Into the belly of the beast

We go for an overnight this week in the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness Area. Specifically, we have an invitation from Mary Alice and Mel Holloway to stay in the handsome old cabin called the Magruder Ranger's House --  http://www.recreation.gov/camping/Magruder_Rangers_House/r/campgroundDetails.do?contractCode=NRSO&parkId=75162&topTabIndex=Search. It was once Mary Alice (formerly Schumaker)'s childhood home in summer. Her father served as ranger  southwest of Hamilton, deep in the woods and canyons of the Montana/Idaho border. We thought we were getting away from smoke (yes, I'm writing another smoke story). Unfortunately, we discover that winds have shifted and also that this is near forest-fire central! It is uber smoky here!!

One smoky view -- from up top, where a gravel road climbs high above the Selway River.

Another view of smoke -- from down on the ranger cabin's front porch.

And the beautiful Selway River, as seen from a bridge at the meadow even farther below the cabin. One link that gives an overview of this wilderness region is http://www.everytrail.com/guide/magruder-corridor-guide. Another is a wonderful book that I pick up in the cabin -- "Indian Creek Chronicles: A Winter Alone in the Wilderness," by Pete Fromm.
  http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/156956.Indian_Creek_Chronicles. I read up to chapter 12 in the cabin, love the story of a green, young college student learning about winter wilderness from his tent in the nearby Indian Creek campground. I later pick up my own copy of the book to finish at home.

Mary Alice also tells great stories -- a lot of them about her summers here as a child, including ones about the "beach" below the bridge, where she and her three brothers built rafts and invented other games all summer long.

There's an old lichen-covered fence in the Magruder meadow -- also an early playground.

A killdeer makes a fuss in the Magruder meadow.

A chipmunk visits the cabin front porch looking, apparently, for a handout.

A fall "bouquet" of asters adds color to the smoky days.

We leave a bit early -- driven out by smoke (Mel and Mary Alice stay on) -- but not before making a point of checking out the dedication on a big, hand-hewn bench on the cabin's front porch. Thank you Schumaker family, for everything.