Big Hole River
10x10
The sky was gray and overcast when I arrived in Wisdom, Montana, but that was OK. I brought all the sunshine I'd need. Wisdom, after all, is one of my favorite places on earth, and to me, it's beautiful in sun or rain or deep clouds, and that's what I got.
On the way from Butte, I'd seen gorgeous views, tawny, burnished fall colors, and the river shining blue and gray as it curved through the countryside. Tiny towns gave way to open spaces, and the air grew cooler and fresher by the mile.
People were camped everywhere along the river, and cars were pulled over, too, while people scouted and waited and hunted. I only saw one person fishing, and he was on the river all day.
Sometimes on painting trips, it's hard to find the right thing to paint. In the Wisdom area, there was something to paint everywhere I turned, and I spent no time looking for the better view, the better site. When I saw something I wanted to paint, I found a place to pull over, and I set up and painted. I could have spent a week right there, and still, I'd not have made all the paintings I wanted to make.
This was my first painting of the Big Hole. I love the way the river curves around the little hummock. Love the colors of the grasses and the red bushes, and how they contrast to the thick evergreens on the far bank. With this painting, I felt like the paint and the landscape were one and the same, in a way. Both spoke to me, and I heard them equally.
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Scenes from Wisdom
An eternity ago, Peter and I lived in Boise, Idaho. We fished a lot while we were out there, in small rivers and big ones, unknown creeks and world-famous fly-fishing spots. One of my favorites was Kelly Creek, in northeast Idaho.
We took a trip there one fall, and we camped in a great spot in a national forest, down a long, bumpy dirt road. The river was gorgeous, clear as glass, full of west-slope cutthroat trout, and Peter and Gus (our bichon) and I had a great time camping and fishing. We went down that long, bumpy road, and at the other end, found ourselves in Montana, just outside the teeny town of Wisdom.
There's nothing much in Wisdom, not really. It's a town of 100-plus people, probably about 100 buildings and a few roads. There's a hotel and a B&B. There's a restaurant, two bars, a gallery, a general store, a gas station, an outdoors store/espresso bar and a few other businesses. A few ranches skirt the borders of the town.
And then there's everything else. The land stretches away, flat, high plains with the Big Hole River winding through. At the edges, in all directions, are mountains. The air is brilliantly, beautifully clear. The light is thin and white and sharp. At night, it's not traffic that you hear but cows mooing. I've never seen more stars.
I fell in love with the area when we were there so many years ago, and I fell in love with it again this time. It was the start of hunting season, and fishing was still going strong, so it was a busy time for Wisdom. I could only spend one night in town, and even that was a fluke, as a hunter had caught his take and gone home early.
I made the most of my time there, scouting the Big Hole, painting like crazy, and taking tons of photos to paint when I get home.
Above and below, a couple of the ranches along the Big Hole.
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Dog of the Day
Two were standing on the box in the back of the truck, while the third waits in the driveway. They were barking their heads off, too, as if balancing back there were not quite enough.
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