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Author Archives: Teri J Pieper

Two Hikes to Two Lakes

My uncle invited me to join him for a hike to Rainy Lake in the North Cascades earlier this week. He wanted to search for interesting mushroom species and walk his dog and oh, he asked if I wanted to bring a cooler because he and his friend were having such a good crab season! How could I turn down any of that?

The weather was unseasonably cool for early September but here in the mountains we should expect that. The forested trail was pleasant and there were numerous mushrooms. His dog, Chopper, found lots of sticks that he urged us to toss for him. Sky liked swiping his sticks and Luna was busy looking for chipmunks. Waterfalls poured into the lake from the remaining snowfields far above us. The cloudy skies reflected in the water made it look dark and ominous and the breeze and a smattering of rain drops didn’t help much so we returned to the trail. In addition to the non-edible mushrooms we found a few boletes that Bill took home for supper.

After he filled my cooler and we had a cold drink we headed off in our opposite directions. As I drove back I decided to try for another lake. It’s only a two mile trail to Cutthroat Lake and an easy one too. Last fall it was Sky’s first real hike as a tiny puppy. It’s hard to believe she’s a 62 pound dog now. Where does the time go? Along the trail I passed the sight of a huge winter avalanche that had buried the place with broken trees. Luckily the Forest Service found the resources to clear a path though the devastation. I ran into friends near the lake and we had a nice visit. Cutthroat and Rainy Lakes are similar with cliffs lining much of the shoreline. On the way back I had the good fortune to see a pine marten! I don’t know how rare these little cuties are but this is only the second one I’ve ever seen.

Liberty Bell from the Washington Pass overlook
Mountain Ask berries
There were lots of these mushrooms that remind me of wood grain
Tiny little ones that grew in colonies
Rainy Lake
Chopper
Sky shows off her muscles as she contemplates Rainy Lake
Cutthroat Lake
Luna wears red so no one thinks she’s a bear
Two dogs on a log
Avalanche debris
The pine marten watches Luna
And then it watched me too
Dinner!

A Short Visit to the West/Green Side

Last weekend I had a wedding to photograph at the North Cascades Environmental Learning Center on Diablo Lake. It’s a beautiful location and a terrific venue for a wedding. There are rooms for guests to stay and wonderful food – much of it locally sourced. Diablo Lake is just over the crest of the North Cascades via Highway 20. It is one of three dammed reservoirs on the Skagit River and its color is a wonderful turquoise from the glacial runoff of the high mountains. To get to the learning center, you have to cross Diablo Dam, an old structure, quite unlike the dams of the Columbia River. Sunday morning we had a nice hike to Sourdough Falls before returning home.

Dams were built prettier in those days.
Looking straight down
Can you imagine what the Skagit River was like before the dams?
I hate to see dogs lumped in with guns and smoking.
Sweet looking berry growing by the trail
my new friend
Rock stairs near the end of the trail
Shadows on wet rocks
A spent mayfly
Tiny little garden tucked into the rocks
Sourdough Falls
Big growth rings

Fire, Flood, and New Growth

We drove up Lester Road and walked to Campbell Lake yesterday. This is an area that burned in the Cougar Flats Fire, part of the immense Carlton Complex of wildfires started by lightning last month. This is the fire we could see from our house. Photos of it burning are here. We got home just as the next big rain storm with thunder and lightning was beginning.

These aspens are already sprouting new growth from the roots.
The patterns of green and burned are pretty amazing.
aspens
A huge mudslide that followed the last big rain event.
The rocks of Pipestone Canyon.
I think this is snowberry
New lupine growth!
What triggered this serviceberry to start blooming?
Rosehips – good food for the birds.
Chokecherries that survived the fire
We drove farther up Lester Road to get a closer look at the mud slide
Can you see MA and the dogs?
Snowberry?
Snowberry?
Currant
Yesterday the surface was parched dry and cracked
A spot of color
Yesterday’s storm turned out to be another wild one causing far more destruction to homes and roads.

American Kestrel

This male American Kestrel perched near our bird feeders this morning searching for a meal. Since most of our hillside is blackened and many of the small mammals were killed in the fire, it makes sense that birds of prey might be hanging around our house. Chipmunks, gophers and mice have found some refuge in our ‘green’ spot. I am happy to see the kestrel as well as the Great-horned Owls that we’ve seen and heard after dark. We don’t want to be overrun with these small mammals.

The American Kestrel also eats small birds and insects. It is North American’s smallest falcon. Its eyes are huge for the size of its head and that makes it an effective predator. They are cavity nesting birds and will use nest boxes. Our neighbor has built two or three boxes specifically for kestrels and this bird may have used one earlier this year. I know that at least one box was active. This species has sexually dimorphic plumage, meaning that the male and female look quite different. These images were made looking through the dining room window.

Scanning the sky for something to pursue
He turned his head a full 180 degrees
And there he goes

Something to Celebrate

Sky had her first birthday yesterday! Where did the time go? Do you remember when we first brought her home? What happened to that cute little puppy? She’s still adorable and we love her to pieces and she’s a pretty good dog.

So what to do? How about a party? We invited dogs and their friends to an evening picnic on the lake featuring sticks, lots of sticks. People even brought her fresh sticks since they knew her sticks burned or were covered in soot. We discovered that she can retrieve sticks from the lake longer than we can throw them. I’ll bet she jumped in the water close to 100 times last night. She’s tired today but still ready for agility practice. We walked, biked and boated to this sweet beach and had a very nice evening.

Happy Birthday Sky!

Traveling in style to the party
Jennifer could not be here but she sent along the birthday tiaras anyway
The one image that features all seven dogs
Luna wants to know what all the fuss is about
Sweet Mavi is 14
Little Bear
Here, I brought two of them!
A lovely evening on Patterson Lake