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Another Hike with Dogs

April 25, 2013 – 4:02 pm
Posted in hike
Tagged dogs, hike, Lewis Butte, lupine, wildflowers, Winthrop photography
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Yesterday four women and five dogs set out for Lewis Butte, a popular spring trail near Winthrop. It’s on a south facing slope so the snow melts fast and the wildflowers come early and may not stay long in a dry year. All the dogs, except mine were on best behavior. Well, maybe Trip was ready to help Luna in her quest to scare every bird on the butte. Other than that, it was a good day, topped off with lunch at the Rocking Horse Bakery.

On the way up we were passed by two other women with four dogs! Here are two of their dogs and four of ours

Boomer stuck around long enough for a better photo before re-joining his group

A water break for people and dogs

Juniper takes it all in

Cassidy wonders why all the paparazzi?

Three dogs keep an eye out for anything that moves.

Up the Rendezvous

We love our mountains here

One tree on top of Lewis Butte

It’s quite a view from Pearrygin Lake to Winthrop to Patterson Mountain

Cassidy has Trip’s tennis ball. Later Luna stole it and eventually hid it.

Juniper travels a well-trodden trail

Sulphur lupine

Lomatium dissectum – Fern-leaved desert parsley

A vetch

Lupine – one of my favorites

Everyday Walks

April 21, 2013 – 7:47 pm
Posted in spirng
Tagged Methow photography, Methow River, wildflowers, William Stafford
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Luna and I walk on our hillside everyday. Sometimes we get away and walk other places. Spring is a season of change. Everyday, everywhere you look, you can see something new. Here are some images from recent walks.

This vernal pond above our house has not had water this year. By my reckoning, that makes this a dry year. Maybe today’s rain and snow will change that.

Waterleaf is in full bloom now.

It’s a ground-hugging, diminutive plant.

Up valley, I found the spring beauty to be far more pink than around here.

This snag is a great wildlife tree. It has lots of cavities for cavity-nesting birds and mammals.

An interesting fungus

And another one

Luna found this last patch of snow and rolled around in it.

Balsamroot

At the Suspension Bridge along the Methow Community Trail. Compare it to how it looked the last time I went skiing on March 9.

Looking up river

And down river

There is a series of William Stafford poems in the Methow. This one is at the Suspension Bridge.

Back at home, the serviceberry is finally blooming. When I drove through Wenatchee on April 1, it was already in full bloom.

Here is a batch of tiny tent caterpillars in the bitterbrush.

Bluebells have been blooming for almost a month.

A currant bush hugging an old lichen-covered fence post.

Road Trip

April 4, 2013 – 2:55 pm
Posted in road trip
Tagged beach, Crescent Lake, Elwha Dam, Marymere Falls, photography, Port Angeles, shells, sunset, surf perch, Washington coast, wildflowers
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Ken and I enjoy road trips. We tend to travel with lots of stuff and this trip we took the truck so we could get all that stuff packed. What kind of stuff? Photo gear. Fishing gear. Clamming gear. Birding gear. Guitar. Books. Various clothes for various activities in a variety of weather conditions. Food – lots of food along with beer and wine. It was a good tour of a big part of the state starting here in the Methow where winter was loosening its grip, across the Cascades where 40″ of snow had fallen in the previous week, to the urban world north of Seattle where we were surprised to see new snow on the ground, and then across Puget Sound where it was sunny and dare I say it, warm. We reached Port Angeles that first night.

Sunset from our hotel in Port Angeles

From PA we drove up the Elwha River to the overlook of one of the now-removed Elwha Dams.

This sign graphic shows how it looked before, during and after the dam removal. Salmon have already returned to this river above the former dam site.

Part of Lake Crescent is in the Olympic National Park. It is cold and deep.

Old Storm King Ranger Station at Lake Crescent

Marymere Falls – a short popular hike from Lake Crescent

We saw these pretty blossoms in several places. I think they are a berry – maybe salmonberry?

The Dickey River – slow moving and flat and more reminiscent of Florida than Washington

We saw a river otter

This algae covered shoe had mussels growing inside of it. I wonder how long it was in the water and where it came from. Japan? It was on Rialto Beach.

A madronna log – driftwood on Rialto Beach

I could not get a better look at this moss covered nest as it was above my head. It was along the Hoh River.

This flower grew in many places with disturbed ground. I have no idea what it is.

Water pours out of a cliff side

Ruby Beach is more rocky than most of the beaches where we walked.

Looking down at Ruby Beach

Reflections along the way

Lots of interesting weather – mostly good

The Sandpiper

Some treasures from the beach

Two of the surf perch that Ken caught

Lots more, yet to come!

Early Spring Signs

March 17, 2013 – 4:30 pm
Posted in spirng
Tagged Methow photography, nest, Pipestone Canyon, wildflowers
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More signs of Spring each day now. Yesterday the dog and I went for a steep walk above the bottom of Pipestone Canyon. I had thought about walking up the canyon but the access road is still muddy and snowy in places. Best not to even try to drive on those conditions. The bird highlight was a couple of Dusky Grouse. They should be displaying soon. Western Meadowlarks sang as we walked. It was overcast and a little chilly.

The view looking up towards Pipestone Canyon.

A nest from last year high in an old bitterbrush. I had to hold the camera above my head to get pictures.

The name of this flower has slipped my memory. Hopefully it will return soon.

And I don’t know this tiny pink bud emerging from the crusty soil.

Balsamroot buds

And the first wildflowers – bluebells.

Funny, I haven’t seen any buttercups yet.

Fall Comes to Tiffany Mountain

September 14, 2012 – 1:31 pm
Posted in hike
Tagged dogs, fall, fireweed, forest fires, Methow photography, paintbrush, smoke, Tiffany Mountain, wildflowers
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Yesterday I hiked to Tiffany Mountain again. You may recall that Luna and I walked that trail back in July. Pictures are here. This time, my friend Marcy and her dog Guthrie went along. It started out fairly chilly with Marcy wearing a wool sweater but soon we were warm and enjoying the trail. It was good to be at a high elevation. Our valley is full of smoke from forest fires burning in various places throughought north central Washington. It looks like some will burn til the snow falls. Right now, there is no rain in the forecast to dampen them.

Tiffany looks much different than it did in July. At that time the snow was newly melted and the ground was moist and wildflowers were coming in to bloom. Yesterday, the trail was dusty; most flowers were dried and the grass was crisp. The verdant greens were gone replaced with dusty yellows and oranges. The first larch trees have turned yellow.

Exuberant dogs, happy to out of the car and on the trail