Out in the Fields

In the midst of one of the smokier days I've seen in the larger Yellowstone area (excluding the 1988 Yellowstone fires), life goes on. The wheat combines are crawling up and down hills, the hay wagons are rolling, and just a few yards away from our kitchen our neighbor is working his fields with his Haybine Hyrdostatic (see photo).

Fires are now burning over much of western and south-central Montana. Some are quite large, and there have been many evacuations. Folks flying in the B-17 Bomber touring Bozeman today will not have much a view of the surrounding mountain ranges.

Meanwhile, from the Police Report files in the Gallatin Valley:

* People were shooting cans near Truman Gulch trail. When a woman confronted them, they replied, "This is Montana."

* A deputy on Black Hawk Lane stopped to talk with a man and woman who waved when the deputy drove past. They were simply waving. They said it was nice to see a sheriff's deputy in the neighborhood.

* A person told deputies someone tried to stuff meat into a hole in the front door. The person was afraid someone wanted to poison the dog.