Madison River Brown Trout

© 2010 Ken W. Hall    Madison River Brown Trout  Fly Fishing Festival Poster image

This amazing image was taken by my husband, Ken Hall.  The Madison River Foundation chose it as their poster image for the Fly Fishing Festival August 31 through September 1, 2012.   Posters are available for sale through the foundation and the Ennis Chamber of Commerce.

A 36 x 24"  gallery wrapped canvas print of the original photograph will be auctioned off at the live auction during the Main Street BBQ dinner on Saturday evening.

Ken will be on hand at the Festival Saturday afternoon, 4 pm to 6 pm to autograph festival posters.

© 2003 Ken W. Hall   Limited edition "Ennis on the Madison" River image

The foundation is celebrating its tenth anniversary this year.  The above image was also chosen for the first festival poster ten years ago.  A 36 x 24"  gallery wrapped canvas print of the original photograph will be auctioned off at the silent auction.  

Ken is also on the schedule as one of the speakers to teach a photography class which he teaches every year. It is always well attended.  He is such an amazing teacher.

In honor of the tenth anniversary Ken is offering a discount on all images purchased at the event.  Original prints of both festival poster images will be available for sale in our BearFeather booth at the festival.

Today the wind is blowing and smoke has again filled the valley.  About three days ago the wind shifted direction and blew the smoke out of the valley.  We were so grateful for the opportunity to spend more time outdoors.  It was great to see the mountains again.  

Evening Grosbeak Breakfast Guests

© 2012 Ken W. Hall   Evening Grosbeak Breakfast Guest

In the wee hours of the morning this male evening grosbeak showed up with his mate and children for breakfast.  It is rare to see them and they only stay a few short minutes. What a joy they are to watch.

It was warmer this morning than yesterday.  As we were packing our car Saturday morning for the farmer's market I noticed the frost on the roof.  Our thermometer registered thirty two degrees.  This morning it was back to forty.

The smoke is heavy in the air again.  We are unable to see the mountains for the smoke.   Our warm season is so short we would prefer not to have so much smoke.  It keeps us indoors more than we would like.

Ken's Art Show

Ken W. Hall Art Show at Maydak Gallery, Ennis, MT

The art walk was great fun Friday evening.  We enjoyed chatting with old and new friends.  Mike Maydak and Linda Newhouse were fabulous hosts.

This was the weekend of the annual gun show.  Things were hopping at Shed Horn Sports and we even met some folks who wandered across the street to see what was happening at the Farmer's Market.

The weather was in the eighties and nineties on Friday and Saturday.  Today is has been in the sixties and seventies due to a wonderful cloud cover.  What a lovely, lazy Sunday it has been.

Madison Valley Arts Festival

© 2012 Ken W. Hall

© 2012 Ken W. Hall

The Madison Valley Arts Festival was a smashing success.  Local musicians provided a day filled with fun and lively entertainment.

The organizers and volunteers did an amazing job.  The event was very well attended.  And the amazing talent displayed  by area artists was spectacular and inspiring.

A storm blew in Friday afternoon bringing strong winds and a good bit of rain.  We were all relieved the rain and storm had passed by the time we were ready to go set up for the event on Saturday morning.

Temperatures are in the nineties during the day and in the forties and fifties in the mornings.  We are beginning to see leaves turning on the willows and some of the trees.  It is a reminder that autumn is closer than we think.

Smoke Is In The Air

© 2012 Ken W. Hall

© 2012 Ken W. Hall

Another week has passed so quickly.  We are busy preparing for the Ennis Arts Festival this Saturday at Peter T's Park in downtown Ennis.

Temperatures have been hot this week.  Highs in the nineties and no moisture.  The winds were really strong yesterday from the south.  Last night the smoke in the air was so strong we kept the windows closed.

Ken took these images at lunch from our front yard.  As you can tell we can barely see the mountains through the smoke.  This morning when the sun rose it was bright orange.

Full Moon

©2012 Ken W. Hall  

Last night was full moon.  Ken captured this from our front yard.  I never cease to be amazed at our awesome skies here in Big Sky country.

The past few days have been a blur.  I took a trip to Idaho and Wyoming  scouting potential new galleries.  We displayed at the Farmer's Market and the 320 Guest Ranch Art Rendezvous.  Our last show at the ranch is coming up this Monday evening.

The weather has been hot.  Scattered afternoon showers have helped on the days the rain fell.  Yesterday we enjoyed lunch on our deck under the shade of our table umbrella.  We were so busy both of us forgot to lower the umbrella.  While preparing dinner I noticed our umbrella was gone.  A gust of afternoon wind must have caught it and carried it away.  Alas, it is nowhere to be found.

As always our morning temperatures are lovely in the fifty degree range.  By noon it is in the nineties.  Whenever I am tempted to complain about the heat I remind myself this is wonderful compared to the 100 plus temperatures with high humidity in other parts of the country.

There are so many things I love about our beloved Montana.