Muzzleloading Rendezvous – David Thompson Black Powder Shoot

We arrived at the David Thompson Black Powder Shoot in Eureka, Montana to discover that the rest of our muzzleloading club was hiding out in their tents. The rain, which had started pouring down on the previous day, had proved to be a bit much for everyone.

 

Clouds blanket the prairie in Eureka

Clouds blanket the prairie in Eureka

 

After getting some supplies together, we headed over to sign up for the muzzleloading rendezvous events – rifle, hawk and knife throwing, and pistol.

 

Eileen and Mallory ready to shoot

Eileen and Mallory ready to shoot

 

First up for the day was rifle.  At the rendezvous, beads are used as a scoring system. For every target hit, you get a bead.  In rifle, I got 20 beads out of a possible 24.

 

Even though the weather was rainy and cold, the rendezvous had a good number of participants.

 

Eureka Rendezvous.2014.participants

Other participants at the rendezvous

 

Mallory was interviewed by a reporter (here taking photos in the red jacket) from the Tobacco Valley News.

 

Eureka Rendezvous.Mallory interviewed by reporter

A reporter taking shots for the newspaper

 

The place was crawling with movie people taking shots of us for the upcoming indie hit film, Love Like Gold…a love story gone bad.

 

Eureka Rendezvous.2014.videographers

Would we be extras in a movie?

After we competed in throwing (not pictured), there was a fire starting competition. Since we didn’t have our fire-starting kits, we got beads for surviving, while the others competed to start fires for us in 30 seconds.

Eureka Rendezvous.2014.fire starting

That was an easy way to collect beads

 

After fire starting, Mallory and I had to rush over to pistol, as the range was nearly closed for the day. It seems that I lost all of my pistol shooting skills last year at Marion, which is another muzzleloading rendezvous we usually attend. I only hit 7 of the targets.

 

Shooting pistols at the Eureka Rendezvous

Shooting pistols at the Eureka Rendezvous

 

Thanks to the lovely windless weather, it was a lot easier to set up the tents this year than it was last year.

 

Setting up our tents

Setting up our tents

 

As the evening grew more and more beautiful, our parents went off to take pictures of the golden prairie. Mallory and I took a walk and threw hawks and knives.

 

Dad takes pictures of the sunset

Dad takes pictures of the sunset

 

Eureka Rendezvous.2014.prairie flowers

The prairie begins to light up

 

 

Teepee against an evening sky

Teepee against an evening sky

 

In the meantime, this herd of cattle came down from the hills right into the rendezvous camp where we were throwing.

 

Eureka Rendezvous.2014.cattle

 

These guys emerged from their tent and shooed them away back over the hill.

 

Eureka Rendezvous.2014.men shoo cattle

 

Our parents had completed their photog adventure, and stopped to take some photographs of their children throwing.

 

Eureka Rendezvous.2014.throwing hawks

 

Back to camp where we then drank some hot chocolate with “mini marshmallows”. You know, as opposed to the big ones that usually come in hot chocolate packets. After walking around for a little longer, we sat around the virtual campfire until nightfall.

 

Mallory has some hot chocolate

Mallory has some hot chocolate

 

The next morning at around 6:45, Mallory and I started our day by adventuring around the camp.

 

A new day is dawning

A new day is dawning

 

We took a walk down the ditch and discovered animal remains. Animal remains not pictured.

 

Eureka Rendezvous.2014.morning walk

 

We also detected the strong odor of a decaying corpse, but couldn’t spot the source. (The aforementioned “remains” were just bones, so they weren’t the source of the stench).

 

What's that smell?

What’s that smell?

 

Taking down the tent was a breeze.

 

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At around 10:30, everyone gathered around for the blanket prizes. I got a new (larger) powder horn. Mallory went for a mystery bag, and struck gold with a Fortine mug.

 

Blanket Prizes

Blanket Prizes

 

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