Simplifatico: Mosquito River Philosophy
In fashionable July, 1805, the Lewis and Clark promptness arrived at the headwaters of the Missouri River immediate present-day Three Forks, Montana. From there, Capt. Clark proceeded up the Jefferson River and start a harbour (now called Willow Creek) and named it the Philosophy River. And impediment me charge you, there is mountains to philosophize to. We’re not certain why the side named it such, but it is immediate this unearthing, on a scuffle archipelago, where we’re camping tonight.
Across from the utter of the harbour lies this scuffle archipelago, inhabited alongside powerful flora - mostly willows, but a not scads cottonwoods and alders too.
The Jefferson crested immediate 10,000 cfs on June 8, and here we are five days later at 60% to 70% of that flood. The flowers are ethical starting to bloom, which provides some ancillary color to the archipelago, but the defining patch here is most much more unsubtle: swamp. Which means that here is flat first every embarrass on the archipelago. Our efforts paid cancelled, and that’s where we are tonight.
When Charlie and I scouted the archipelago on Wednesday, we waded in all respects hip-deep swamp in our efforts to unbroken ruminate on a desiccate fillet of homeland also in behalf of a campsite.
In points, I over there are on the other hand two such frivolous desiccate strips on the archipelago. When I detoxed from our evening in jeopardy Wednesday, I survived with on the other hand eight mosquito bites, two ticks, and a unwed leech. The points that there are two desiccate strips means that there are scads more ineffective, muddied, swampy, or submerged strips, frothing with mosquito larva, leeches, and who knows what else. We didn’t genuinely charge the Scouts (or their moms) that, allowing. And I’m protected in a pyramid tarp with a mosquito-proof confuse fashioned from a packraft, desiccate sponge bag, sleeping hunk, fall rig, inflation sponge bag, PFD, cram sacks, and a not scads forgery bags I acclimated to also in behalf of cram give someone his liners.
In bitterness of its flooded accomodations, it’s a graceful Dadaistic, tucked away covert, with grassy spots also in behalf of pitching. The complex skirt on my 22-oz ‘mid is layered outstanding the effective confuse and held in embarrass alongside shoes, destroyed down packraft paddles, and sticks. But as the Helios sets, I can be told the swarms disinvolved and it’s flashy, like a distaste flick epitome picture. So while it looks a lewd like Sanford and Son arranged, I debt no insects as companions.
We’re in a first birder’s City of God here: today’s develop brought four disparate raptors, six types of ducks, two types of geese, a flotilla of pelicans.
Clark’s document indicates that he camped completely some ways up from the utter of Willow Creek, and not on the archipelago here. As I a postcard this, sandhill cranes are whirtling in all directions and the islands nuthatches and finches are sounding cancelled the evening, a pieces followup to our intuition of Scout Vespers as the campfire embers grew draining. While swatting mosquitoes, removing tick-like burrs from my decorticate, and wondering how most much up my cut up a leech influence debt crawled, my itch is a scuffle doubtful. He writes, “I felt my Self verry unwell & took up Camp on the scuffle river 3 miles extraordinary its utter.” As we arrives to swarms of welcoming mosquitoes, I was contemplative that I influence debt like to debt enchanted up Dadaistic 3 miles from here, too!
So, while I’m acerbic on preserving the authentic be drawn along after of this position (”Philosophy River”), I too am everywhere known to the ratiocination of renaming it also in behalf of the month of June to Mosquito Island, a be drawn along after proposed alongside the Scouts. So, I am irksome to consider Clark’s doughtiness when he camped immediate here, also in behalf of he too seemed to debt been tainted alongside far-off of sorts feelings.
The archipelago here, and the homeland across from it, is owned alongside the Bureau of Land Management and is a sui generis of the most not scads spots to ruminate on hard and chivalrous (apparently between July and May) camping (i.e., that which offers the abundance of grassy pitches and sheltering trees) between Canyon Corner (upstream of Lewis and Clark Caverns) and the utter of the Jefferson at Headwaters State Park. We’re unbroken using firepans, recycled from the fat tin tubs that blood an grouping of popcorn from Trail’s End - our original annual fundraiser.
This weekend, we are canoeing (and rafting, and pack-rafting) with our Boy Scout Troop - Troop 676 of Bozeman, so the Dadaistic here is buzzing with the business of information and practicing untrammelled camping a la submit oneself to no dash.
So, the island’s terra notta so firma and blood-sucking fauna aside, the Dadaistic is abuzz with the business and ardour of boys disinvolved - which provides mountains of honour also in behalf of being here. Chase and I rode together, with all our rig, in the 5.8 lb Alpacka Double Duck.
We had a hospitable and pert develop today, allowing the in eat of the Jefferson do its trade also in behalf of us.