The girls and I spent another week in the mountains and most of our walks were in the meadows. Other trails are exposed and too hot for Sky and there is no water. But the meadows are lush, green, damp and there are some ponds and a stream for them to cool their feet. Lots of trails through the meadows too. They didn’t mind my slow movements as I photographed the flowers. Sky picked and ate huckleberries while Willow found sticks and tossed them in the water.
Willow and her friend, Gretta, and their Good Girl drivers got out for a very nice hike early this week. They started early and did not encounter too many people on the trails – a few through hikers and some day hikers along with a few dogs. Everyone was quite pleasant. The weather was mostly overcast for the first half of the hike which was a relief since it was all uphill. At the top, there was a breeze to keep the bugs away. The downhill part, with its relentless switchbacks, was dusty and dry. Willow and Gretta needed extra water. Fortunately Gretta’s drive brought two extra liters. Willow’s driver will know to bring more next time. Everyone was tickled when we finally reached the creeks near the lake and managed to cool off for the last two miles back to a car.
Earlier this week, Willow and I hiked up to a local lookout. It’s a short steep hike. The volunteer lookout wasn’t there yet. She just arrived today. We enjoyed the views from top of the mountain despite smokey skies and wondered if the old outhouse would survive another year. The flowers were wonderful. I especially liked the western clematis (Clematis occidentalis). It’s not a commonly seen wildflower. Willow especially liked a couple small snow patches! They won’t last much longer. And I might have obsessed, just a little, on the newly growing cones on the alpine larches and Douglas firs. There’s worse obsessions.
Big photo dump from late Spring.
It seems like a lot but you should see what I left out.
My Everyday Photos 