During July 2001 I attended a weekend business meeting in Bozeman, Montana. The events were scheduled to allow some time on Saturday for fly-fishing and rafting. Instead of joining in the group activities, I decided to rent a car and do some birding and exploring in the area. To follow is a report of the time spent.

I found Birding Montana (Falcon Press) useful in my planning and in selecting destinations on the fly.

Bozeman is a small college town often used as a departure point to the northern gateway of Yellowstone National Park (approximately 50 miles to the south). Fly fishing, white-water rafting and other western style activities lure many vacationers to the Gallatin Valley. There is no shortage of natural beauty in the lay of the land and in the incredible interplay of light on the foothills and mountains and the valley.

The Gallatin valley is created by the Missouri river. The headwaters of the Missouri are found near Bozeman in the Three Forks area where the Gallatin, the Jefferson and the Madison rivers converge to form the great river. Lewis and Clark’s expedition led them through this valley and many of the local landmarks were named in commemoration of members of the party. Bridger, Sacagawea, Colter and Lewis and Clark are all names that are seen throughout the valley. For a wonderful account of their famous expedition and descriptions of their impressions as the first European Americans to visit Montana, read "Undaunted Courage" by Stephen Ambrose.

Friday evening I took a shuttle to the airport (15 miles from Bozeman) to pick up a rental car. The rates were higher than expected totaling $60 for a day after all fees and taxes, but this was my only birding expense for the day. Leaving the airport in Belgrade and heading back on Frontage Road (one of the few main roads needed for navigation in the area), I kept alert for birds and other wildlife along the 15-minute drive.  The two lane road runs straight into town and provides little in the way of birding opportunities, so I headed up into the foothills of the Bridgers to visit a couple of sites in my free time before dinner.  Black-billed Magpies were conspicuous and beautiful, and Brewer’s and Red-winged Blackbirds were common.

The first stop I had planned was the "M" hiking trail and the Bozeman fish technology center, a fish hatchery with a short nature trail that I had visited on a prior trip.  On the way, however, I missed my turn and ended up detouring through the gently rolling country that is being slowly converted from rangeland to vacation homes and golf courses. Passing the East Gallatin recreation area I paused to watch an Osprey fishing successfully, and ticked Mallard, Rock Dove and Mourning Dove.  As I slowly made my way along a winding gravel road I heard Song and Savannah Sparrows singing in the knee-high range grasses, along with more of the local corvids (Common Raven, American Crow, magpie) and blackbirds.  A bison herd in a wet pasture was a neat surprise, as were the birds inhabiting a marshy area. My high vantage point allowed nice looks at Common Snipe, some immature Sora, Killdeer, two Sandhill Cranes and a large group of ravens paying no attention to a Red-tailed Hawk perched on a fence post. Already the birdlife was looking rich and varied. I slowly continued on toward the "M" but stopped to have a look at a Sharp-tailed Grouse and her chicks venturing into the road and then retreating to the roadside ditch.

At the fish hatchery, I walked the short nature trail where in the past I’ve located American Dipper, (missed on this trip) but other bird life was good. Swallows were conspicuous, and to a birder from the Midwest, the Violet-green Swallows were highlights. Other swallows included Northern-rough winged and Tree. Singing thrushes echoed through the hills and a mid-sized accipiter soared overhead while Common Yellowthroat and other birds of riverine habitat made their presence known. My time had run out for the evening so I made my way back to the hotel (Holiday Inn which is one of many lodging opportunities in Bozeman) and enjoyed a great dinner at The Mint, a well loved steak house in the area.

Saturday morning I woke at six to try to make the most of the day. Had the prior night been a little more restrained I might have been up to experience sunrise, which comes early at this time of year. As it was the cool morning was picture perfect and after a quick breakfast and look at the birding guide, I headed up into Bridger canyon for some mountain birding. I drove past the "M" trailhead parking area already packed with Saturday morning hikers. I figured that anything likely on this trail would also occur where I was headed. The canyon road winds for about fifteen miles up a valley with mountains on both sides. From the 5000-foot elevation of Bozeman, the highest point in the Bridger chain is at Sacagawea where the elevation is 7000 feet above sea level. Walking in the hills I noticed the lower oxygen content but deep breaths and occasional rests were the only side effects I felt. I stopped along the way to inspect one of the many road-killed magpies. Though common birds in the area, I felt badly about the number of dead individuals I saw. I found magpies, with their jay-like personality and beautiful plumage, to be fascinating companions as I traveled. Birds, incidentally, seemed to be extremely common road kill victims. I only noticed a few mammals – the omnipresent prairie dogs were the most common – but dead songbirds were noted at least one per mile all through my day's travels.

I pulled off along the road to enjoy the vista laid out before me and to have a look at some snags where ravens were perched. My birding sense told me that these trees and the willow and cottonwoods should yield something interesting and I was correct. Red-naped Sapsucker was my first life bird of the trip and I had good looks as it clung to one of the dead trees. I pulled into a campground, and immediately was impressed with morning bird activity.  The few human residents at the campground weren’t yet awake, so I had the trails to myself.  A Mountain Chickadee at its nest hole provided an interesting photo opportunity, and I noted that American Robins seemed abundant.

During a short walk around the campground I recorded Pine Siskins (abundant), American Goldfinches, Chipping Sparrows, White-crowned Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco and MacGillivray’s Warbler among others. I continued for a few more miles up the canyon road to the Fairy Lake turnoff. This road winds for 7 miles up to hiking trails that reach the peak. I birded and admired wildflowers and spectacular mountain scenery all the way up the road. At the campground area I followed the sound of an unfamiliar bird that turned out to be another lifer – Clark’s Nutcracker (named for George Rogers Clark of Lewis and Clark fame. Lewis is memorialized in another local resident - Lewis’ Woodpecker, which I didn’t see.)  Warbling Vireos, Pine Siskins and Chipping Sparrows were common along this road but without skills in identifying western birds by ear I missed many other species.

The wildflower meadows were picturesque, with columbine, fireweed, wild geranium, bellflowers and others carpeting the ground. The tall firs and spruces looked so "right" in their native habitat that I forgave them for their ubiquity in suburban landscapes of the east. I counted rings on a logged tree at a campsite. Though less than 30 inches in diameter at the base, this tree was over 200 years old, making me realize that many of these very trees were alive when only native Americans traveled here. I also got philosophical when I drove through clear cuts that comprised many of the wildflower meadows along this road.

On the way down, I kept an eye to the sky for the raptors that are expected in this part of the country. I noticed American Kestrel and Red-tailed Hawk but no others. A juvenile Northern Flicker was interesting to watch for a few moments as it noisily begged for food while its parent eyed me suspiciously from a distance. I decided that the mountains had yielded what they wished and it was now time to work the broad valley of the Gallatin and Missouri rivers.

After a burrito in town (and a 30 minute recharge of my camera battery and my body), I headed out the opposite direction from my morning’s travels. My plan was to drive out to the Three Forks area and bird from there back into town where I needed to return the car by 6pm. Driving I-90 the 27 miles to Three Forks I was tempted to pull off to visit the Buffalo Jump monument near Logan, but I felt I’d be sacrificing some birding time and so far the birding was quite rewarding. I continued toward the Three Forks park, noting American White Pelicans circling gracefully over the river. Small marshes held Gray Catbirds, blackbirds, swallows and the two expected warblers. A Great Blue Heron was the only of its family I added.

At the headwaters spot, I walked along the rocky shore in the 85-degree heat, wishing I had stowed a bathing suit and towel. The water would have been a refreshing break and to float downstream at such a geologically interesting and historically important spot would have been a treat. I contented myself to a splash of water over the head and some time spent admiring more pelicans and dozens of swallows (six species total for the day – Violet-green, Tree, Northern rough-winged, Bank, Barn and Cliff). A Kestrel family of six(!) perching among the branches of an old cottonwood were quite a spectacle. The heat of the dry season seemed to take its toll on bird activity, so I headed on through the park looking for better birding opportunities. Just outside the park I pulled over near a power substation where some cottonwoods looked to harbor good bird activity. A perched Western Wood-pewee caught my eye, and while studying it a Bullock’s Oriole and its mate made foraging flights back and forth from the tree to the nearby river vegetation. Another life bird and a strikingly colorful one at that! A pale Red-tail perched high above me on power line structure on bluffs across the river kept me occupied as I hadn’t ever seen a bird with an almost white head and rufous breast streaking. Once the bird took flight I was sure of its identity.

As it was getting late in the day, I had to begin heading back to the car rental return at Gallatin Field. I exited I-90 near Logan and followed Frontage road for a while hoping to catch some grassland birds. I stopped at the ponds at Central Park and was rewarded with a great variety of active bird life. Waterfowl included Lesser Scaup, Ring-necked Duck, Green-winged Teal, Canada Goose and Mallard. Cedar Waxwings flitted about with swallows, warblers and blackbirds. Crows harassed a handsome adult Bald Eagle as it flew near the pond.

As I drove slowly along the little used road, I noticed some song coming from the rangelands. I stopped to investigate the unfamiliar songs and wasn’t able to put a name to the songs of all birds, but with patience I got views of Western Meadowlark, Western Kingbird, and lots of Eastern Kingbirds. A trio of large soaring birds turned out to be Golden Eagles shortly followed by a Swainson’s Hawk that flew right over my head providing spectacular views.

Sixty-four birds were recorded for the trip, four of them ABA life birds. I enjoyed this wonderful trip and I look forward to future visits.