Record Breaking Snowfall for East Glacier Park, Montana!

It's not widely known that East Glacier Park just dug out from over 60" of snow. Little is know broadly about winters in East Glacier Park - until now.

I want to share with you a short, time-lapse I created. You'll see me move a mountain of snow after the epic winter snowstorm of February 2017.

Enjoy

Going to the Sun Road is OPEN for the Season 2014

It's official, at least for now, the Going to the Sun Road is open! Access to Logan Pass opened on July 2, 2014.  Enjoy the snowy, alpine sights of Logan Pass, but don't go up thinking you'll find the board walk to Hidden Lake or be taking a long stroll down the Hi-line trail - NOPE, it wont happen, too much snow.

Stacy Dolderer Skiing on Logan Pass, in Glacier National Park. © Tony Bynum Photography 

It will be awhile before you'll see colorful flowers on Logan Pass, but the drive will make up for it! There's plenty of snow, but not much for green once you arrive at the parking lot on Logan Pass!

Bring your jackets, skis and some lunch and have a fun time.

Tony Bynum
Glacier Park Photographer

Grizzly Bears are out - crown of the continent - you're not the top of the food chain!

Grizzly bears are out and scouring the hillsides for food and looking for love . . .  Make sure you're packing your bear spray, and more importantly, make sure you are always "bear aware."  I always tell people, grizzly bears are where you find them. If you are in the part of the country, and you ask, "where are the grizzly bears," just remember, "grizzly bears are where you find them," which means, grizzly bears are anywhere at anytime!

This boar grizzly bear proceeded to shred this small fir tree. I took this as a clear indication that he was unhappy with my presence - even though I was about 100 yards, maybe more, away. I left the area imidiatly and allowed the bear to proceed on his own. If you see a grizzly bear, be cautious and read their signals. Boar grizzly bears are out searching for sow's this time of year! © Tony Bynum Nikon d300, nikon 500mm f4 vr. 1/250 sec @f5 iso 800. 

NEVER let your guard down! Keeping on your toes is one of the reasons going into wild country is so much fun and why it often changes people's lives and perspectives. If you're out in the bush in these parts, you're not at the top of the food chain. That alone should make you think a bit different about the world. . .

Cheers, and be safe out there!

Montana Based Photographer, Tony Bynum 

Deep Snow still in the Two Medicine Camp Ground - Glacier National Park

The Two Medicine Road in Glacier National Park, is open all the way to the Two Medicine Lake. However, the snow is still deep, up to 25 or more feet deep in the deepest drifts!  There a small area to park - right next to the lake and the boat ramp, but don't plan on camping in the Two Medicine Campground any time soon. The snow is still so deep, I doubt we'll be seeing soil in the campground anytime soon!

Sinopah Mountain in Glacier National Park, is at the west end of Two Medicine Lake. Two Medicine Lake is at the end of the Two Medicine Road from East Glacier Park, Montana. The snow still is very deep along either side of the road leading to the Two Medicine Lake. The Two Medicine Lake is still completely frozen. © Tony Bynum

A deep trench in the snow, Two Medicine Campground.
The trench will help the snow melt. © Tony Bynum 

In this photograph you'll see a deep, narrow trench cut by the Park Service to help open the road. At the bottom of this 30 foot deep trench, the road is wide enough to drive a car down! Right now there's no driving on this area of the Two Medicine camp ground, but the area does offer some fun snow shoeing or bike riding!

Be careful not to slip off and fall into one of these man made crevasse's, you'd be hurt for sure!

The Many Glacier Road too is open, and things in East Glacier Park are starting to buzz! In fact a local favorite restaurant Serrano's just opened, and a the new Rock-n-Roll Bakery is now open for the season. Brownies opens Friday, May 9, 2014, just in time for Mother's day.

Have a great spring!

Glacier Park Photographer!

Bakken Oil Trains - Glacier National Park update . . .

Now even the industry says the oil tankers are not safe for Bakken Oil . . .   What's it going to take? Is it going to take leveling East Glacier Park, or some other residential area before the system catches up with the oil boom?  What gives people?  

"None of the tank cars currently in service carrying Bakken crude oil is adequate for carrying that product, a rail industry representative testified Tuesday, but until new federal regulations are completed, the use of inadequate cars will continue."  

Read the entire story here in the, Olympian, 

http://www.theolympian.com/2014/04/22/3098058/tank-car-fleet-inadequate-for.html

Tony Bynum
www.tonybynum.com 

Are Oil Trains Disrupting Passenger Train Reliability? - Amtrak's Empire Builder changing schedule.

It's no secret that the great American train icon Amtrak, is struggling a bit. In recent months the most widely used coast-to-coats human hauling rail service has been challenged to be more on time. In fact, some of it's stops last year were never on time and now Amtrak aims to try to make some improvements by changing the schedule of the Empire Builder. (Link to the new Empire Builder Schedule).

Amtrak's train, the Empire Builder reflecting in a small prairie pond east of East Glacier Park, Montana on it's way to Chicago. ©tonybynum.com    www.tonybynum.com 

Amtrak, faced with the reality that it does not own the rail line, runs it's day to day operation of the Empire Builder based on Burlington Northern's freight schedule. Over the past few years the space between one train and the next has narrowed and Amtrak must face the reality that it must share the rails with more freight. To that end, Amtrak has set a new schedule for the Empire Builder.

The Empire Builder train clips eastward, on it's way to Chicago across the prairie of Montana. Purple lupine sprout from the grasses and Glacier National Park is on the background. ©tonybynum.com  www.tonybynum.com 

While some say Amtrak changed is schedule based on the increased number of oil trains from the Bakken, official I spoke with at Amtrak said, "we have never commented on the type of fright, only the volume of traffic on the line."

Burlington Northern Santa Fa engines pulling a load of oil cars. Glacier National Park is in the background. ©tonybynum.com     www.tonybynum.com 

The Flathead Beacon mentions the increase in oil trains as one of the cause of the trains constant tardiness.  Get the full story here. The Helena Independent Record also reported, "Officials said it was the increase in oil trains" that was at least part of the reason for the changes in the Empire Builder schedule. Get that story here.

Amtrak's announcement that it will, for the first time in many years, temporarily change it's Empire Builder schedule in order to better maintain on-time service, can be found here, the Full Amtrak press release. 

Mark Magliari, Media Relations for Amtrak said, in a personal phone conversation with me, "we have been working with BNSF, the owner of the rail-line to create a more dependable, on-time service to Amtrak customers." Magliari stated, "the single most important aspect is service; schedule and on time arrivals are number one to our customers."

A long line of oil train cars heading toward Glacier National Park, across the Blackfeet Indian Reservation. ©tonybynum.com   www.tonybynum.com 

I asked Mr Magliari if Amtrak has additional concerns for passenger safety in light of the increase in freight, most notably more oil trains, coupled with numerous local derailments, avalanches, and other oil train explosions over the past several years.

Mr. Magliari remarked, and I'm paraphrasing, "they [Amtrak] have not commented on the type of freight, Amtrak changed the Empire Builder schedule to better serve the needs of it passengers" (phone conversation, April 1, 2014).

Mr. Magliari can be reached at: 312-554-5390

A Burlington Northern oil train sprints down the track on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation in north central, Montana. ©tonybynum.com   www.tonybynum.com 

For me, this begs the question, is Amtrak really thinking about increased risk based on all the evidence, or is it just trying to keep it's "stock" from falling though the floor?

Today, unlike the Empire Builder of the past, if you're on the train today, you're riding along side of, and going past at 80 mph, thousands of potential "bombs." If that does not have some increased risk, I'd be surprised.

I'm purely speculating here, but I'm pretty sure Amtrak and BNSF will still say taking the train is still more safe than driving. I'd say, possibly, but then again there's no record to justify that claim, just yet. . .  I don't recall a time when mile long trains full of explosive oil were skipping along the tracks so often that Amtrak had to change it's scheduling . . . I'm not saying Amtrak changed it's schedule due to oil trains along, i'm saying that the fact that there are more oil trains should cause them to think more carefully about safety.

As a local, year around resident of East Glacier Park, I live just two blocks from the BNSF rail line, the exact one that supports the more explosive loads of crude from the Bakken (as this story reviled). I've also noticed the wildly fluctuating arrival and departure of the Empire Builder over that last year or so.

The increase in demand for rail space, coupled with the heavy snow's and continued operation and maintenance of the BNSF rail line though the south end of glacier park most certainly means increased risk for accidents, no matter how safe they are, it's just the law of numbers. So it stands to reason that there is therefore an increase risk to passengers and freight when there's more of it - right? And how about the volatility of Bakken Oil? In a more recent report, that too is getting closer scrutiny. 

A train crossing the Blackfeet Indian Reservation and weighted down with Bakken oil, heads toward Glacier National Park. ©tonybynum.com 

I thought Obama was going to help develop a comprehensive energy policy? Is this his solution?  Just let the market decide?  I'm a "free market" guy, I'm a business owner, but I'm also sensible. It appears we may be headed down the rails to a disaster if our policy is to ignore the potential for a catastrophe, in light of the evidence . .

Tell me what you think, am I over reacting?  Should I just sit back and say nothing?  Is the Empire Really as safe as ever?

Sincerely, Tony Bynum - Glacier Park Photographer

East Glacier Park in the Winter - Photographs and Slideshow

How would you like to see real life in East Glacier Park, Montana during the Winter? Here is a blog post with photographs of East Glacier Park in the Winter. If you know someone that would enjoy seeing these photographs and slideshow of East Glacier Park, Montana in the Winter, please share it with your friends! 

 Stay warm out there!  

Tony Bynum 

Bakken Oil Train - a ticking time bomb for East Glacier Park School Children?

I'd like to draw your attention back to the Bakken Oil Train issue. Elizabeth Royte, a writer for OnEarth Magazine managed to find the time to draw attention to the issue of "Bakken Oil Trains," and the communities around Glacier National Park. By "Bakken Oil Trains," I'm talking about the Burlington Northern line and the oil swollen tanker cars full of the very volatile Bakken Oil that pass just a few thousand feet from my house every day. . .

Elizabeth's does a great job researching the subject and pulling together relevant issues, like the lack of fire protection, and the presence (or better, the lack there of) of a complete emergency response plan that includes the fire department in East Glacier Park and the National Park Service in any real way. Here's a link to her article,  "An Accident Waiting to Happen." 

I would like to point to a couple of things that are missing from her piece.  First, East Glacier Park school (K-8) is only feet away from the train line.  The photograph below show you just how close the Bakken Oil Train passes the East Glacier Park School.

For those that have not been here, the location of that train in the photograph, is the exact place where only a few years ago, Burlington Northern dumped a pile of train cars into Midvale Creek - yes, in that exact location!

Children in East Glacier Park School, wait for the doors to open as a mile long "Bakken Oil Train" passes only feet from the school. This is the exact location where Burlington Norther lost 25 rail cars into Midvale Creek about 10 years ago. ©tony bynum 

Second, the risk of catastrophic fire that if started would likely take out Glacier Nation Park. Surly based on the general wind patterns which can gust to over 100 mph and often do, a crash, or accident, derailment, whatever you want to call it, between east glacier park, and west glacier park, could literally start the catastrophic fire that would sweep north east, burning the park from one side to the other.

The real issue is how much work is BNSF doing to reduce the risk, and is it enough to avoid a catastrophic failure?  Mother earth is often in control in these parts. I know even if BNSF does it's best - whatever that is - mother nature still rules this land of ice, snow, wind, and beauty . . .

Please take a look at Elizabeth's piece, "An Accident Waiting to Happen."  Let us know what you think or if you have any good ideas about how to reduce the risk of a catastrophe.

Sincerely, Tony Bynum

Glacier National Park Winter Photographs

Glacier National Park winter photography. This glacier park winter photograph is an example of the type of image you can expect to capture during the winter months. This image of Lake McDonald, is from Glacier Parks West side. Lake McDonald is a few miles north of the town of West Glacier, and about 20 miles north of Kalispell, Montana.

In the photograph of Lake Mcdonald, in Glacier National Park, steam gently rises off the lake indicating very cold air and relatively warm water. In the distance, the mountains are snow capped and reflecting afternoon light. During the winter months very low sun angle makes for fantastic afternoon and evening sunset images.

Glacier National Park - Lake Mcdonald. Steam rises off Lake McDonald with snow covered peaks in the background. ©tonybynum.com - Tony Bynum  

Lake McDonald, on Glacier Parks west side, is one of the few locations that can easily be photographed. The west side of the park has far less direct access in the winter than the east side of Glacier Park.

That said, if you plan to access Glacier National Park in the winter, be sure to contact glacier park to check on area and seasonal closures.  In the last few years, Glacier Park administrators have close several very popular winter access areas in response to resource concerns.

In particular the entire area around Saint Mary's Lake, on Glacier National Park's east side has been closed to protect wintering elk. This closure was in response to an elk poaching incident.

It's too bad the Park keeps closing more and more of the Park to visitors.  Glacier National Park is wonderful area to visit during the winter. I hope that if you want to visit the park in the winter you do it!  Contact +Tony Bynum , or @tonybynum or find him on facebook at Tony Bynum Photography on Facebook.

  

Fireworks and Glacier National Park - Independence Day in East Glacier Park, Montana

©TonyBynum.com - Fireworks over East Glacier Park Village, Glacier National Park, Montana. July 4, 2013. 

Great summer on hand in Glacier National Park. The fireworks were as good as ever over East Glacier Park, Montana.

Glacier Park Time Lapse - Sunrise over Two Medicine Lake, Sinopah Mountain

Fall is one of my favorite times of year . . .   The colors are dramatic, the temperatures are cool, and the air is so crisp and refreshing you can taste it in your mouth.

Below is a time lapse I shot from the shore of Two Medicine Lake in Glacier National Park.  The clouds were beautiful and there was just enough breeze to offer a slight ripple, from time to time on the lake. I'd like to thank my good friend Jack Gladstone for the wonderful music that accompany's this time lapse video of the sun rise over Two Medicine lake in Glacier National Park.  To hear more of Jacks work visit his website @ http://jackgladstone.com .

Two Medicine Lake, is located at the end of the road up the Two Medicine Valley.  It's accessible from going through East Glacier, past the Glacier Impressions Gallery (it's open from June though August). That is Sinopah Mountain in the distance.  It took me about an hour and a half to shoot this time lapse, I used about 1800 individual frames to complete the video. . .

If you watch closely you might see two things that are not so obvious, one is more so than the other. Watch it one time first, then come back and read what I think are the two interesting things that happen in this time lapse that you may not have seen the first time you watched it. Why not post your guess if you found something you think is interesting or unusual. . .

Okay, so I hope you watched it.  What did you see?  Anything special? Let me know! Take a guess and I'll be back in a few days to tell you the two things that I'll bet you missed . . .

In the meant time, don't forget to get outside and smell the freshness of fall!   Follow us on twitter @tonybynum or facebook @ tonybynumphotography . . .  

Cheers, Tony Bynum

Glacier National Park Fall Photography Forecast

After living here for more than a decade I've learned a few things about this place.  First and foremost is to never predict the weather. Second is to never make plans without making backup plans. Third, never predict the weather. . .

That said, I'll make a forecast. This fall, 2012 on Glacier National Park's east side (photograph of the Empire builder clipping along the tracks just outside of East Glacier Park, Montana), should be stellar! By all accounts this is shaping up to be one for the record books. We had good moisture, warm summer days, and now the evenings are cold but the days are warm, the perfect combination for fall photography! The unknowns are the weather. At this point the leaf's are already changing but since I cant predict the weather, I cant tell you what's going to happen. 

Fall colors and fresh snow in Glacier National Park. © Tony Bynum, contact me for licensing. 

That said, if we stay on this warm day, cool night pattern, in two more weeks the color is going to explode out here! If you're going to plan a trip, just watch the weather. If you see conditions on the east side around East Glacier Park, Babb, or Saint Mary dip much below 20 degrees for a day or two, and it snows more than a few inches, you should plan to hit the west side of the park. Those conditions usually are followed by a strong Chinook wind that will strip the leaves so fast you'd swear the trees never had any in the first place. 

The sharp ridge in the Crown of the Continent, Glacier National Park, rises above the quickly change colors of the aspen.  ©Tony Bynum, contact me for licensing.

The outlook is fantastic this year!  Plan a trip out here, but make sure you watch the weather and adjust accordingly. If you're coming no matter what, the west side around the North Fork, and the Lake Mcdonald area, along with Highway 2 are always fantastic but usually it ripens a little later than the east. . .   Look for more larch than deciduous trees on the west side, and be sure to bring a Tiffen 77mm Circular Polarizer.  

Have a great fall season in Glacier National Park! 

Travelers Rest in East Glacier Park is a fantastic setting and a great place to stay when your in Glacier National Park. ©Tony Bynum, contact me for licensing.

Happy Fall, Cheers! 

Tony Bynum 

Glacier National Park - a wonderland of beauty

What more can I say - this is the most beautiful place on earth . . .   Sometimes when you try too hard to find a photograph you overlook the obvious . . .  Try to focus less and laugh more . . .  you'll find it!

A warm, morning glow against the wild lands of Glacier National Park, Montana. ©tonybynum.com all rights reserved. 

Spring time in Glacier National Park

Glacier National Park is coming alive. I can still see twilight over the mountains at 10PM!  Yeah . . .  By the end of the week I expect to see some balsam blooming.  Already the lower ground flowers carpeting the lithosols are blooming!

Flowers bloom on a well drained lithosol. Glacier National Park in the Background. Nikon d700, 17-35 afs, f16.
© tonybynum.com All Rights Reserved. 

People are beginning to show up, some tourists, but mostly workers. This past weekend things really started buzzing around East Glacier Park, but deeper into the park, you'd think no one knew about the place, it's deserted, well, almost . . .

A cow moose and her calf from last year cross the Many Glacier Road in Glacier National Park, Montana. Nikon d4, 70-200 afs vr lens. © tonybynum.com, all rights reserved. 

Bull moose eating new buds, Glacier National Park.
Nikon d4, 200-400afs VRII @ f5, iso 400.
© tonybynum.com All rights reserved.

I love this time of year. By our standards it's spring, by most other's it's still winter, but spring in Glacier National Park is all about change and life!  New life springs up around every corner. Plants begin to reach for the sky, animals feed more comfortably on green food. Moose and elk are growing new antlers and grizzly bear cubs sharpen their skills! It's a all about life! Life happens to us, not for us!  Go live it!

For those that care, I mean really care about this place, consider calling your congressman and tell them to vote no on HB 1505!

If you've still not checked in with my facebook page, please do, you still have time to win the glacier park book, "the first 100 years," and my signed print of the cover photo. Gt to Tony Bynum Photography's facebook page and check it out!

Cheers!

Oil Drilling on Glacier National Park's Eastern Boundary, the Blackfeet Indian Reservation

Oil exploration on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation, bordering Glacier National Park's east side, is rapidly expanding. The decision to explore and drill for oil was made by the Blackfeet Nation and the Blackfeet Business Council. I respect the Tribe’s right to use its resources and earn income from selling them. I’m asking you to help support my documentary project. Let me explain, and show you what's going on through my project. I have been documenting the oil exploration on the Rocky Mountain Front for over two years now. I have photographs of oil drilling and videos of drilling mapped and online.

Drill rig drilling just above the Two Medicine River south of Browning, Montana. Glacier National Park is in the distance just left of the drill tower. © tony bynum, all rights reserved.

In the past two years over 30 new exploratory wells have been drilled on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation. A few have been drilled within a few miles of Glacier National Park on the east side. I have heard estimates ranging from 80 to 100 wells along the western edge of the reservation, the area closest to Glacier Park, for full field development. Currently, each well undergoes an Environmental Assessment (EA) on a per well basis. There is no comprehensive analysis of the potential impacts to the social, economic, or environment from full field development. In other words, there is no Environmental Impact Statement in which to analyze cumulative impacts. Therefore, there is little information available to anyone about what the future might look like. Moreover, it’s only now, after more than 30 wells have been drilled that people are becoming engaged. To my knowledge, there has not been an industry or tribal sponsored public meeting or public hearing to discuss oil drilling on the Reservation. The only information we get is though EA's and a few public, and state sponsored discussions. The EA's are made available at a location in Browning, MT. No one is sure what full development will look like, or if it will even occur. We do know that there are about 40 more wells planned over the next year for a total of 70. We really are due a more comprehensive study of the potential impacts.

A few issues that an EIS could include:

• wildlife habitat, including impacts to threatened and endangered species like the grizzly bear; 
• water quality and quantity - a lot of water is required for hydraulic fracturing, which is the only economically viable processes for recovering light-tight oil from the Bakken Shale zone; 
• potential for groundwater pollution from fracking;
• other environmental concerns such as air pollution from dust, and emissions from diesel engines, and heavy truck traffic; 
• impacts to the federal class I area under the Clean Air Act (Glacier Park is a Federal Class I area - the highest level of protection from air pollution, Class one is a visibility standard, not a human health standard); 
• flaring, and off gassing from the well during and after fracking; 
• social and economic impacts associated with the numbers of new people and activities that will demand products, and services, and their impacts on the existing infrastructure, like roads;
• cultural resources and historical areas; 
• light and visual pollution.

Native american sculptures designed and crafted by Darrel Norman, owner of the Lodgepole Gallery and Tipi Village located just west of Browning,  MT, and a drill rig tower. © tony bynum, all rights reserved. 

Buffalo graze in a pasture, next to an active oil well, east of East Glacier Park Montana, about 4 miles from glacier National Park, the Badger Two Medicine is in the background. © tony bynum, all rights reserved. 

If the oil exploration involved only a few oil wells that would be one thing, but it's not. This is about a complete overhaul and industrialization of our landscape as we know it. An EIS would help us look at the potential impacts of full scale production and build out - which some have said could include as many as 800 wells in the next 10 years across the entire Blackfeet Reservation - with about 100 of those being within the grizzly bear recovery zone, (basically the area west of the Duck Lake Road) and the area closest to Glacier National Park.

Even with all of that in mind, I remain optimistic. The Blackfeet People have been here a long time. They also have a right to develop their resources, but what alarms me is that if history repeats itself, and I have no reason to believe it won't, this boom and bust cycle will once again play out along the Rocky Mountain Front, and the border of Glacier National Park, just as it has all over the world. The resources will be drained, the people will be left to deal with the legacy by people whose only goal was to make money. Let me be clear, money is not bad. However, the people who stand to make most of it, do not have a stake in the future of this landscape no more than a barber cares about the future of the hair he takes off the top of my balding head.

When the oil is gone, the industrialized landscape created, what will our future here be?

Are there Options?
Is there a chance that a more long term and economically sound decision could have been made? Well, lets see. All indications and proof are that the answer is most certainly “yes!” Wildlands are at a premium today, and rising, and as far as I can tell, we're not making more of it. Might it be a better for the long-term to embrace the land and the potential economic rewards associated with limited extractive use over drilling, roading, and polluting the things that people come here and spend money to see - the mountains, the wildlife, the fish, the culture, and the open spaces? If we foul this nest what's next? What is left on the table for an economy here in Blackfeet Country? We need to answer that question now because at the current rate of development, we will need to take action to implement that plan very soon.

The "Keep Your Options Open” Principle
A wise man once gave me sage advice. When thinking long term about resources management decisions, we should always consider the consequences of our actions and what they mean for future generations. There are limits to what we can do today. The principle goes like this, we should, in the very least consider alternatives that allow future generations at least as many options as we had. As far as I can tell, industrializing a landscape removes the one option that has, for this place, the biggest potential for long term economic rewards. Open spaces, wildlife, and recreation.

The fact is, everything is connected to everything else. What we do "here" impacts what happens over "there." Wise decision making should include thinking about, and acting upon the known needs of future generations. In a nutshell, we must be sure that we understand, as best we can, what impacts today's actions will have on the ability of future generations to chart their own future and the more options they have on the table, the more likely they will be to succeed and prosper. It’s as easy as saying, if we pollute our wild trout streams to the point that wild trout can no longer live in the water, there is no option for wild trout on the menu, or to catch for fun.

If we take options off the table, future generations are limited to what is available to them at the time. In a world of limited resources, some of which cannot be replaced in a lifetime or even 100, if we take away the opportunity to use the land for its wild character we eliminate the option to cater to those that demand and pay dearly to experience such settings. Open spaces, clean air, unobstructed vistas, and silence are among those that would be off the table. I am not talking about creating a wilderness. I am talking about using the landscape in its current state in order for it to continue to provide the same, and maybe more benefits for the next 500 years.

In closing I'd like you visit my website and look at the images, some of wide open areas and some of oil exploration, and watch the videos of the oil development on the Blackfeet Reservation. The goal of my project is first to educate, and second to build a visual record of the land before, during and after the dismantling of one of earth's most unique and coveted places. My hope is that this record can be used by future generations to help them put the land back together.

This is the third year of my documentary project on “Oil Drilling on the Rocky Mountain Front, Blackfeet Indian Reservation.” Please consider a donation, or a sponsorship. So far I've have raised, through donations, about 20% of the cost of this project to date. Any donation will go a long way to help offset the costs of documenting and reporting on the oil development along the Rocky Mountain Front and Blackfeet Reservation. You can make a secure, private donation below the oil drilling map of the reservation on this page. Or you can mail it to me, Tony Bynum @ PO Box 441 East Glacier Park, MT 59434.

Please share this blog post with anyone you think cares about the Blackfeet Reservation, the Northern Rocky Mountain Ecosystem in Montana, Glacier National Park, the Crown of the Continent, or trout streams and kids.

Thank you for taking the time to read this, and for commenting.

Tony

Wildlife Protection Limits Travel to Designated Trails

Press Release from National Park Service - Glacier National Park 


Wildlife Protection Limits Travel to Designated Trails   
 Travel on Trails Only in Specific Areas Through May 15   

WEST GLACIER, MONT. – Off-trail travel through critical winter range areas is not allowed through May 15 in specific areas of the North Fork, Lake McDonald and St. Mary Districts of the park in an effort to protect wildlife.  This restriction is intended to protect wintering ungulates such as deer, elk, moose and sheep from disturbance.   Limiting human use to designated trails will help protect the animals during the critical winter and spring months. 

This restriction does not affect the public’s use of designated roads, trails or river in these areas. Only off-trail use is prohibited between December 1 and May 15 of each year.  Signs are posted at public access points in these locations.   

In the North Fork area, the protection area is between the North Fork of the Flathead River and the Inside North Fork Road south of Logging Creek and north of Dutch Creek.  Further south along the North Fork of the Flathead River, the winter range immediately east of the river from Big Creek south through Great Northern Flats, the Apgar Mountains area, is also protected.   

In the Lake McDonald area the restriction to designated trails is in the Belton Hills area along the Middle Fork of the Flathead Rive r corridor.   On the east side of the park, the winter range protection areas include the St. Mary, Two Dog Flats and Rising Sun areas.   

Scientific evidence and research shows that human disturbance in ungulate winter ranges can adversely impact and stress wintering ungulate populations. In particular, ungulates occupy these areas just before and during the spring green-up, at the time of year when they are at their poorest physical condition.  Disturbance to the wildlife can inflict major stress on the populations, which may result in the death of individual animals.  By implementing these off-trail restrictions in some of the park’s most humanly-accessible winter ranges, the park is also mirroring state restrictions and providing consistency in protecting big-game populations and winter ranges. 

Specific information about the protection areas is offered through narrative and maps in the Glacier National Park 2012 Compendium which is located on the park’s website at www.glacier.nps/glac by clicking on park management, laws and policies.   

Grizzly Bears are Showing near Glacier Park

Sure sign of spring, the grizzly bears are out. This means pull your bird feeders and pack your bear spray! Nuf-said . . .  
Grizzly bears are out along the Rocky Mountain Front! (link to full story in the Great Falls Tribune).

A sow Grizzly bear emerges from her den and cautiously walks across a snow drift. Glacier National Park, Montana. © Tony Bynum, All Rights Reserved.  

Fall Colors Glacier National Park

Chief Mountain on Glacier National Park's East Side and the Blackfeet Reservation during fall. 

It's a rare treat to have the fall colors this good along Glacier National Parks East side. In most years the leaf's ether freeze and fall off or they begin to change and the fierce winds strip them before they get to full color. I captured this image of Chief Mountain (above), along Glacier National Park's north east corner on Saturday October 8th 2011. Chief Mountain is an iconic spire the world over. It's eastern edge is on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation while the west side is in Glacier National Park. Chief Mountain is still cherished today and vision quests and ceremonies are a regular occurrence.

The image below is of a forest of aspens in Glacier National Park near East Glacier Park, Montana, ranging from bright orange to light yellow and green.

Colorful aspens changing from green to orange and yellow in glacier national  park.

Fall colors with snow, Glacier National Park, Logan Pass area 

As these photos show, not this year though. Glacier National Park fall colors this year are as good as I have seen then in the last 5-6 years.

I captured this tree landscape image near Logan Pass in Glacier National Park just after a fresh fall snow storm, notice the range of colors and the contrast it creates with the snow.

The forecast for the next week or so is for rain, wind and snow starting this weekend, so this may have been the weekend to be here - you just never can tell with fall colors in Glacier National Park. On the bright side, if you miss the color on the east side I'm sure you can catch some great color around Lake McDonald, on Glacier National Parks west side. And on of my favorite scenes are the fall larch, and they have not turned yet, so look for better color in late October and early November along the middle fork of the Flathead River along Highway Two on Glacier National Park's south end.

If you're interested in looking at more western tree species please take a look at this gallery of rocky mountain trees on Tony Bynum's website. Tony Bynum makes all of his images available for licensing or prints, please contact him at tony@tonybynum.com to discuss your needs.

Adventure, Hunting, and Photography, things to do in the Missouri River Monument

This is a departure from my regular glacier park posts, but it is important to me to share this response to Congressman Rehberg's hearings to consider gutting the Antiquities Act - the question is where are the jobs Mr. Rehberg?

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September 12, 2011

Need Accountability for attacks on Sporting Heritage

Quiz time - What’s the most popular place in the world to hunt trophy Bighorn Sheep?

Give yourself a pat on the back if you were thinking of Montana’s Missouri River Breaks National Monument. If you didn’t get the answer, don’t worry, your about to learn something else. The coulees and canyon lands of the Breaks Monument will still be a huge sporting destination one hundred years from now because it’s world-class habitat and our hunting traditions were protected by proclamation a decade ago.

Hunting the Breaks country is big deal, which I can attest too as both a hunter and commercial photographer who’s always on the lookout for the best hunting and wild game photographs in Montana. Last year alone sportsmen spent over 20,000 days in search of trophy elk, deer, and big horn sheep in this popular ‘bread and butter’ hunting destination. But not everyone is as proud of our Breaks as the pick-up loads of sportsmen who are beginning to make their annual migration to central Montana from all corners of our state, and Nation.

Representative Denny Rehberg recently took the podium in Congress to demonize Monuments like the Breaks in an attempt to gut the Antiquities Act and make it harder for Montanans to pass along our hunting heritage. After scaring people for more than a year with the threat of a phantom Monument, he’s now trying to reap what he’s sown.

Its decisions like these that have caused many folks in the sporting community to wonder who has the ear of our Congressmen. Whoever it is, I don’t think its public lands hunters because the evidence is pretty clear his voting record hasn’t favored our pastime.

Recall, it wasn’t too long ago that Congressmen Rehberg voted alongside then California Representative Pombo on a 2005 bill that would have sold our public lands and prime elk habitat to developers of casinos, ski resorts, and condos for rock bottom prices. It was the largest public lands scam in recent history.

Now this year Congressmen Rehberg has supported another California lawmakers legislation to immediately axe roadless protections throughout Montana and the nation- from the limestone reefs of the Rocky Mountain Front to the deep larch and cedar forests of the Yaak. Its one-size fits all legislation and its causing a huge uproar among hunters. For good reason.

Montana has one of the longest hunting season in the country because of the habitat security that roadless public lands provide for elk, mule deer, and other big game. If you lose your roadless security you’ve just lost the headwaters of your hunting opportunity. It’s happened before in other states.

In defending his record, we’ve often heard Representative Rehberg say he is protecting Montanans from bureaucrats in Washington. It’s a good talking point but it ignores that both the Missouri River Breaks designation and the original roadless process were both transparent and open public processes which Montanans supported.

I watched the Breaks monument process very carefully as past member and chair of the Central Montana Resources Advisory Council. I was at every meeting for five years and heard every issue first hand. The truth is that there are people who just don’t like the government, period, so it’s easy to get them fired up when you tell them the big bad government is taking away liberties, regardless of the facts.

Montanan’s are always going to need clean streams to fish in and wide open spaces to hunt. Our roadless forest lands and BLM prairie lands are central to healthy wildlife habitat. Our patriotic duty is to protect our states hunting heritage not to make short sided, mostly selfish decisions that in the long run will take that away from Montanans.

Let’s remember what matters most. What legacy shall we leave our children and theirs? Public land, open hunting for the common man is a tradition out west. I wish to leave that legacy to my children and when this heritage is threatened by bad leadership decisions we need to hold our leaders feet to the fire. It is far better to manage wisely and preserve our intact systems than it is to dismantle and try to rebuild them later.

Tony Bynum is an award winning professional photographer, small business owner and adventure sportsmen who lives in East Glacier Park.

Take a look at the missouri river breaks monument, it's a fantastic place for a family adventure too.

tony@tonybynum.com

Scouting Photography Locations,Trapping Grizzly Bears, Glacier Park Art

Grizzly Bears and Grizzly Bear Management
The Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks and other's in the bear management team are ramping up efforts to trap grizzly bears along the Rocky Mountain Front and in Yellowstone National Park!  Locations will be well marked.  Be aware when you're out in the woods and pay attention to signs of bear activity (tracks, scant, freshly turned over rocks - usually large one's - winter kills, crows and ravens in trees - could tip you off to a carrion, etc).  This season it seems that bears are roaming farther out, away from the mountains and subsequently may stay longer in search of greener pastures - pun intended! For more on the story find it at, "agency to trap grizzly's." 

Scouting for that Perfect Shot - sometimes that means I'm not looking to capture that that perfect shot!
Scouting is one of the most important parts of being a nature photographer.  Sure it's thrilling to trip on a gem of a spot and just shoot it on the fly, but in order to create those one of a kind shots, consistently over time, you need to find those locations that are capable of producing the kinds of images you want to create. After you fine them, you need to put together a plan and be ready to implement the plan when the conditions are right.

For example, in glacier national park  this season it's been cold and wet with lots of snow lingering. In some places the snow pack is well over 200% of average water content and some say it's as has high as 390%! This tells me that the potential is there for great color as it warms and the flowers start to bloom!  But it also tells me that all the pot holes that have been dry or very low will fill up.

Yesterday, the air was calm, hardly a breeze - which is unusual around here. So I sprang to action, grabbed my gear and raced out the door. I spend a good half day just hitting all the places that in the past I noted would hold water and be a possible source for a cool glacier park reflection photograph. My mission yesterday was to scout those locations that I know have the potential for producing a great shot given the right set of conditions. On this trip, I did not set out intending to create a master piece photograph, I wanted to cover ground and see as many locations as I could while it was calm!

I know that in the next month things will ripen, the grass will turn green and the flowers will pop! When it's "ripe," I dont want to be searching around looking for that perfect shot location. Instead, I want to know exactly where I need to be for the shot. To that end, I still shot the scenes while scouting just so I could analyze them back home on my computer, knowing full well that the color was not going to be what I wanted. Imagine this shot if the ground were green and the sky and mountains lit like this shot of Sinopah mountain.

The Rocky Mountain Front, Glacier National Park, Montana
©www.tonybynum.com 

Scouting enables me to plot a course for photographic success rather than leaving it to chance. For sure the weather will have to cooperate, but success is when opportunity meets preparation, and I need to be sure that I've done what I can before the opportunity arises.  I do love the organic nature of just wondering around and finding those great places and capturing those spontaneousness photographs that turn into gems, but that's not a good way to do things if your trying to make a career of photography.   

Stay tuned for my next blog post when I explain these . . .   Care to take a guess?  Give it a shot!

Abstracts in nature abound! ©www.tonybynum.com

Abstracts in Nature about! ©www.tonybynum.com

Glacier Park Art online Gallery
I recently set up a new online gallery with a few glacier park photographs.  The online gallery will allow you to purchase directly a few sizes of prints, and other types of swag like key chains, coffee mugs, mouse pads and more!  Any would make a great gift for the Glacier Park enthusiast in your life! The images are of Glacier National Park and were created over the past several years. Click on the picture you like, let it load then add it to your cart (button at the top of the page), then you will be able to select from the list of available products. If you find a photographic image that you like, that's not in the online gallery but on my site, or want to know more about any of the the images, please ask!  Some of the photos in this gallery will also be available this summer at Glacier Impressions Gallery, Highway 49, just down the road from the Glacier Park Lodge here in East Glacier Park, MT.

 Until next time, happy shooting!

Tony