The Cowboy and the Immigrant
Article excerpt, Ovando event postponed, new virtual event
Dear Reader,
The story of how Smoke and I met is special and I am excitedd to share with you a brief excerpt of my article published in Big Sky Journal this fall. They also added some great pictures!
“When my feet sunk deep into the wet ground far away from the hills where I was born, I knew my husband and I had found the right spot. Our horses had steadily climbed the steep mountain trail for 12 miles, weaving through sheer cliffs. Here, on top of the pass, the rock gently leveled out on a marshy 40-acre meadow — the perfect campsite at 6,700 feet.
For 50 years, one of the last living (and working) legends of the American West, Arnold “Smoke” Elser, made camp here. Now at age 90, Smoke is well-known beyond Montana as an award-winning outfitter, horse and mule packer, teacher, and conservationist. Our unlikely friendship brought me to the top of this mountain, changed my life, and gave the world his stories.
Wildfire smoke clogged my nose and tainted the otherwise sweeping view of his summer home, the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex: 1.5 million acres of wild mountains, rivers, and animals preserved in perpetuity in part because Smoke has committed to protecting the rugged, roadless area since he saw it for the first time. It was an unusually warm fall day, but tucked away on the hill, a small spring still subirrigated a fresh supply of spongy grass, providing a snack for our sweaty horses.
Close by, Smoke once found a lost hunter who was haunted by a mountain lion on a rainy night. On a different occasion, 15 feet high in a tree now burned, he’d waited for hours, napping while the sun warmed his back, for a growling grizzly to leave and let him climb down. Each morning he spent in the mountains — as he’d watched the sun rise over the horizon to give light, color, and life to the sky, ridges, meadows, and trees — nature touched his soul. “The mountains are our cathedrals, the stars are our candles, the sun is our gold, and the moon is our silver,” Smoke told me before the trip with my husband. His dark eyes had glowed both with love for the land and sadness that he would never see it again”…continue to read the full story in the fall issue of Big Sky Journal here.
I hope you enjoy the read!
Auf bald,
Eva
Upcoming EVENTS
Due to an illness in the family, we are postponing our “Hush of the Land : Campfire storytelling” event, planned for tomorrow, October 19 in Ovando, MT. We will you know as soon as we have a new date!
We are excited to partner with the Backcountry Horsemen of America for our first FREE and NATIONAL VIRTUAL event. More info on how to join us is coming soon! If you want a signed, personalized copy of HUSH OF THE LAND for you, family or friends (Christmas!), please pre-order your book for this event at Fact and Fiction bookstore in Missoula, either online or by calling (406)721-2881. Don’t forget to mention “For the November 16 virtual event” when you place your order. We will sign your book at the event and F&F will ship it worldwide!
