Little Bear
Finn
Finn and Sky
Luna
Finn, Sky, Little Bear, Luna
This is a steep, really steep hike, in my opinion. We started at the trailhead on the north side of Bonaparte Mountain with a trail a little less than three miles long with at least 2000′ of elevation gain. It starts out really steep for the first half mile or so and then is not quite so steep. There were no views til we reached the top as the trail is mostly in dense lodgepole pine forest. It does change to subalpine fir and white bark pine near the top. At the top, storm clouds and fog were rolling in so initially we had no views from the lookout either! But as we visited with the lookout himself, the fog and clouds moved around giving us views here and there til most of the 360 degree view was laid out in front of us. There’s a lot to see. From Tonasket to Oroville and Lake Osoyoos, Havillah and Chesaw and around towards the Wauconda summit and the Kettle Crest range of mountains and Sherman Pass. All well-known locations in Okanogan and Ferry Counties, some of the lowest populated areas of Washington.
As we relaxed more storms were coming in with thunder and lightning so we made a quick descent back to the truck.
This is after the first really, really steep part.
Break for snacks
The perfect Christmas tree
Native rhododendron
Bonaparte Lake is down there beyond that round mountain
Oroville and Osoyoos Lake in the distance
Havillah
Chesaw and Buckhorn Mountain
The lookout uses this fire finder to pinpoint lightning strikes and new fires.
It was his third day on the job.
The small building next to the lookout is the old lookout, dating back to 1914 and now used for storage.
You need to turn up your sound to hear the places I identified on this video
The western larch trees, sometimes called tamarack, provide homes for Williamson’s Sapsuckers and other birds. The male and female appear quite different and there was a time when they were classified as two separate species. I found a nest just below our campsite and was able to photograph the two birds coming and going as they fed their young. It was a long ways up in the tree and I had to sit down and lean back to get these images and wait patiently while they foraged for insects in between feedings. If you scroll through the photos you will get a good idea of the two different plumages of the male and female. And at the end are a few other birds.
There were lots of loons and they will get a separate post.
female Williamson’s Sapsucker
The male waits while she feeds the young
And off he goes for more bugs
American Coot
Eastern Kingbird
Red-winged Blackbird
We all went camping last week and had a nice time away from home in a beautiful and place and offline too. It rained some. There was one big thunderstorm that went on for an hour or more. We never got too hot. Or cold. Sky may have jumped in a lake or two. Or three.
The girls and I were determined to get out at least once this week despite the weather. It has been windy and chilly for June all week. Yesterday despite the continuing wind, we went anyway and while it was cold, it wasn’t windy in the mountains. The parking lot at the trailhead had more cars than I expected for a Friday morning. I guess lots of folks were enjoying the start of a long solstice weekend. When we returned, the lot was overflowing with cars and sprinter vans.
My Everyday Photos 