hike | My Everyday Photos

Category Archives: hike

More Images from Blue Lake

October 9, 2011 – 9:53 am
Posted in hike, North Cascades
Tagged Blue Lake, hike, ice, larch, North Cascades, pond, tamarack
Comments (2)

Ken has been wanting to go for a hike for weeks but his schedule has been busy and now with fishing season going again, it’s hard to fit in something we want to do together. Blue Lake was high on his list after I went there recently so off we went for a short day hike.

It really is a beautiful place and now with the larch, also known as tamarack, trees going into their glorious yellow phase, it is a must see place. I know of two kinds of larch trees in our region – the western and the alpine. I’m not sure where the dividing line, elevationally, is for them. There is probably some overlap and we may have seen both around Blue Lake at 6250′. Larches are the only conifer type tree that has needles that turn yellow and fall to the ground each year. Well, it’s the only one I know about.

Ken imagined he could see the glacier coming out of this round valley.

A small shallow pond near Blue Lake

Ice remained on the pond at midday

Just can’t quit photographing these trees.

Ken can’t quit either

Mountains to the north

It’s either the world’s tiniest mountain goat or a feral jack russell terrier

The outlet

Down the trail.

Blue Lake

September 30, 2011 – 8:06 am
Posted in hike
Tagged Blue Lake, dog, hike, labradoodle, North Cascades, three toed woodpecker
Comments (1)

The trailhead for Blue Lake is right on the highway between Washington Pass and Rainy Pass. Easy to get to and very popular. So why did it take me so long to visit this beautiful little lake?

Yesterday was a nice day for a hike – cool and sunny. Frost in the valley. I think I may have seen the first larches beginning to turn color. Luna and I had the place to ourselves til about lunch time when other folks began to arrive and on the way down we saw lots of hikers. Lots of climbers on the Liberty Bell rocks were shouting back and forth to each other too. I saw a few birds including a big flock of Gold-crowned Kinglets, an American Three-toed Woodpecker, a Sooty Grouse and numerous finches. Also, lots of pikas, chipmunks and squirrels

Luna liked swimming in the deep clear water

She wore a bandana so hopefully, no one would mistake her for a bear in the woods

I could easily see trout swimming in the shallows

Surprisingly, even after first snow and hard frosts, there are still flowers blooming including arnica, lupine, blue gentian, yarrow and others including this one I don’t know

A shallow pond near the trailhead

Now I know why this lake if often painted and photographed

Tiffany Mountain

September 9, 2011 – 7:06 am
Posted in hike
Tagged Boulder Creek, hike, Methow, Tiffany Mountain, wildflowers
Leave a Comment

There are still wildflowers blooming on Tiffany Mountain! It’s over 8200′ elevation so the snow hasn’t been gone too long. The hike starts out in a burned forest and climbs steeply for a while and then it’s out in the open before approaching the last pull to the top. Lots of birds teased us flying back and forth in the snags. We were able to see Yellow-rumped Warblers, White-crowned Sparrows, Pine Siskens, Clarks Nutcrackers and several other species. On the slope to the top, there were scads of Horned Larks and we were able to see many migrating raptors including a Golden Eagle, Prairie Falcon, Coopers Hawks and others. Weather was perfect for the hike although a little bit hot, almost opressive, on the way down through the burned forest. We cooled our feet in Boulder Creek and felt much better. And driving down Mary noticed a cinnamon black bear! It was a beautiful animal and quickly lumbered up the hill and away from us.