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Another Grouse on the Prowl

This time the fellow didn’t have a girl grouse to follow around. I saw him as the girls and I walked on the road and I wandered over to see what he was doing and he gave me an enticing ‘come hither’ look and so I did. He must have been excited because he went right into his Dusky Grouse display attitude, puffing up his eyebrows and air sacs and making the deep booming noise that must drive girl grouse wild. Not me, although I do find it interesting.

I think by now, most of the girl grouse (grouses?) are on nests so this fellow might be out of luck. And when I look at these pictures as compared to the ones from last week, he seems like a different bird. Note that the eyebrows are nowhere near as bushy.

Hillsides Covered with Yellow

Balsamroot sunflowers are in full bloom this week. Their sunny color paints the hillsides of the Methow valley with vivid pigments that invite you to get up and go outdoors. If you’re not out in the hills this week, you are making a mistake. MA and I took the dogs to Patterson Mountain, a popular and easily accessible hiking trail near here.  There were several cars at the trailhead so we knew others were out ahead of us and we did see them but mostly they were leaving as we were arriving so on top of the mountain we had it mostly to ourselves, except for a talkative raven.

The contrast of green hills crowned with yellow and the snow-covered mountains and blue skies surely make this the prettiest time of the year. There were other flowers – rock cress, shooting stars, blue bells, serviceberry, even a late twin flower. The bitterroot were not yet blooming. That surprised me. But the star of the day was the Balsamroot.

What a day!
Sky in the flowers
Luna and Sky
Frida stops to smell the flowers
Oh yeah, you have to drink it all in!
That yellow lab joined us for a short time.
Sky found a stick! Imagine that.
Sky followed the sign indicating a switchback in the trail. Isn’t she a smart girl?
Oh yeah, perfect day on the trail.
Oh look, Sky followed another sign.
Patterson lake with Mt Gardener on the left and the Wolf Creek and the upper Methow on the right
Even though they got to go swimming before the hike, the sun is starting to slow them down.
This Dusky Grouse stayed put as all the dogs walked by and then when MA went past it finally could not stand it and had to get up and walk giving me a great look!
Handsome bird in the flowers.
Resting on the mountain top
We love our snow-covered mountains.
Luna, where have you been?
Heading down.
The flowers and the mountains.
My favorite time of the year.

A Dock for Diving and Fishing Too

I had told MA that we needed a dock to see if Sky would ‘dock dive’. It seems a bit lofty to think of an eight month old puppy being ready to take on the big world of dock diving but her enthusiasm for swimming seems to be boundless. MA said she knew where there was a dock but the lake might still be frozen. She likes to go there before spring really arrives and other folks are fishing up there. So we loaded the dogs and headed into the mountains. Sure enough, we hit snow on a shady part and I fretted about going through it without snow tires but when I saw how much farther we had to go, I bucked up and drove my subaru through it without any problem. There was some snow that was pretty soft and squishy but we got through that too. Finally made it to the top and then had a reasonably short walk to the lake. Most of it was still ice-covered but not around the dock. And sure enough, Sky was happy to jump off the dock and swim for a stick or the tennis ball that she found in the campground. Luna was happy to watch. Frida jumped a couple of times too. After a while the dogs and I went for a walk and left MA to her fishing and when she was done with her worms, she had five nice trout for supper! On the way home, we saw a Dusky Grouse and he must have seen something he liked about us or my car because he soon puffed up in all of his courtship finery.

Sky retrieved sticks that the other dogs left behind
Reflections in water pooled on the ice
Chipmunks watched us
A Mallard drake walks on ice
A pair of Ring-necked Ducks
The male Ring-necked Duck
Ponderosa pines and a bluebird sky. What could be prettier?
If she can’t pick it up, she can climb on to it
Tiny puffballs
Clear cold water
Luna thinks this is not a good idea
Frida is a good dog to take fishing
Beautiful spot
That’s a keeper!
Just before Sky jumped in to see if she could retrieve it
Dusky Grouse
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