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A Few Good Bird Sightings and Some Wet Weather

July 12, 2016 – 2:52 pm
Posted in hike
Tagged birds, dogs, mountain bluebird, Savannah Sparrow, storm, Tiffany Mountain, wildflowers
Comments (1)

The weather forecast indicated about 20% chance of rain in the mountains yesterday. Around here, that means it’s not likely to rain. It was sunny and reasonably warm at home when the girls and I left for the 6500′ Freezeout Trailhead and the hike to Tiffany Mountain. The temperature was 46 degrees Fahrenheit and it was sunny when we started walking. Good weather for an uphill hike to the 8242′ summit.

In the burned forest (this is part of the Tripod burn from ten years ago) I heard and saw numerous birds, including lots of young ones with adults searching for food to feed the nestlings.

When we walked away from the trees, the sky was solidly overcast but still no sign of rain. Nearing the top, I started to feel occasional pelts of small hail. At the top, it was obvious that the weather was going to take a turn for the worse. We shared my peanut butter sandwich and I put on my extra layers (two coats, gloves and a wool hat) and tucked my camera away. Normally we would linger on the mountain top and look around for more birds and flowers and maybe ladybugs but not this time. It was hailing pretty solidly by then. And as we walked downhill it was soon raining. We didn’t notice the birds or flowers much on the way down. Still, it never got too cold and it wasn’t windy and I had the right extra gear with me. Overall it was a nice day.

Roger Lake is a real gem

Lots of downed lots on the lower part of the trail but they didn’t slow Sky any.

Paintbrush

A very young grouse – either a Dusky Grouse or a Spruce Grouse, depending on who I ask.

This game camera is aimed right at the trail. Are they counting hikers and dogs or looking for something else?

Lupine

Mountain Bluebird nest hole

Male Mountain Bluebird feeding young

Male Mountain Bluebird at the nest hole

Female Mountain Bluebird feeding young

I think this is a Savannah Sparrow

Reliable water following rainy summer days

Luna was wet before it even started raining

Horned Larks nest on the side of Tiffany

Near the top looking back at the trail

Approaching storm

I was hoping it would go towards the Okanogan and not towards me

See the storm on the other side of the ridge past Tiffany Lake?

Despite the Best Laid Plans

Sometimes a hike doesn’t go as planned. This one was thwarted by wide, cold creeks. I removed my socks and shoes and crossed one only to find another one just around the corner! Then I remembered that last fall these two creeks were tiny and also, there were many more tiny creeks so after just an hour on the trail I turned back. I could still go to the lake that I had bypassed to save for later. Ready to cross the creek again, I saw a group of friends who I’d seen at the trailhead with their three dogs. They too, had been thwarted when they tried to get to the lake. One of their dogs was old and could not make a necessary log crossing. Three of their group had gotten across the same creek where I was and upon hearing it wouldn’t be the last one, they turned back too. Not before we attempted to get a photo of the five dogs. It was probably the worst circumstance for a group dog photo. Two of the dogs are black; two are blonde and one is a light colored basset hound. And the lighting was mottled shadows in the forest. Oh well. It was a fun attempt.

After the photo attempt, we parted company and I took a short spur trail that went to the near side of the lake. It had some hard packed snow on it and then there was some mud that I tried to skirt around. Well, that was a bad idea. I slipped and found myself ankle deep in mud with my socks and shoes soaked and dirty. The dogs, in the meantime were at the lake wondering what was taking me so long! I was able to rinse the mud off and left the socks and shoes in the sun to partially dry while I ate my sandwich and threw sticks for the dogs.

It was a beautiful day and the dogs had fun and the scenery was lovely.

Highway 20 approaching Liberty Bell and Washington Pass

One creek crossing had a nice bridge

Lots of water!

Brrrr.

Even Joolz thinks the water is cold.

Some dogs are not paying attention

Good. They are all looking the same way.

Hey – did you know there is a lake just around the corner?

Sure enough

Throw the stick. Now. I’m not kidding.

White pine

Columbine

Goat Peak

On Saturday there was a lot of rain and I was able to finish up most of my work inside. Sunday I worked outside. And so that gave me a free day yesterday to go for a hike! What a relief to get out in the mountains again. Isn’t that what summer should be all about?

I guess today is the first day of summer and yesterday didn’t feel particularly summer-like, but on this hike, it is good to have a cool day. The trail climbs steeply, going pretty much straight up the north face of the mountain. It’s not a long hike – five miles round trip but for me it seems grueling even going down. My knees complained with every step on the downhill stretch.

But the views. They are terrific. And that’s fitting for the site of a historic lookout that continues to be staffed in the summer months. The trail also provides lots of opportunities to look at wildflowers early in hiking season. Later it will be dry and dusty. And there was lots of old snow to satisfy the dogs.

Rather dismal trailhead

That’s the mountain but you can’t see the lookout.

North Cascades

I enjoyed watching this bee on a flower that looks like groundsel.

Noisy Hairy Woodpecker. I wonder if she had a nest nearby.

Glacier lillies tell you that the snow just melted

Nice to see you on the trail Luna

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Finally past the steep part and now a view of the lookout

Mt Gardner. I was worried about the misty rain that moved around but never did get wet.

Looking down valley, more light rain

This took about ten tries.

Outhouse with a view

Crazy clouds

Penstemon

Larch

Buttercup.

Spring beauty and glacier lily

Buckwheat

How many kinds of plants are in this small patch of ground?

Forget me not

Clematis

For more information about this hike the WTA website.

Black Lake Hike

May 15, 2016 – 8:09 am
Posted in hike
Tagged Black Lake, Lake Creek, North Cascades, Pasayten Wilderness, wildflowers
Comments (2)

The girls and I hiked to Black Lake on Friday. This hike is more about the trail than the destination. It follows Lake Creek which is really roaring with white water now. I was pleased that the girls stayed away from the rushing stream. The area burned about ten or fifteen years ago and is a recovering forest with standing silver snags, numerous species of shrubs and wildflowers and in some places there are thick stands of small pine trees and aspens. Every year lots of those silver snags fall, often across the trail, and it hasn’t been logged out yet. According to the information at the trailhead, there are 48 downed trees along the route. This certainly slows a person down. Most I could get across; some I had to go under and in at least one case I had to go around a big log.

Another feature is a series of beaver ponds near the lake. These efficient engineers have dammed up a tributary creek and created some really good habitat but also have flooded the trail in places. It proved to be a bit of a challenge for me to get across a series of downed logs over the pond to return to the trail.

The flowers and bird song slowed me down too. I was able to identify four different warblers by their songs alone. I stopped many times when the trail was away from the stream, so I could listen to the birds and photograph the flowers. Needless to say, I did not make good time on this hike but like I said, it’s more about the trail than the destination.

Luna looks happy to be in the wilderness

First log across the trail

Later she would go under logs like this

Paintbrush

Two kinds of lupine

Serviceberry

Paintbrush

Cute tiny flower

maple

Lewisia tweedii

Tweedy’s Lewisia

Mountain ash flower with pollinator.

Mountain ash flower with pollinator

Mountain ash flower with two pollinators

Wild clematis

Oh gosh, I’ve forgotten this one

Elderberry

Beautiful little flower on a thorny shrub

Douglas sunflowers

penstemon

ferns unfurling

columbine

fungi

A log that was cut out of the trail last year

Talus slopes like this had pikas in them

Aspens growing out of the galus

Big boulder in the trail

Avalanche debris strewn across the trail

Hmmmm

Lake Creek

Beaver pond

Beaver pond

Black Lake

Cooling off

And here’s the list of birds I heard and saw:

Ruffed Grouse

Mourning Dove

Calliope Hummingbird

Hairy Woodpecker

Pileated Woodpecker

Olive-sided Flycatcher

Hammond’s Flycatcher

Dusky Flycatcher

Warbling Vireo

Common Raven

Black-capped Chickadee

Pacific Wren

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

American Robin

Nashville Warbler

MacGillivray’s Warbler

Yellow Warbler

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Chipping Sparrow

Dark-eyed Junco

Song Sparrow

Spotted Towhee

Black-headed Grosbeak

Red-winged Blackbird

Pine Siskin

Cutthroat Pass Hike

October 8, 2015 – 5:24 am
Posted in hike, North Cascades
Tagged Cutthroat Pass, fall colors, hike, North Cascades, Rainy Pass
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This is another great fall hike! We started at the Cutthroat trailhead and hiked five and a half miles to the pass where we connected with the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) and hiked down another five or so miles to Rainy Pass where we had left a second car in the morning. We did not have the blue skies and sunshine of the previous week’s hike and that made the dogs a lot more comfortable. Also there were numerous stream crossings, especially on the Rainy Pass side, where the dogs could wet their whistles. At the pass we saw quite a few PCT through hikers who were nearly to their goal on their hike from Mexico to Canada. The ones we talked to said they should reach the border in just four more days. They were all cheerful and looked healthy and hearty. After such a long journey on foot, I think I expected them to look gaunt and tired.