In the Shadows of the Plateau
The last week of October had been unusually warm, with temperatures in the high 60s. After a Friday happy hour with new coworkers, I went home and packed up some backpack hunting gear. It's also fun to think back to a simpler time when I owned one fly rod. This setup still sits at the bottom of the Yellowstone River in Yankee Jim Canyon, but that is a story for another day. At that time, similar to most hunters my age, my gear list was much rougher around they edges than it is now. A simple load hauler with stuff sacks full of camping equipment, a pump shotgun I had scored for $75 at a pawn shop, a box of shells, and the minimal fishing equipment were along for the ride. Early in the summer, I had arrived in Billings from Boston, after a month or so road trip cross country. Six of my first eight weekends in Montana had been spent hiking and fishing in the Absaroka Beartooth Wilderness. This was spurred by a hiking trip with my new friend and coworker Shawn on the second weekend.
