couple of days beneath the rustling leaves of the quaking aspen trees. We'll help the kids catch some stream-fattened trout and perhaps tie on a fly or two ourselves.

We'll drive back through Salt Lake City visiting family along the way.

By the time you read this we'll be back in Las Vegas: cooler, relaxed, restored and ready to start a new school year next week.