Montana Aussie Adventures with Erin-Jay

Sunshine, rain, flooding… am I back in Australia?

That would be a hard no, because I can still see the majestic mountains around me and I am still driving on the wrong side of the road.

But, all jokes aside, what an interesting week it has been here in the Northwest. The bouts of rain accompanied with the warm sunshine as it broke through the clouds, I think we can officially say spring has sprung.

With the Clark Fork River rising from flood waters it, has been a wonder to see how the banks change and where the water actually flows.

Though don’t get me wrong there are imminent dangers when it comes to rivers flooding, but once again your countryside has me fascinated with how quickly the same view changes.

It has also given me the opportunity to see how different authorities track flood waters and the banks of the river where erosion may take place.

I guess you could say that just shows a little more of the nerd side of me. I do enjoy learning all aspects from different genres of how the environment works around here.

It’s also great to see some of those run-off waterfalls cascading down the mountain edges. Now I would tell you exactly where I saw them, however I still don’t know the names of a lot of county roads; I know I need to learn, but I do know how to find my way about through landmarks.

What you learn in the bush never seems to leave you I guess. It’s also been a little light hearted talking with friends back home.

Though there is a 16 hour difference, thanks to social media it makes so much easier for me to stay in contact with them.

So back to my story, you all may get a kick out of this though. Winter (or spring as you may call it) has arrived in Australia.

Though you can get snow in the state of Victoria and parts of New South Wales, back in the tropical north of Queensland, the only ‘snow’ we see is the melted snow man.

So the temperatures have dropped, from 11 degrees celsius in Central Queensland to a brisk 15 degrees in parts of North Queensland they are experiencing around 51 to 60 degrees roughly through the winter.

Thus why I have only just begun to begin to defrost from a long and cold winter. So as you guys here are accustomed to very very cold winters, and wonderful sunshine summers; most Aussies are not.

Those of us that hale from the sunshine state as we call it, are use to 100 degrees Fahrenheit with over 70 percent humidity on most days, I still love this cooler weather here in Montana.

So as I watch videos, talk with my mates, I usually give them a giggle and a bit of grief with them experiencing the plunge in the temps, as I could honestly tell them it’s not cold!

I also want to give a shout out to all the mums, grandmothers, aunts, out there in Sanders County, as Mother’s Day passed last week, I think the weather was about as perfect as it could be for all mums to celebrate outside.

I am lucky enough that I have had some amazing rodeo mums, I have some amazing aunts, and second mums across the world.

Having travelled so much and being invited into so many families, I honestly couldn’t thank every single one of them enough for all they have done for me, shown me and supported me.

So for the few out there that may not have been able to celebrate with your mum, don’t worry as the one thing I have learned over the years, when you get the chance to see them, a hug makes up for all that lost time.

So happy belated Mother’s Day to all the ladies out there that continue to inspire multiple generations.

For now as I watch the snow melt off that last part of Baldy Mountain, I will leave it there, hoping I can get down a few more back roads, kick some dust up and enjoy everything the 406 has to offer; so until next week Sanders County…HooRoo