Janie and Steve, Utah Trails

Limestone Bench

2012-01-22T07:24:00.009-07:00

We shivered through a cold (10 F) night in our gooseneck trailer. Actually, we were warm enough wearing jackets and covered with blankets and down sleeping bags. The first rays of sun rising over the San Rafael Swell began a slow warming.

The horses spent the night in a sturdy corral, built by ranchers who have cattle leases on the BLM land. The horses look happy, but Daisy seems a little guilty. I wonder what she has been up to...

The drinking water left outside overnight was frozen solid. Fortunately, we had another water container in the trailer that was slushy, but pourable.

The horses drank from a stretch of the San Rafael River that flowed near our camp. There was ice along the bank, and they weren't too sure about the getting close at first. As you can see, Mischief has been rolling in the dirt again.

We decided to bag the rest of the trip and drive straight home. However, the desert warms quickly, and it was 40 degrees before we reached the highway. We couldn't pass up a ride on Limestone Bench. All that open territory was just too inviting.

We came across this old camp, complete with stone benches and a stove. With that fired up, campers would have been comfy.

Someone went to a lot of trouble to build a sundial in the middle of nowhere. Boy scouts, maybe?

We had a nice ride across the bench, covering about 8 miles, just a taste of this vast territory.

Cane Wash

2012-01-21T12:55:00.006-07:00

A glance at the weather report shows a good enough stretch for a 2 night, 3 day trip to the San Rafael Swell in central Utah. We head for the part of the Swell north of I-70. Click here for Wikipedia information on this geologic uplift formed 40-60 million years ago.

On the first day, we ride through sandy Buckhorn Draw.

About mid-way to the San Rafael River, we come to some free water and a lot of ice. The horses learn to tippy-toe across the ice, placing each hoof carefully so they won't slip. We aren't worried about breaking through because the water is only a couple of inches deep.

The San Rafael has ice along the banks, but plenty of free-flowing water in the middle.

A window in the rock overlooks the river. We look for petroglyphs but don't see any.

On the return trip, Daisy finds a petrified log. She would love to fetch it, but it's a little heavy. It's probably 250,000 million years old, from the Shinarump formation.

We discover the detritus left over from an old mining claim, including a storage room built into the hillside. We think it may have been where the miners stored dynamite. In case blasting caps might still be lying around, we do not enter.

and a rusted International pickup.

We complete the 16 mile ride at nearly dusk. Little do we know, the weather report lied. Instead of night time lows of near 30, temps dip to 10 F that night, a little cooler than we bargained for.

Lost Park

2012-01-13T13:19:00.003-07:00

On our 3rd day's ride in the San Rafael Desert, we ride past Runt's Knob,

across Lost Park,

and along the edges of Horseshoe Canyon. Steve and Daisy search for a safe way to descend from the sandstone rim.
We find a few sketchy wild burro and/or crazy cowboy trails, but no path we consider safe.

We don't find water, either, but the horses munch snow. Galloping over the flat areas has made them sweat, even though the air temperature is in the low 40's. An equine winter coat doesn't shed heat very well.

When our trailer comes into sight, we are struck by the Henry Mountains looming behind it. Even parking along the road provides spectacular views!

We have enough water in the trailer tank for both horses to enjoy a good drink before the drive home. Mischief wears a coating of reddish sand from the luxurious roll he took as soon as the saddle was removed.

On the hour's drive back to the nearest paved road, this stark scene of mountains over sand dunes and snow catches our attention.

R & R

2012-01-12T08:00:00.035-07:00

On a long, hot ride with no water in sight, the horses cool off with bites of snow.

Daisy luxuriates in snow drifts whenever she gets the chance.

Back at camp, the horses enjoy a roll in the sand.

Mischief looks like Pigpen from the Peanuts cartoons, with all the dust rolling off of him.

Ah. After drying their thick fur and scratching their backs with a roll, Boss and Mischief catch the day's last rays of sun.

Sand Dunes and Canyon Views

2012-01-11T10:27:00.001-07:00

After passing Sam's Mesa Spring, we continue across the desert dunes.

Steve notices a skull marking a hilltop rock and climbs up to explore. The cow skull was on top of a section marker, apparently to make the section corner easier to find.

Farther along, we spot a few fallen stakes and this mining claim, wrapped in foil. As you can see, it is still readable. The claim does not say what the claimee proposes mining for. Uranium, maybe? Uranium mining was common in the canyon country in the '50's. This claim was made in 2007.

Our destination is the Dirty Devil River overlook. The view behind Steve looks down the Dirty Devil's canyon.
The river was given its name by one of the Wesley Powell expeditions in 1869-1871. As they floated down the Colorado River, they came to the inlet of an unnamed river. "How is she, Jack?" someone shouted. "Oh, she's a dirty devil!" was the reply.
That same expedition named the Bright Angel Creek farther down the Colorado. Bright Angel is now part of the Grand Canyon National Park. Perhaps the Powell group thought they should give homage to the forces of good to counteract naming one stream after the devil...

Steve and Daisy approach the edge.

The horses wisely hang back, probably wishing for some good grass to munch during their break.

There is no way into the canyon and it doesn't look all that inviting from this vantage point anyway.

Heading back toward camp, we have nice views of red sandstone canyon cliffs in the distance.

Sam's Mesa Spring

2012-01-08T12:57:00.003-07:00

On our second day in the San Rafael Desert, we head back to Sam's Mesa for further exploration.

The views are classic western, worthy of a movie set.

The Henry Mountains (highest point, 11,500 ft.) loom in the background.

The yellow party balloons seem a little out of place. The wind must have carried them a long distance. The horses think they are scary at first, but our boys calm down when the balloons don't seem to bite. The strings are hung on a thorny bush. Good thing we don't hear a sudden loud pop. That could cause the horses to have permanent balloon phobia!

This sandstone pinnacle looks like 3 smoke stacks. (Or 3 of something more phallic, but I'm far too genteel to point that out.)

Ten miles down a sandy road, we reach the slope leading to Sam's Mesa Spring. The hill is too snowy and slippery for the horses.

Steve and Daisy walk to the bottom of the canyon where cottonwood trees mark the presence of water.

If you look closely in the above photo, you can see Daisy sniffing around the trunk of the cottonwood tree. The spring has strong flow for this dry country, but the stream is frozen in the canyon's shadows. In summer, this must be a haven for birds and wildlife.

Sam's Mesa

2012-01-07T19:13:00.001-07:00

On our trip to southern Utah, we explored Sam's Mesa. The deep gorge to the left is Happy Canyon. A branch of the Dirty Devil River flows through there. Sam's Mesa is the flat tabletop land above the canyon.

Steve and Boss are standing at a fence gap. At this choke point,10 posts and 30 feet of barbed wire can close the only entry to Sam's Mesa. It's hard to appreciate in the photo, but on either side of the road, steep drop offs prevent taking an alternate route.

Ahead of Steve, nature and time have carved deep valleys between the sandstone knolls.

Here is some sandstone carving up close. Steve is studying his GPS to determine our next move. Daisy is checking out a possible bunny trail.

We found snow in the shadows. Daisy enjoyed rolling in it. The horses didn't have a watering hole along the trail, so they ate a little snow to cool off after a gallop. The days were mild, in the 40's, and the nights were in the upper 20's. Not bad for January!
This was only the first afternoon's ride. More will follow...

Ringing in the New

2012-01-03T17:47:00.000-07:00

We had a fine holiday season,

sharing gifts,

listening to music,

partying with food and drink,

wrestling,

doing a little riding,

and a whole lot of relaxing.
We hope all of you had a good Christmas and are ready for work and play in 2012!
No snow here, and the weather is relatively mild. We're off to southern Utah for a few days on the trails.

Wishing You the Season's Best

2011-12-22T14:07:00.001-07:00

Merry Christmas from our corral to yours.

May your 2012 be filled with scintillating scents

and outstanding captures!

We'll be visiting with family for a few days. See you in the new year.

Winter Rides

2011-12-18T10:42:00.001-07:00

December didn't shut down our riding completely.

Early in the month, we had a few sunny days, like the one pictured above on Wolf Mountain.

The snow isn't deep yet, but the temperatures are dropping. Still, we were comfortable enough riding in Ouray National Wildlife Refuge on December 9th.

Yesterday we rode in Sand Wash, on dirt roads north of Highway 40. The thermometer read 23 degrees F. No sun. Light wind. Cold!
Unless we have a warming trend before the big snow that could come any day now, we're hanging up the saddles for 2011. We had a good run, 910 miles since we started the riding season in February with forays to Canyonlands.

For the next few weeks, we'll be hanging around the old homestead. (Fortunately, our homestead has a roof and central heating, unlike this abandoned cabin.)

Travels with Grandkids

2011-12-06T12:34:00.001-07:00

We had 3 action packed weeks of Connecticut adventures,

hiking in the woods,

exploring the seashore,

finding worms

and tiny crabs,

listening to erudite astronomy lectures,

learning all about the human body from a 5 year old point of view,

viewing Broadway-quality shows,

making discoveries in aerospace,

finding the perfect pumpkins,

and experiencing the ultimate in a scary Halloween.

Autumn Trails

2011-10-08T21:43:00.000-06:00

Happy autumn trails to all of you. We'll be away from blogging, following our own paths to adventure for the next month. We'll catch up with you in mid-November.

Autumn in the Mountains

2011-10-05T08:52:00.002-06:00

The Utah hills are in their golden glory.

A lane on the top of Lake Mountain (9000 ft.) displays the aspen in their prime time finery.

Near the top of Indian Canyon, nearly all of the aspens are dressed for fall.

A cold front is due this week. If we get wind as well as cooler weather (and possible snow!), the gold will be gone for another year.

Thompson Springs

2011-10-02T16:25:00.001-06:00

Less than a mile north of I-70 at the turnoff to the Sego ghost town and the Thompson Wash petroglyphs, lies the town of Thompson Springs. The 2010 census shows less than 39 residents.

A lot of the houses look like the one above, dilapidated and possibly deserted.

This white building gives us a taste of the town's history.

The sign in front tells the story.

The town was once important enough to merit a train stop at this station.

Parking is still available, but the old sign is overgrown with weeds.

This old building still has a sign for the Desert Moon Hotel. Someone seems to be living there and maintaining the place, but I saw no evidence that the hotel is currently in business. A gas station near the interstate is the only viable business we saw.
The town was established in 1890 and its importance was boosted by the coal mine in Sego, now defunct. Sadly, although it isn't quite a ghost town, Thompson doesn't seem to have much life left.

Thompson Wash

2011-10-01T17:49:00.003-06:00

A few miles south of the Sego ghost town, we found another variety of ghosts left by ancient Native Americans in their rock art. The site is known as Thompson Wash.

The above figures are in the Barrier style, dating from about 4000 years ago. The pictographs (painted on the rock with red dye) show anthropomorphic figures that are often larger than a man. They often have a ghostly look, and are shown with snake-like figures.

In the same area are other figures in the Fremont style, dating from about 1500 years ago:

Fremont anthropomorphic figures are triangular, often shown with shields and necklaces.

The historic Utes also left their art, which is about 800 years old:

Note that some of the human figure appear on horseback, which means the art dates from after Spanish conquistadors brought horses onto the continent in the late 1400's.

This panel shows a mixture of styles, with some historic Ute or Fremont figures, and some cowboy/miner/tourist art dating from the 1880's.

It's illegal, not to mention a real shame, to deface the rare remnants of ancient cultures, but some people just can't seem to resist making their mark.

Sego Ghost Town

2011-09-30T19:17:00.000-06:00

At the Thompson Springs turnoff on I-70, travel about 5 miles north to what's left of an old coal mining town, now uninhabited. The above photo shows what was once the company store, built in 1911. Below is the inside view of the store:

Either the customers were very short, or a lot of dust has filled in the entryway.
About 500 people once lived in the immediate vicinity of the store.

This was the old boarding house, across the road from the store. The bachelor miners lived there. The boarding house was still standing the last time we drove through, about 5 years ago, but it looked as if a big wind would take it down. Apparently, the wind blew.
Founded as a mining camp in the early 1890's, the town was first called Ballard after the mine owner. The mine was sold a couple of times, and the town changed names to Neslin, then Sego after the sego lily, the state flower. I guess they were trying to buff their image with the new name.

The Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad ran a spur line to the mine to transport the coal. Some of the trestles crossing the deep gullies have been washed away, but a few remain.

This may have been one of the nicer residences.

This home appears to have been less desirable. One of the town's least prominent citizens must have lived there.
The mine was closed in 1947 and the property was sold at a Moab auction. Probably due to a falling water table, no one rejuvenated the structures or re-opened the mine.

The "town" now houses only ghosts.

This grave has no name, but is adorned with a single plastic flower.

Among the dozen or so tombstones in the Sego cemetery, this one was the saddest.

Willow Creek Cabin

2011-09-29T21:20:00.001-06:00

As we rode along west Willow Creek, nine miles from the nearest trailhead, we were surprised to find an intact cabin. Since it's unlikely that this area was ever accessible by road, this was probably a rancher's line cabin, used mostly in the summer season when the cows had good grass at 8500 feet.

The cabin wasn't locked, so I went in.

This chair appears to be handmade with willow branches.

The bed is hand hewn, too. I assume a mattress of some kind was laid across the bare logs.

The wood burning stove would keep the single room cozy.

The cabinets are unique.

They must have been scavenged from a military base somewhere, because the print says "Rocket ammunition with smoke (or explosive, in one case) projectile."

The outside is decorated with antlers and various tools.

Someone (the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources that manages the land?) has recently repaired some of the outer logs and added a hitching post. Buckets, a couple of coolers, and a cot indicate someone may have cleaned up the inside and slept there in the last few years, but otherwise the cabin stands much as it did when it was built. We couldn't find any information about it on the internet, so I don't know the cabin's age. Since it's in such good shape, it's likely no more than 50-75 years old. However, the occupant's lifestyle clearly wasn't much different from that of pioneers in the early 1800's.

A couple of the windows were bear-proofed with an old iron bedstead. Very practical use of materials, don't you agree?

The rear of the cabin sports more antlers.

The hitching post came in handy. Daisy liked the view.

Roadless in the Books

2011-09-28T20:29:00.001-06:00

The roadless area of the Book Cliffs encompasses about 100 square miles. Sego is one of only a few trailheads leading into this vast wilderness.
In the early 90's, with the mission of promoting wildlife habitat in the Book Cliffs, The Nature Conservancy and the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation bought a chunk of land from four ranches that controlled the water sources and the BLM leases for this area (the east Tavaputs Plateau). Those two groups then transferred ownership to the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (UDWR), with certain requirements that natural habitat be maintained.
Thus, this land is now protected from development. Only hunters and the occasional hiker or horseback rider venture into it. Keeping the area roadless was controversial at first, but now hunting permits for the area are highly prized. No vehicles means more and healthier game, as it turns out. Duh. That doesn't seem so surprising, really.

Here is the view from the sandy trail (once a road) that travels along the top of Went Ridge, the first 1.5 miles of which travels through Ute Tribal Land. After that, both sides of the ridge belong to the UDWR. We rode a game trail that leads west into the west Willow Creek drainage. On the way down, we heard a bull elk bugle and caught a glimpse of his huge rack, just before he and his herd of elk cows melted into the aspen.

At the bottom of the hill, we went right past an old camp with evidence that hunters had found some big game.

The horses and Daisy enjoyed the water in Willow Creek.

A (ferruginous?) hawk soared overhead.

Grass was chest high on Mischief in many places. Daisy sometimes disappeared completely.

In one spot, the trail led through two generations of fences. The newer one up front has a metal gate and fence rails put together with a drill bit and rebar. The older gate and fence are made of poles tied together with wire.

About 9 miles from the trailhead, we came across the old cabin you can see in the distance. We went closer to explore, but those photos will have to wait for my next post.

Sunrise, Sunset

2011-09-27T20:10:00.002-06:00

We just returned from two nights in the Book Cliffs. My favorite part was dawn lighting up the canyons.

Second best was seeing those last glowing embers of sunset.

This doe visited the camp one morning.

And a buck stopped by the next morning. We loved seeing the deer, but I hope they are a little more discreet when deer hunting season starts in a few weeks.

Boss was alert to these strangers in camp. Mischief wasn't at all concerned.
More on the rides and sights in future posts...

Red and Orange on the Mountain

2011-09-24T19:39:00.000-06:00

Yesterday we rode to the top of Strawberry Ridge, about 9000 feet. To the east, we looked down on Strawberry Reservoir.

To the west, the view takes in Uinta National Forest and the Wasatch Range.

We rode down the west side of the ridge through aspen forests.

One grove was full of baneberries. They are pretty, but poisonous.

They also come in white.

The Western mountain ash has bright berries. This fruit is bitter but edible, according to my plant book.

Mountain maples have turned red and orange.
Our blaze orange vests seem to blend in a little too well.... I hope the hunters take note!

The horses enjoyed eating yellow salsify forbes, as well as tall grass seedheads.

Boss begged for a granola bar dessert. Daisy stood by, eager to clean up any crumbs.

Last of Summer

2011-09-23T07:29:00.000-06:00

Yesterday we rode up Mill B trail, north of Strawberry Reservoir. The high country hills are showing the first touches of autumn.

A few aspen leaves have changed,

but most are still green. That won't last long. By next week, gold will predominate.

Monkeyflower

A few flowers are still out.

Lupine

Most have done their summer blossoming and have already gone to seed.

Gooseberries

Elderberries

Berries are plentiful.

The days are still warm and beautiful at 10,000 feet.

September Wedding

2011-09-20T13:25:00.002-06:00

We were pleased to attend our son's wedding recently. The happy couple had beautiful weather for their outdoor wedding and a crowd of friends and family to help celebrate their union.

Our eldest granddaughter and grandson served as flower girl and ringbearer. The grandson expressed a wish to keep the rings, but, alas, that was not allowed. Apparently he had been opening the box and playing with the rings, because when the box was opened during the ceremony, both rings fell out onto the grass! Oh, well, both were retrieved with only a little effort and a few chuckles. What perfect wedding is complete without one tiny mishap?

Our granddaughter (on the right in the older photo above) was experienced in her role. She was also a flower girl for our daughter's wedding 5 years ago. On that occasion, when she heard she was supposed to throw flower petals from her basket to the ground, she was distressed. She wanted to pick up flower petals, not throw them away!

She also refused to wear shoes. She went home barefoot, with a basket full of rose petals. Her role as errant (but super sweet!) toddler flower girl was a complete success.

Now that she's six, she threw out the petals as requested, but she did go around collecting any loose bouquet flowers. She still went home with a basketful of roses and a smile.

Pink

2011-09-19T20:24:00.000-06:00

This little butterfly likes little pink toes.

Mammoth Hot Springs

2011-09-16T16:23:00.001-06:00

Yellowstone National Park's Mammoth Hot Springs have created layers of travertine over thousands of years. The layers are actively changing even today, as the flowing water lays down calcium carbonate on a daily basis. Algae living in the pools tint the travertine orange, brown, red, or green.

The rising steam looks eerie at sunrise.

Skeletons of trees killed by the thermal activity add to an other-worldly aura.

A small bird scurries around the edges of a warm pool. Apparently he finds bugs who like the steamy heat. I think he is a type of plover.

Below the springs is old Fort Yellowstone and the present day Yellowstone headquarters. The buildings are built on layers of travertine where the springs were active in the distant past.

Two happy kids were awarded Junior Ranger patches in the visitor center. The ranger made an announcement to everyone in the center. The visitors politely applauded, and the new junior rangers glowed!
Little bro is watching. No doubt he's planning to get his patch next year.
I first learned of the junior ranger program on Gaelyn's blog. If you're traveling to a national park, check to see if there is an associated junior ranger program there. It's fun for all, I guarantee.

Slough Creek

2011-09-14T20:44:00.001-06:00

Steve and I first hiked along Slough Creek in Yellowstone about 30 years ago, and it was just as much fun exploring it with the grandkids.

An old park ranger cabin overlooks the creek.

A bear had wandered nearby. Probably a black bear. We didn't see him.

The kids threw grasshoppers in the water and watched cutthroat trout rise to the occasion.

Playing around with Dad is always fun.

Do these kids ever run out of energy? Not that I can tell!

Climbing with B.O.B.

2011-09-13T10:11:00.001-06:00

How do you reach the top of Mount Washburn with 4 kids under 7?

A B.O.B. (Baby on Board) stroller helped a lot. Mom pushed that.

Dad did his part. I don't know how he did this hike in flip flops!
The trail still has remnants of blacktop, but vehicles are no longer allowed.

The oldest kid hiked the 6 miles round trip and 2000 feet of elevation gain all by herself! And little bro hiked most of the way, too. They were awesome.
A cute chipmunk inside Mount Washburn's fire tower scurried around to steal lunch crumbs from the tourists. He was so overfriendly, he was a little scary.

A herd of Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep graciously shared the trail with us. Some didn't bother to get up from their afternoon nap as we trekked past.

Butterflies and flowers were pretty at the lower altitudes.

After that hike, a big cookie was well-deserved and tasted extra good!

Miniature Explorers

2011-09-12T20:10:00.000-06:00

With walkie talkie and Junior Ranger book in hand, this girl is ready to explore!

At LeHardy rapids, the boys try out binoculars.

At Lower Yellowstone Falls, Steve snaps a photo of the rest of us.

A couple of grown osprey, surprisingly, are still hanging out in the nest.

We hiked down a boardwalk for a closer look at the falls.

Old Faithful

2011-09-11T14:06:00.000-06:00

Yellowstone National Park is famous for its geothermal activity, evidenced by mud pots, bubbling pools, steam, and geysers, all fueled by the hot rocks of magma chambers that heat the water. Half of the earth's geothermal features and two-thirds of the earth's geysers are concentrated in Yellowstone, according to Wikipedia.

Old Faithful was first named by the Washburn-Langford-Doane Expedition because the geyser erupted at regular intervals, approximately hourly. Since then, this well-known geyser's activity has been disrupted by the effects of small quakes, and it is now less faithful. Today, eruptions very anywhere from 45-125 minutes apart.

In the above photo, my grandson is plugging his ears as we wait for Old Faithful to do its thing at twilight. He thought the geyser would be noisy, but the hot water eruption is not like an explosion, just a tremendous upward force of hissing and gushing.
The eruptions are an average of 145 feet high and last 1.5 to 5 minutes.

We also saw the Beehive Geyser erupt. A ranger told us this one erupts unpredictably, sometimes "nunce" a day. Its 4 foot tall cone is shaped like a beehive. Wikipedia says it erupts every 10-20 hours, and reaches a height of 200 feet.

5 Grandkids

2011-09-09T11:49:00.000-06:00

They're looking especially clean and huggable in this photo. We had fun adventures in Yellowstone where dirty faces won the day.

Sweet

2011-08-22T20:22:00.000-06:00

We'll be sipping the nectar of life for awhile, visiting with kids and grandkids. Hope you all enjoy the last days of summer. We'll be back to blogging in a couple of weeks.

Sunrise Trail

2011-08-19T13:18:00.000-06:00

Our Mount Rainier National Park hike began at Sunrise Trailhead. A visitor's center, gift shop, and day lodge are located there.

The trail provided views of mountains all around, some green,

and some rocky, jagged, or snow covered.

This is Frozen Lake, appropriately named.
In the first few miles, we saw a couple of dozen hikers, but after we passed through this enchanted forest, we were all alone.
One somewhat hysterical hiker, bear spray in hand, reported she had just seen a grizzly. Since no grizzly is known to live in the area, according to several rangers we spoke to, she probably saw a black bear. We didn't see any bears, black or otherwise.

Only chipmunks, and the cute marmots shown above. Rodents like people, who tend to leave lots of lunch leftovers for them to feast upon.

Rainier Flora

2011-08-18T13:01:00.003-06:00

Mount Rainier National Park features several plant species that we don't find, or only rarely, in the Uintas:

BearGrass

Avalanche Lily

Pasqueflower

Pasqueflower Seedheads

Lousewort

Shooting Star

Magenta Paintbrush

Lupine leaves with morning crystalline dewdrops

It's still spring at 6000 feet in Mount Rainier National Park. The snow in the meadows probably didn't melt until a month ago, since snowbanks still remain on some parts of the trail.

'Rithmetic + Rainier

2011-08-16T16:26:00.000-06:00

We just returned from Seattle, where we proudly observed our second son defend his dissertation. The complex mathematical formulas were Greek to us, but he sure did look good and sound smart. It was fun to bask in the reflected glory of his success. (Photo is by Steve's cell phone. Not the greatest, but we didn't dare distract son or professors by whipping out a real camera!)

Then we were off, with son and soon-to-be daughter-in-law to Mount Rainier National Park for an overnight backpacking trip to Grand Park. The views of Rainier were impressive. This shows the north side of the mountain, about 8 miles from the peak. We were able to view the Liberty Ridge route, (prominent steep ridge to the right) by which our 2 sons summitted a couple of years ago.

Flowers painted the meadows.

With moonrise came a ground-hugging mist. The guys insisted on sleeping outside.

Their sleeping bags were frost-covered in the morning. The ladies had more sense and slept in the tent!

Osprey Action

2011-08-08T07:54:00.026-06:00

Here are a couple of videos of the osprey nest. In the first one, the 3 youngsters are exercising their wings. In the next, a second adult bird lands in the nest, probably the daddy with a fish for the young. I can't figure out how to embed the videos full size. If you right click and choose "watch on youtube", you can see a larger version.

Yellowstone Falls

2011-08-07T10:25:00.001-06:00

No trip to Yellowstone is complete with out a visit to the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone and the two major waterfalls.

The above photo was taken from the brink of the Upper Falls, which drops 109 feet into the canyon below.

And here is the Lower Falls from one of the many viewpoints. It drops 308 feet into the canyon. The canyon walls were formed from lava flows during the area's active volcanic period. Yellowstone received its name from the yellowish color of the canyon walls. Most of the yellow color is due to iron in the rhyolite, a volcanic rock.

When the light shone on the water just right, we saw a rainbow.

From the waterfall viewpoint, looking downstream, we saw an osprey nest located on one of the pinnacles in the canyon. I've marked the location in the above photo.

The adult and 3 chicks showed off for the tourists, occasionally flapping their wings for exercise.

They called out as another osprey soared through the canyon. We assumed it was the other parent hunting for a fish meal. While we watched, the second parent landed in the nest, then quickly flew away. Our view wasn't good enough to see if he left a fish, but the crew seemed to be eating after that, so we assume the hunt was successful.

A Day's Dessert

2011-08-06T07:22:00.013-06:00

We arrived back at Roosevelt Lodge in time to eat with the first dinner shift at 4:30. Delish! That's me front and center. I was so full, I was barely able to shuffle out of the place.

To work off the meal, we ventured out on a short hike to the confluence of the Lamar River (on the right) with the Yellowstone River (left).
Along the way, we met:

A curious doe

Spotted Sandpiper

And, not surprisingly, we encountered another bison jam on the road.

This solitary bull must be British. He drives on the wrong side of the road. Or perhaps he's just passing a slow car.

When he moved to the side and regally allowed traffic to pass, I snapped his profile for posterity.

Hellroaring Trailhead

2011-08-05T07:42:00.031-06:00

Yellowstone River view

On our second full day, we headed for the Hellroaring Trailhead.

Fireweed and Groundsel

Harebell

? Duncecap Larkspur ?

We walked about a mile through beautiful wildflowers to the Hellroaring Bridge.

After crossing this suspension bridge over the Black Canyon of the Yellowstone, we hiked upstream along the Yellowstone River to a likely looking fishing spot. The salmon fly hatch is an important July food supply for cutthroat trout. The flies are up to 3 inches long. To the trout, this is a full meal deal.

The hatch was over in this area and most of the salmon flies were gone, but the fish still showed considerable interest in an imitation.

This Yellowstone cutthroat trout was one of many that Steve caught and released that day.

Hiking the 3 miles or so back to the trailhead, we came upon an antler shed by an elk. We took a photo and left the antler there for the next hiker to find.

Yellowstone Bonus Finds

2011-08-04T07:43:00.090-06:00

We'd had a perfect day, a nice hike, and had already seen plenty of wildlife. After chowing down on Babyback Ribs (I highly recomment them!) at Roosevelt Lodge, we drove to the Lamar River for a short walk.

This antelope was hanging out by the river.

Her baby popped up out of the brush.

Mama urged baby to move along. She didn't want him too close to those nosy tourists.

Yet another tourist pleaser was this grizzly. Yes, that's the road in the front of the photo. See how close he was? Less than 100 yards, I would guess. A ranger was there, making sure no one approached the bear, which was a good thing. Some people were out of their cars. We took our photos through the window.

He looked thin. Maybe he was an old bear. It's unusual to see a grizzly near a road, especially so close.
The grizz was fascinating to watch. But the big find of the night was this:

He was running beside the road. He looked like a wolf, but wolves usually stay well away from cars, people, and roads, so we were thinking he had to be a coyote.

Then again, he sure looked like a wolf. Turned out, he was, indeed, a yearling wolf. The wolf watcher police came along in a truck and said they'd used a pellet gun to chase the wolf away from the road, an aversion technique sometimes used to keep wild animals wild, and to keep them from getting run over by traffic.
Well, that was the find of a lifetime. We certainly didn't expect anything more. But yet another wildlife bonus came our way.

This black bear was hogging up on berries maybe 50 feet from the road. Way close, for a bear.

Again, a ranger was there, monitoring tourists, trying to keep them out of trouble. The bear didn't seem to care one way of the other. He was really enjoying his berries.

Black Twinberry, a bear's choice

We'd had a more than full day. Back we went to our little cabin at Roosevelt Lodge. It's not what you'd call a 5 star accommodation. The bathroom is in a communal building, and you can see light through the cabin walls. However, the bed was clean and fairly comfortable. We slept well, with visions of bears, wolves, and antelope dancing in our heads.

Mt. Washburn Flora and Fauna

2011-08-03T08:53:00.073-06:00

Besides the incredible views from the summit, the Mount Washburn hike offered:

Lupine

Wildflower bouquets

Paintbrush

Sticky Geranium

Chipmunk, watchful

Chipmunk, cute

Marmot admiring scenery

Marmot hiding in shadows

Whitebark Pine

The Clark's Nutcracker harvests seeds from the cones of the whitebark pine and caches them for year round food.

Whitebark pine cones

Red squirrels hide the whitebark pine seeds in middens for a winter food supply.
Grizzly bears raid the middens in the fall, and the seeds provide them with essential high quality nutrition for pregnant sows before winter hibernation.

Immature Whitebark Pine cones have a characteristic dark purple color

Climate change and warmer winters appears to have caused an increase in mountain pine beetle infestation, causing the whitebark pines to die off in significant numbers. Loss of this tree from the Yellowstone ecosystem would have a big impact on many animals who rely on it for food or winter shelter.
The whitebark pine was recently denied consideration for listing as an endangered species.

Mount Washburn

2011-08-02T11:29:00.002-06:00

A hike to the top of Mount Washburn was our main activity for our first full day in Yellowstone. It's a 6 mile round trip, about 1300 feet of elevation gain, and provides incredible views of the Yellowstone area.

Wildflowers adorned the trail much of the way.

We encountered snow across the trail at about 10,000 feet. The trail was once a blacktop road, but it has been closed to vehicular traffic. Only hikers are allowed.
The terrain near the top of Mount Washburn is rock formed from lava, the result of volcanic activity over millions of years. The most recent lava eruption was about 70,000 years ago.

The fire tower observation room looks out on the scene above, with Mount Sheridan (10,300 ft) to the left (35 miles away) and the Teton Range (13,700 at the highest point - 75 miles away) barely visible to the right. The observation room is a favorite lunch break spot for hikers. A spotter scope and lots of windows allow for good scenery and wildlife viewing.

The top floor of the tower is a ranger's living quarters. What a great 360 view!

Looking south toward Yellowstone Lake, you can view a huge caldera (a depression in the earth) caused by a super volcano that erupted about 640,000 years ago, following which the earth's crust collapsed into the emptied magma chamber. The rim of the caldera is defined by Mount Washburn on the northern end and Mount Sheridan on the south. You can also see the chasm through which the Yellowstone River flows. This is called the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.

Hotspots remain beneath the caldera, and these are responsible for Yellowstone's geothermal activity (about 50% of the world's geothermal activity occurs here) visibly apparent through the many geysers and mud pots. 1000 to 2000 earthquakes occur every year in Yellowstone, but most are less than magnitude 3 intensity. (The photo above came from Wikipedia.)

Here's a photo from the observation tower showing the Teton Range (10X zoom photo) 75 miles away. We were fortunate to have such a clear viewing day.
Mount Washburn was named after Henry D. Washburn, who led an expedition into Yellowstone in 1870.

Wildlife Jamboree

2011-07-31T16:21:00.000-06:00

The next morning, our first full day in Yellowstone, we arose early and drove south on the Grand Loop for an expansive view of flower-festooned Antelope Valley.

The flowers (I think they're showy goldeneye) turned the hills gold in the morning sun. We didn't spot a bear or other wildlife, so we continued south toward Hayden Valley where we've often seen the bison herd crossing the road in the morning. They tend to bed down along the Yellowstone River at night, then leisurely make their way across the road to the rolling hills of Hayden Valley.

Sure enough, a part of the herd was there, causing the usual traffic jam as they took their time hogging the road and observing the tourists. No one seemed to mind the wait.

A few people risked falling out of cars to snap photos.
Just down the road from the bison, we came to another wildlife jam. Tourists were standing on a hill and pointing their cameras toward Hayden Valley. We parked and joined the group to see what we could see.

A grizzly sow with two cubs! They were perhaps 300 yards away, but easily visible with binoculars or the camera zoom. Mama was teaching the fine art of digging yampa roots and hunting rodents.

One cub stuck close to mom.

The other didn't seem concerned until he fell behind considerably. Then he hurried to catch up.
We watched until the trio disappeared into a shadowed gulch.

On the other side of our viewing hill, undisturbed by humans or bears, a group of Canada geese swam in a regimented line along a small tributary of the Yellowstone River.

Bear Management

2011-07-29T22:07:00.000-06:00

We stopped at this Antelope Valley overlook as evening shadows were creeping over the meadow. We had seen bear watchers with scopes here before.

The sign hints that bears might be present.

What's that down in the valley? Yes, definitely a bear. A grizzly, with his humped shoulders and dished face. He was about 400 yards away, a good safe distance. My camera's 10X zoom managed a recognizable image, but just barely.
We watched him until he entered the trees, then went on our way again.

At dusk, as we were driving the last few miles to Roosevelt Lodge, a small black bear crossed the road. I barely (pun intended) got the camera up in time to take a blurry shot in poor light.

We were exhausted after all the wildlife watching and picture taking we'd done while driving through the park. And we'd only been in Yellowstone for a few hours.

When we arrived at the lodge at dark, we were glad to have a tiny Rough Rider cabin waiting for us.

Yellowstone Tourist Pleasers

2011-07-28T19:55:00.000-06:00

Yellowstone National Park consists of 2 million acres, and only about 200 miles of roads. The wilderness is vast!

Yellowstone Lake, located at 7,732 feet (2,376 m) above sea level, covers 136 square miles with 110 miles (177 km) of shoreline. Its deepest spot is at least 390 feet. Yellowstone Lake is the largest freshwater lake above 7,000 feet in North America.

The lake freezes by early December (except for hot spots on its southern shore) and can remain frozen until early June.

Lehardy Rapids is downstream from Yellowstone Lake. In early summer, we have seen at least a Yellowstone cutthroat trout a minute jumping over the rapids, heading to Yellowstone Lake tributaries to spawn. This time, we see only a few trout hanging out in backwater eddies. Lake trout, introduced into Yellowstone Lake at some point in the past, eat young cutthroats in the lake. The population growth of this non-native species has dramatically reduced cutthroat numbers between Yellowstone Falls and the lake over the last ten years.

A handsome pelican puts on a show for the tourists. He perches on a rock close to shore, occasionally scratching his head with a webbed foot or yawning as he waits for dinner to swim by.

A spider makes a meal of a caddis fly on the tourist boardwalk. I think we are the only ones who notice this gruesome, if small and unobtrusive, sight.

Further downstream, a lone bison bull lumbers along the Yellowstone River.

A wily coyote hunts for rodents near the road. Here, he looks like a trickster, as Native American folklore depicts him.

But here, he looks like the stalwart, honest fellow that we'll assume he is.

Teton Grandeur

2011-07-27T20:14:00.002-06:00

Last Saturday, we packed up and headed for Yellowstone National Park. On the way, we drove through Jackson Hole.

The majesty of the jagged Teton range tend to make a camera bug become buggier than usual.

The view over a sparkling Jackson Lake deserved another photo session.
At the northern end of the Grand Teton National Park, we came to our first animal-related traffic jam. People don't seem to mind traffic jams of this kind. Mostly, they just park and get out their binoculars, spotter scopes, and cameras, often hugely expensive models with foot-long lenses attached.

This time we had a moose jam. Two bull moose were chilling in a pond, paying no attention whatsoever to the avid tourists.

Bull moose are usually tolerant creatures, but still, don't you think these tourists were pushing their luck?

High Country Critters

2011-07-22T19:40:00.000-06:00

As we were hiking near Leidy Peak, we heard a loud, high-pitched "eek, eek" sound, and Daisy started barking. We rushed to where the sounds were coming from and found

a sweet little elk calf, all alone, trying to hide. He did not want to come out and play.

We took a few photos and then left, assuming mama elk would return for him soon.
Butterflies and bees were out in force, flitting from bloom to bloom:

Bumblebee

West Coast Lady

Western Tiger Swallowtail

The butterfly above seemed to prefer landing on rocks where he was well camouflaged.

And of course our favorite critter was enjoying the day, too. Daisy likes nothing better than cooling her belly in an ice cold stream that flows straight out of a snowbank.

Pining for Alpine

2011-07-21T21:12:00.000-06:00

Finally, the snow has melted (mostly) in the high country. The panorama above shows Lakeshore Basin.

Today, we drove to the Leidy Peak trailhead (10,800 feet) and hiked to the top of Leidy at 12,000 feet.
On June 21, our last trip to the area, most of the mountain was still covered with snow. One month later, many wildflowers have already bloomed.
Growing on the rocky slopes,we found:

Lewisia family (same as bitterroot)

bluebells and buttercups

Parry's primrose

Moss campion

Jacob's ladder (Polemonium)

The moon smiled over the alpine setting. Ah, there's nothing better than a summer day in the high country.

The Eaglet has Risen

2011-07-19T16:33:00.000-06:00

When rain threatens in the mountains (as has happened a lot this summer), we ride in the cedars (arid sandy land with a sprinkling of pinyon-juniper forest) near our house.

Wildflowers are still blooming. Above are some primroses among what I think is a species of sunflower.

On a break, the horses enjoy feasting on Indian rice grass, one of their favorites.

Daisy digs a hole and settles into the cool, moist sand she uncovers.

We pass cliffs where we have noticed a huge nest in the past. Compare the size to the swallow nests to the left and below the raptor nest.

This time, we see an eaglet perched on the edge!
Later we see both golden eagle parents, but they fly away too quickly for a photo.

Goat Ridge

2011-07-17T16:20:00.000-06:00

We hiked on a trail that winds above Moon Lake.

As we climbed along the trail, we scanned across a valley to a rocky ridge, which we now call Goat Ridge because of what we saw there:

We watched the goad for awhile as he moved around looking for a sunny spot. A 10X zoom isn't good enough for a clear photo, but it's not bad considering the distance.

After a walk through shaded woods,

and along clear mountain creeks,

we reached a meadow full of yellow flowers, buttercups and cinquefoil.

Flicker Update

2011-07-14T13:08:00.003-06:00

We went back to see the northern flicker nest today. You can see the nest cavity front and center. On June 25, they looked like this:

To hear the buzzing sound they made then, click here.
Since it has been 19 days, we thought the babies might be grown and gone, but at least two are still in the nest:

They look fully feathered and ready to fly any time.
Mr. and Mrs. Northern Flicker were nearby, squawking at us. They are good parents, still watching over their youngsters.

Petty Mountain to Transfer Spring

2011-07-13T19:28:00.000-06:00

A ride up Lake Fork Mountain (locally called Petty Mountain, for reasons lost in the mists of time) provided views of Twin Pots Reservoir, 2000 feet below. Twin Pots is one body of water, but it is so named because the water fills two deep holes. Or so my Utah Place Names book says.

and forested trails with clear stream crossings.

We ended the ride at Transfer Spring. (Again, I have no idea where the name came from.) A full trough provided a drink for the horses.
Here are some of the wildflowers we saw along the way:

Bluebells

Rocky Mountain Bee Plant

Chickweed

Sticky Geranium

We rode 15 miles, reaching 9600 feet on July 2. We saw snow above that level, so we're still waiting for access to the higher trails!

Cool, not Clean

2011-07-12T19:08:00.000-06:00

Daisy has an affinity for water. Any water.

After a dip and a good shake, she likes to dry off.

And roll around for a good backscratch.

Daily grooming complete, she's ready to get back on the trail!

Strawberry Hills

2011-07-11T19:51:00.001-06:00

We love riding the hills north of Strawberry Reservoir. Usually the area is accessible in mid-June, but this year, due to heavy winter snowfall, access is a month late.

At the end of June, we rode to about 9500 feet before running into a lot of snow at the base of Currant Creek Peak.

Buttercups and Springbeauty were thriving in the wet meadows.

Glacier lilies danced in the breeze.

We rode through the woods to Willow Creek.

Daisy found some water for a swim. (Doesn't she always?!)

Dark clouds hovered in the afternoon, as has become a pattern around here. We steal our rides or hikes between monsoon thunderstorms.

Into the High Country

2011-07-08T19:48:00.000-06:00

We ride into the high country on a trail leading to Tworoose Pass.

We go through open country,

and aspen forests,

passing a few giant spruce.

At 10,300 feet, we reach snow.

We trudge through about 50 yards of snow, some of it 2-3 feet deep, to a wet meadow on the other side. Elk tend to hang out in meadows near the snow line. They like to graze on the first shoots of tender spring grass.

Yes, there they are!

Eventually, the elk see us.

Daisy wants to play, but they don't stay around to oblige.

Snowy Trail in July

2011-07-06T19:54:00.000-06:00

We spent the weekend visiting with two pretty girls.

The littlest one didn't seem to mind hanging out with the grands.

On July 4th, we drove up past Snowbird Ski Resort, where lifts were open for those who still long for winter sports. There were quite a few skiers on the slopes. We hiked on a trail near the town of Alta, starting at about 9000 feet. Not surprisingly, considering this year's heavy snow pack, the path became impassable after less than a mile.

The sky was cloudy, but the sun shone through to highlight the Wasatch peaks and the exquisite beauty of our country on Independence Day.

On a Clear Day

2011-06-30T21:12:00.000-06:00

The flowers at the Lake Mountain trailhead were still beautiful this week.

We saw irises growing in wet areas,

and golden peas in bloom along the roadside.

Along the trail, Daisy swam in the algae-laden water trough. Sooo refreshing.

We followed a path shaded by aspens, and steep in places.

The snow has melted around Gull Lake, where we had a view of Marsh Peak topped by one fluffy cloud. The seasonal lake is full now, surrounded by lush grass and aspens in their spring greenery.

More Birds

2011-06-29T20:47:00.014-06:00

On a Lake Mountain ride, this pretty little hawk, a female kestrel, flew from tree to tree, keeping a close eye on us. Kestrels make their nest in a tree cavity. Perhaps she had a nest nearby.

While driving up to the Pigeon Water trailhead for another ride, Steve spotted a flicker flying away from a half-dead narrow leaf cottonwood. We stopped for a look, and sure enough, we found a cavity in that tree, and baby birds inside.

These were starting to grow feathers, so they were a little older than the buzzing babies in the nest we visited on Pole Mountain. (These also buzzed when we knocked against the tree.) Since this cavity nest is so easy to reach, maybe we can follow up in a couple of weeks with another photo.

The flicker mama was anxiously waiting for us to leave, so we obliged.

Back at home, our hay was cut and baled last week. Several field mice bit the dust in the cutting.

I was looking out the window and saw a hawk on the ground picking at his lunch, probably one of those mice. I'm guessing it's a Swainson's hawk, from the size and coloring. Do you agree?

Oh, look, I see something else out in the field. Another hawk? Well, no, but it would probably enjoy a mouse just the same.

An Elky Experience

2011-06-28T20:11:00.003-06:00

While riding south of Currant Creek Peak (north of Strawberry Reservoir) , we came to snow and boggy areas. Instead of following our usual route, we dropped to a lower elevation and followed a game trail through the aspen.

To the surprise of all concerned, we met up with a herd of elk.
Daisy ran toward them, but came right back to us. Maybe she was intimidated by the size of the herd.

She acted as an elk magnet. They didn't know what she was and were very curious. The whole group was calling (kind of a cross between a squeal and a crow's caw) at the same time. They were quite noisy.

They approached closer and closer, while our horses stood stock still, apparently as curious as the elk were.

The elk were so focused on Daisy, they didn't seem to see us. I looked up from my camera and saw a gang of them approaching, no more than 30 yards away. There were spotted calves as well as adults. Unfortunately, I didn't get photos of any of the little ones.

Finally, they noticed 2 horses and 2 riders. They reversed direction in a cloud of dust and were gone in seconds.

Red Cloud Loop

2011-06-26T10:23:00.001-06:00

The upper part of the Red Cloud Loop north of Vernal still has locked gates, preventing vehicular traffic. It's open to hiking or horseback riding, though, so we went to check it out, starting at about 9200 feet.

We saw elk in nearly every meadow. They were surprised to see us. A moose appeared briefly but we didn't get a decent photo.

Daisy had plenty of wet meadows for cool frolicks. The tiny white flowers that cover the meadows are marsh marigolds.

Above is a marsh marigold up close.

Steve hunted around and finally found a (boreal or western, not sure which) chorus frog, which is so well camouflaged and so wary, that it's hard to find the source of the loud croaks in the small ponds.

They're tiny little guys. No wonder they're hard to locate. They don't have webs between their toes, which is unusual. I guess they don't have to swim much in the shallow pools where they live and breed.

We rode toward Leidy Peak.

About 1.5 miles before we reached the end of the road at Leidy Peak trailhead, we came to deep snow and took that as a sign that we should turn around and head for the trailer. The total ride was 25 miles of incredible high country scenery.

June Flowers

2011-06-23T15:22:00.008-06:00

At 7500 feet on Pole Mountain, blooms are everywhere in June.

Wild Blue Flax

Globemallow

lupine

Sego Lily (Utah state flower - Native Americans and Mormon pioneers roasted and ate the bulbs of this plant.)

Penstemon

Fleabane and Phlox

? Mustard family?

Trail Lunch

2011-06-22T15:50:00.000-06:00

It's always good to stop for a meal on the trail.

On Pole Mountain, 4 years after the burn, the grass is good and a few alfalfa plants have moved in from nearby fields. The horses love that.

Daisy finds a deer spine to chew on. Now that's delicious!

The Buzz on Babies

2011-06-20T17:49:00.022-06:00

Remember the flicker eggs that we found in an aspen tree cavity on Pole Mountain?

We went back to see if the eggs hatched. And they did! They're so young their eyes are still closed and they still have egg teeth (hard projections on the beak used to break through the shell.) We didn't see the parents this time, but our reading says that the chicks are fed regurgitated ants for the first several weeks.
In reading about flickers, we learned that, when disturbed, the babies buzz loudly, sounding much like an angry hive of bees.

Check out Steve's video to hear what we heard. How about that for a survival mechanism? If we hadn't seen a nest there 2 weeks ago, we would have stayed away to avoid getting stung.

Fences and Flowers

2011-06-19T10:47:00.000-06:00

At the Lake Mountain trailhead located off the Paradise Park Road, balsamroot and larkspur dot the landscape.

The narrow leaf cottonwoods are coming to life along Mosby Creek.

A morning cloak butterfly lights near the water.

Thick patches of gooseberry are in bloom.

Up at 9000 ft near Gull Lake, springbeauty carpets the ground beneath the aspens.

Marsh Peak, still covered with snow, rises to the north.

A deer bounds across a high meadow. (Since this was taken on short notice and from aboard a horse, it's not as clear as one might hope...)

As we ride back to the trailhead, we see a single Daisy growing... er, resting, in Mosby Creek.

Taylor Mountain

2011-06-18T15:37:00.001-06:00

We reached the top of Taylor Mountain (9900 ft) last week. shown above. The snow has only recently melted at that altitude. The blue line on the Google Earth map above traces part of our 22 mile loop route.

Daisy found one patch of remaining snow to burrow in.

The horses took a breather at the top.

We took photos of the High Uintas. Sometime this summer, the snow-capped peaks ( 12,000-13,500 ft.) will become accessible. Maybe.

On the way down, we saw pasque flowers.

And elk.

The elk saw us, too. Most of them ran away.

This mama stopped. Her yearling-sized calf apparently insisted on a quick snack before going anywhere.

Meadows and Springs

2011-06-17T14:42:00.001-06:00

The Taylor Mountain Road provides access to some of the prettiest meadows around.

We ride past springs, fenced and piped to a trough to keep the cattle from tromping the marshy area where the water comes out of the earth.

We ride down quiet, aspen-lined lanes (the leaves are just coming out at about 8000 ft.)

over hills covered in wildflowers,

and through open country with views of the Uinta Mountains.

Ready To Rise

2011-06-15T15:38:00.000-06:00

We drove out to Moon Lake a few days ago. With the high snowpack in the mountains beginning to melt, we expected the lake (actually a reservoir) to be full.
Not so. The water managers had let out as much water as possible, preparing for record amounts of water expected to flow down from the High Uintas as temperatures rise and melt the snow.

Here's the reservoir on June 24, 2010, at close to full capacity.

On the way, we saw this pretty elk cow grazing near the road.

She must be used to cars passing. She was curious, but not overly concerned about us. I hope she develops a better sense of caution before hunting season.

Wildflowers in the Foothills

2011-06-13T14:53:00.000-06:00

Balsamorhiza sagittata

Balsamroot is a familiar plant,

Balsamorhiza hookeri

but I never realized there was a second species with leaves that look completely different. (In the lower left of the above photo you will also see Deathcamas's white flower.)

? hybrid balsamroot ?

I thought the plant with the pinnate leaves had to be something other than balsamroot until I noticed a hybrid with leaf characteristics of both species!
Gee, isn't botany fun?! And confusing, a lot of the time.

Cryptantha

We have seen the above flower many times, but couldn't identify it. I think I finally have the genus name right. I'm not even going to attempt to add a species name.

Lewisia

We had not seen this one before. It looks a lot like bitterroot, state flower of Montana. Indeed, the genus turns out to be the same.
All of the above photos were taken in early June on the south slopes of the Uintas,7200-8500 ft.

Bird Fever

2011-06-12T20:23:00.000-06:00

Today, on a hike to Lake Mountain, Steve spotted the red-naped sapsucker shown above. Since we didn't even know there was such a bird until we matched the photo to the name in a bird book, it was quite a find. This bird is considered a "keystone" species because it drills holes in trees that will produce sap consumed by many other species.

A few days ago, on Pole Mountain, we saw a bird flying out of the bushes and discovered a robin's nest.

A robin parent looked on with agitation while we took photos. Sorry the photo is blurry, but this is the actual nervous parent. I'm sure she/he was relieved when we left.

Meadowlarks flit around our pasture routinely, then perch for awhile on an old fence post or on the irrigation wheel line. I love their lilting song. I also love this photo and was eagerly awaiting a chance to use it in a post!

Renewal

2011-06-11T19:15:00.000-06:00

In 2007, the Neola Fire burned the foothills of Pole Mountain.

Today, although burned tree skeletons still stand, the meadows are lush with green grass and flowers.

Above is a ponderosa pine tree with a charred trunk and dead lower limbs, while the top of the tree is alive and well.

Steve scraped off the charring and saw that it only went about 1/3 inch deep. The bark beneath is healthy.

The fire burned off brush and scrub trees, leaving the meadows more open than before, providing better grass for wildlife. The earth renews.

Finding a Nest

2011-06-09T08:01:00.008-06:00

On yesterday's ride in the foothills of Pole Creek Mountain, our first clue was the wood chips on the ground beneath a dead aspen snag. Had someone been using a chain saw out here, at least a mile off any beaten path?

Then we saw a cavity in the tree.

A head poked out

and a bird few away.

We rigged up a makeshift ladder,

and Steve used his compass mirror and a light to look inside. The dug out chamber was more than a foot deep, and dark as a cave.

And then he set the camera on manual, adjusted the F-stop to 8, the shutter speed to 1000th of a second, and tucked the camera into the hole for a flash shot.

Yes, there were eggs! 7 of them. *

As soon as we moved away from the tree, Mr. Red-Shafted Flicker was back. He had eggs to tend until Mrs. Flicker arrived for her shift.
*The cavity nest is built by both male and female and takes 1-2 weeks to build. The male does most of the excavating, but the female prefers to do the detailing work herself. (Gee, that sounds a lot like how projects go at our house!) They prefer to build their own nest, but will sometimes refurbish and re-use an abandoned nest.

Snow, Water, Grass

2011-06-08T07:43:00.008-06:00

Where we were riding, the Bad Land Cliffs are about 8000 feet -- high enough to be cool, but low enough to be dry and mostly snow free. We aimed for the distant patch of snow in the above photo (on the 9000 ft ridge to the right of center), but we didn't make it that far. There were too many canyons and hills along the way and we didn't want to run out of daylight.

Since Daisy had no snow and we didn't come across any water, I laid my waterproof jacket in a depression and used it as a bowl to give her a drink. Daisy said thank you as she lapped up most of a liter.

The horses were satisfied with green grass for lunch, while we ate a snack and admired the wildflowers:

Indian Paintbrush

Double Bladderpod?

Milkvetch species?

On the way back, we saw an antelope. Daisy gave short chase, but the antelope outdistanced her in no time.

Coco was ready to go home. "Hurry up!" he seemed to say when Daisy, Mischief and I dawdled.

Double Barrels and Elk Antlers

2011-06-07T09:56:00.000-06:00

On the Bad Land Cliffs, we always see something interesting.

A barrel cactus branches out from the solitary plant we usually see.

This one's grown a twin.

Milkvetch species

Double Bladderpod (Mustard family)

We saw plenty of wildflowers, and...

What's that growing on the skeleton juniper tree? An elk head!?

The antlers are still partially encased in velvet.

No point in wasting the unusual photo frame.

Bad Road to the Bad Land Cliffs

2011-06-06T13:13:00.001-06:00

We drove the trailer plus horses up Wells Draw Road to the Five Mile Canyon road. We hoped to drive as high as we could before we started riding.

The big snowmelt and wet spring had washed out the road in places. Some washouts were small and could be maneuvered around. This one (6 feet deep and at least 20 feet wide) stopped us. The gap could easily have swallowed a pickup and horse trailer whole and burbed its satisfaction.

Steve suggested using our shovels to fill in the road. I hope he was joking. He got absolutely no encouragement from me!

We did a lot more road riding than we had planned, but that was the only way to get to the ridge.

As we neared the Bad Land Cliffs at about 8000 feet, we came to the Forest Service border where the road narrowed to a sandy two-track. After a wet spring, nothing about this area seems "bad". The name Bad Land Cliffs was applied because the area is rugged, eroded (see road photo, to judge how easily the soil washes away!) and too dry for much grazing or habitation. We like it because there are few real roads and almost no visitation, except by us. We've seen a few hunters in fall, and the occasional antelope, deer, or elk.

Sheepish in the Sun

2011-06-05T08:46:00.024-06:00

We rode to about 8500 feet on Wild Mountain and came to large snowbanks on the north facing slopes.

Daisy likes snow.

On south facing slopes with plenty of sun, the snow was long gone, and pretty yellow balsamroot bloomed everywhere.

What's that up there among the flowers? Why, it's Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep! We saw four of them. All had big curving horns, indicating they were a bachelor herd.

They didn't seem too worried about the humans on horseback about 300 yards down the hill. After watching us with curiosity for awhile, they lay down for a nap in the sun. These photos were taken with our little 10x zoom camera. Daisy never saw the sheep, which were pretty small from that distance, and I guess the wind was wrong for smelling them, too.

Rocky Mountain Bighorn sheep are native to this canyon country, and are featured in prehistoric rock art that is thousands of years old. When settlers brought in domestic sheep, the domestics competed for scarce grazing and introduced diseases to which the bighorns were susceptible. Bighorn numbers declined dramatically and they were absent from the area by about 1950. They were reintroduced, starting in 1952, along the Green River not far from the location where we saw them.

The Meaning of Life

2011-06-04T13:18:00.000-06:00

Just past the Colorado state line, where no one was available to greet us, we looked over the hill and into a valley and spied this old cabin. Had we reached a welcome center after all?

Apparently not. No one was home. It's just a cowboy line cabin. Maybe it's still used once in a while. The pipe sticking up through the roof indicates there's a cozy pot-bellied stove within. Accommodations might be pretty good.

Daisy liked the pond out front. She took a few moments to cool off

and pond(er) the meaning of life through her reflection.

Traveling Wild

2011-06-02T18:20:00.000-06:00

Wild Mountain area's beauty lies in vast rolling hills, lonely trails, and amazing views. Above, the stitched panorama shot shows the Green River Slopes on either side of the Green River Gorge (the deep cut is part of the well-known rafting destination, the Gates of Lodore). The highest point on the horizon is the distant triangular mountain, Zenobia Peak, 9000 feet, located in a remote section of Dinosaur National Monument in Colorado.

The above Google Earth view shows our entire route in blue. We traveled 18 miles and 4500 feet elevation gain and loss. (There were a lot of ups and downs!)

At our turnaround point, we were near the edge of the Green River Gorge, with the 3000 foot deep Canyon of Lodore below us.

We crossed from Utah into Colorado on this ride. See the sign "Entering Colorado, State Line." What, no welcome center? No restrooms? No free coffee or juice? I feel cheated!

Bird and Bees

2011-06-01T08:35:00.033-06:00

Let me tell you 'bout the birds

Mr. Lazuli Bunting

Mrs. Lazuli Bunting

Mr. Goldfinch

Mrs. Goldfinch

and the bees

Honey Bee on Chokecherry

Honey Bee on Apple Blossom

and the flowers and the trees

Crabapple Tree in Bloom

And the moon up above ...

You may have thought I was going to tell you about a thing called "Love", as the song goes. But I'm not taking this any farther. I've created the atmosphere. You're on your own from here!

Rivulets, Ponds, and Flowers

2011-05-31T08:43:00.018-06:00

One of the unexpected delights of riding in Tabby Mountain Wildlife Management Area are the small spring-fed rills and pools. Birch Spring (above) creates a meadow at about 8000 feet.

The water supply nourishes currant bushes for wildlife food, thick brush for habitat,

and usually a supply of lush grass.

We found this unnamed spring-fed pond, located at about 8500 feet, by following a deer/elk trail. It has water year-round and a little taste of green grass even late in the year.
With the earth still moist from snow melt and a rainy spring, wildflowers sprinkle the range, flourishing amongst the sage. Besides the ubiquitous paintbrush, we saw:

Larkspur

Milkvetch

Violets

Unknown

Barrel Cactus are blooming on the mountain at about 8000 feet.

Steve accidentally turned over a small barrel cactus and found that the underside was home sweet home to an ant colony. The ants scurried to move their eggs. Steve replaced the plant where he found it, and all was back to status quo with cactus and insects.
After reading about ants and cactus, we found that there is a process called "mutualism" between the two species. The ants feed on a barrel cactus' nectar-secreting glands, and in return, the ants discourage herbivore bugs from feeding upon the cactus.

More Big Game

2011-05-30T08:12:00.009-06:00

On the same ride where we met Mama Moose, we also came upon a young bull moose hanging out near a pond. He was small (for a moose - an adult bull can be up to 1500 pounds) and kind of scraggly with his shedding winter coat. You can see the nubs where his antlers are emerging.
He stared at us with curiosity but didn't seem the least bit worried.

After awhile, he headed off into the brush.
Moose are common in the Uinta and Wasatch Mountains, but seeing them at 8000 feet in late May is unusual. The heavy snow pack must be keeping them in lower elevations.

This bull elk preferred more open terrain for grazing. He didn't stay around to socialize. He was off over the hill before we had much time for photography.

Meet Mama Moose

2011-05-29T08:18:00.071-06:00

After riding over a hill on Tabby Mountain WMA this week, we saw a moose about 100 yards away, staring right at us.
But what is that at her feet?

That's right. We had met Mama and her tiny, still wobbly calf.
Moose cows are very protective and can be dangerous. They will charge (and perhaps stomp) anyone or anything that they see as a threat to their young.
We stayed where we were while clicking our cameras, prepared to go the other way if she made any kind of aggressive move. Daisy ran toward the moose, but we called her back and she reluctantly obeyed, no doubt thinking she'd missed a great opportunity to make new friends. The horses saw Mama Moose but didn't seem disturbed. I'm sure they would have rapidly retreated if Mrs. Moose had shown an inclination to charge.

The new mom must have decided we were not an immediate threat. She collected her young one, all the while sending warning glances over her shoulder toward us.

Then Mom and baby moved off into the brush to find a safer hiding place.
Moose will usually be found near water since they like to eat aquatic plants and willows. This is drier terrain but provides good bedding ground for the calf and has plenty of green grass for Mom to eat.

Feathered Friends

2011-05-28T07:41:00.006-06:00

This yellow-rumped warbler enjoyed a stay along our creek in early May,

And so did this Bullock's Oriole.

Mr. and Mrs. Red-Winged Blackbird have taken up permanent residence and have built a nest in the cattails.
These doves appear to be hanging out as a pair. Maybe they have built a nest, too.

Blooming in the Wild

2011-05-27T08:43:00.010-06:00

The high desert of the Wild Mountain area is in its early spring bloom. The photo above is a panorama taken from 8600 feet, looking down on Diamond Plateau with Split Mountain in the background just to the right of center.

Springbeauty carpeted the ground at 7500 feet. This flower is one of the first to bloom after the snow melts.

We also saw phlox,

bluebells,

Nuttall's violets,

and balsamroot.

On the hillsides at around 8000 feet, barrel cactus offered unexpected beauty.

Beetles took advantage of its nourishment.

Amost back to our trailhead, we saw this group of young bucks, apparently a bachelor herd. Their velvety antlers are growing. The one on the right seems to have only one antler. I wonder if the lady deer will scorn him for being lopsided...

Walk on the Wild Side

2011-05-26T08:23:00.019-06:00

The area around Wild Mountain (northwest of Vernal) features BLM land stretching for miles and miles. We've ridden the horses here before, but this time we checked out conditions on foot.

We climbed a ridge and looked down on lots of wild territory.

The wind was blowing hard. From the permanent bent posture of this Douglas fir, I surmise that the gusts were not unusual.

The cliffs were awesome. Daisy took advantage of her lookout point to scan the valley for deer, elk, bunnies, cows, or any other friends she might joyously greet.

She really liked finding a cool patch of snow.

A stock pond was ideal for a swim.

The real highlight of the trip (for Daisy) was finding this delicious, well-aged deer leg. She looks a bit guilty, probably because she suspects she wasn't supposed to bring it into the truck. It was a little smelly, so we stowed it in the pickup bed. At home, Daisy enjoyed it for her evening backyard treat.

Little Hole

2011-05-25T09:54:00.020-06:00

We began and ended our Green River hike at Little Hole.

This spot was one of John Wesley Powell's campsites as he explored western river systems beginning in 1869. The Green River begins in the Wind River Range of Wyoming and eventually flows into the Colorado River in southern Utah near Moab.

The Exploration of the Colorado River and Its Canyons

tells all about Powell's 1869 trip, including his original journal entries.

Flaming Gorge Dam now controls the water flow, but the Green River's path still winds through narrow canyons with swift rapids (Canyon of Lodore, Desolation Canyon) and through many miles of wild and remote terrain.

To learn more of the fascinating history, natural history, and geology
of the Green River, read Ann Zwinger's Run, River, Run.

Wildlife on the Green

2011-05-24T09:18:00.012-06:00

Wildlife is abundant along the Green River below Flaming Gorge Dam.

Mergansers.

Mallards.

An osprey perched across the river. He was not an overly cooperative subject. In the second photo, his wings are raised. He's about to fly away. He swooped across the river several times. On one pass, he snatched a 10 inch trout. Too bad we weren't quick enough to get a picture of him lifting off with his dinner.

This rodent was about the size of a rat. Muskrat? Maybe. It's a good swimmer!

We came across a strange sight in the middle of the trail. Someone or something had killed a beaver.

I had never seen a tail close up. And the torn little paws made me sad. The pelt was gone.

One more species was on the river in greater numbers than usual. Can you identify these wild and crazy creatures?

Spring on the Green

2011-05-23T09:25:00.010-06:00

A spring walk along the Green River below Flaming Gorge Dam is always enjoyable.

Daisy likes to swim,

or fetch,

or watch Steve rig up for fishing. She loves it when the fish splash.

Steve likes to stalk trout,

or beam over the handsome brown trout he brings in. Daisy really, really wants to lick the fish before Steve releases it back into the river.

Others float downstream on driftboats.

And I just like to walk along the water, under the looming cliffs, and listen for the unique descending trill of the canyon wren. This area is known as Red Canyon. The rocks are Precambrian quartzite of the Uinta Mountain Group, estimated to be about 1 billion years old.

For more information on the geology of the area, see The Geologic Story of the Uinta Mountains by Wallace Hansen.

Just Ducky

2011-05-19T11:01:00.002-06:00

Our creek has provided good bird watching this spring.

Here are the mallard pair who reside there full time.

They made a nest in the cattails. Steve saw the mama duck proudly leading about 10 tiny ducklings a few days ago, but we haven't managed a photo of them yet.

A cinnamon teal stops in to visit sometimes.

Black swans from our neighbor's pond add a touch of class. They are exotics, native to New Zealand and Australia.

Snowy Egret

2011-05-18T12:55:00.003-06:00

In the creek behind our house, the snowy egret hunts for prey. As he walks, he lifts one foot and shakes it in the water to stir up insects and small fish.

In breeding season, he has long feather plumes on his head, neck and back. *

He stares toward his human photographer (Steve) with great curiosity.

Later, he perches high in a nearby cottonwood tree, balancing on a slim branch.

If you look carefully, you will see his yellow feet.
*At one time, the beautiful plumes of the Snowy Egret were in great demand by market hunters as decorations for women's hats. This reduced the population of the species to dangerously low levels. Now protected in the USA by law, under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, this bird's population has rebounded. - Wikipedia