Friday, April 12, 2019
Ice jams on the Big Hole River
Happens every year around this time. Ice starts forming in the river in mid to late October, thickens through March, then in April the under the ice finally generates enough pressure to start breaking up the sometimes foot-thick ice above. It starts moving slowly downstream, until it hits some sort of obstacle, maybe a sharp bend in the river, maybe a bridge.
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Great photos!
ReplyDeleteThank you Tom.
DeleteThat's impressive. I hope the bridge is sturdy.
ReplyDeleteHi AC
DeleteNot their first rodeo, they'll be fine.
Look how thick!
ReplyDeleteYeah, and the lakes around are twice as thick. They'll be ice-out in June.
DeleteI, too, hope the bridge can withstand the pressure.
ReplyDeleteIt's seen worse, Bruce. This is an average year.
DeleteMany found memories of that river and even possibly crossing. We perhaps camped by the old bridge and caught grayling below the rapids. The town of Wisdom? come to mind and the flyshop there. Even a gunshow in mid july?That river always ranked very high on my list back in the day along with too many other to count like Slough Creek in Yellowston (before became a destination, the Gallitan despite all the traffic,the north branch of the Jefferson, and the Boulder south of Big Timber beyond the last forest Campground. It was all good even though some Montana guy swore to me you join an exclusive club. Your only needed your flyrod, two 4 wheel pickups, winches cable, chain saws etce used the long closed road south across the Abarsoka to range and ultimately the East entrance to YNP. Those were the days my friend...:)
ReplyDeleteRay---yes I'm sure you did cross it, btw it's survived over 30 years of ice jams, and this year isn't bad. There is a campground just on the east side of the bridge. Anymore, grayling have been confined through changing water temps and levels to upstream of the Big Hole from here, up and beyond Wisdom. I've fished all the rivers you've mentioned, starting back in 73 when my wife and I were driving back to Oregon from a fellowship at Northwestern in Chicago, and fished the Madison. Yeah, some of the roads can be difficult, I admit. A winch is not as necessary as it was a few decades ago, but can be useful at critical times.
ReplyDeleteSpring might be here soon, only have a 3X5 patch of 4" snow in the front yard, though snows in the next month are not rare. I"ll see lilacs in mid-June.
Take care, pal. Best to you and Mrs Troutbirder.