Along with the annual Bozeman Christmas Stroll, another tradition that Jess and I have been faithful to is the procuring of our seasonal, indoor evergreen. We have decided that whenever possible, it is best to go to the natural habitat of such a specimen to ensure the full authenticity of the act. As we have done for the last couple years, we headed up to our usual spot, along the access road to Fairy Lake on the backside of the Bridger Mountain range. It is a beautiful location with breathtaking views of both Ross and Sacajawea Peak. I will forever respect those mountains, since my trek along their ridge-line last year. The Forrest Service closes off the road a few miles in, so we parked at a new trail-head that they completed this year. I had packed the snow shoes, but they were not needed as the mountains had not had any significant snow to warrant their use. The air was bitter cold, with a wind blowing on us from the north. We grabbed the saw and expeditiously set out to find our tree. We only follow the road for a few minutes and then darted up the hill to our right, as we could see some decent prospects. We went from tree to tree, examining their needles, fullness and height. We didn’t want a big tree, and we weren’t in any way too particular about it. We’ve never picked that “perfect” tree, but we find pleasure in picking a tree with character. At one point I pointed out a needle-less, dead tree, which I thought could have been a fun one (and it wouldn’t need to be watered as it was already dead!). We eventually found our tree. I pulled out the saw and proceeded to cut down the tree. With tree in tow, we hiked back to the car, taking a couple photo opportunities. Perhaps in time, Jess or myself will post some pictures of the finished product, of which I now notice is leaning a bit, I should probably fix that. In the meantime, enjoy the pictures below!
