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Parnassius clodius

July 31, 2007: Bird Creek Meadows, Yakama Nation, near Mount Adams in Washington state. Chris wanted to see the meadows and I hoped to get a better picture of a Western Tanager.

The parking lot was nearly empty today. We left the car about noon, took along two bottles of water and applied a liberal dose of bug repellent. We didn’t see a single Tanager, the flowers looked wilted by the summer sun, but the landscape was still colorful, and butterflies were everywhere.

We hiked to Hells Roaring Viewpoint. A large party of hikers from Houston, TX, were making a climb and those that thought better of it stopped at the viewpoint to rest and watch the rest of the party.

On the way back down the hill I decided to try to photograph a butterfly (Parnassius clodius)… the white butterfly seems to be in perpetual motion. On occasion one would land on an aster so I tried valiantly to catch one with wings spread. It takes a lot of patience and a lot of luck to get the desired pose.

Our water bottles empty, we filled up using water from a spigot at the picnic grounds near the beginning of the Trail of Flowers. The water tasted a little rusty but otherwise seemed potable. I have seen hikers refill their canteens from the streams but I’m a little reluctant to trust that water.

byLarry

Related Images:

Larry Rea August 1, 2007 October 26, 2017 Hiking

Bird Creek Meadows

July 28, 2007, Bird Creek Meadows, Yakama Nation: Near Mount Adams, known as Klickitat to the Yakama Nation, resides one of the most beautiful wildflower habitats in the Northwest. Marvin and I were determined to hike in and see the sights. We have been there before but the trip is always worthwhile.

It was a warm summer day and the parking lot was already full of cars. We would have company on the trail today. Cameras ready we began the short climb to the meadows.

Just after departing the parking lot we noticed several Western Tanagers (Piranga ludoviciana). We managed to get a few pictures but the birds were camera shy and wouldn’t stay in any one place for very long.

Even though we had sprayed ourselves liberally with bug repellent little biting flies made themselves obnoxious. I’m sure I inhaled several as they buzzed about my eyes and mouth.

We decided to change our route to include a hike (several miles) to a waterfall located on Crooked Creek near the intersection of the #100 trail and the #9 trail.

The #9 trail allows pack animal use (banned on the other trails) so the trail is well established and cut several feet deep in spots.

The sun took its toll on us so we decided to call it a day without climbing to Hells Roaring Viewpoint.

Back at Trout Lake we decided to turn north on State Highway 141 and head for the Pinchot National Forest. I imagined that this route back to the Columbia River was shorter than our inbound route.

A big black bear ambled across the road in front of us but moved too quickly for pictures. We weren’t about to follow it into the brush looking for another photo opportunity.

Our “short-cut” turned out to be one mile longer than our inbound route but we enjoyed the trip.

byLarry

Related Images:

Larry Rea July 29, 2007 October 26, 2017 Traveling With Marvin

American Goldfinch (Carduelis tristis)

July 27, 2007: Gresham, Multnomah County, OR: Chris reported to me that goldfinches were working in a patch of Canada thistle (Cirsium arvense), harvesting the seeds and no doubt scattering many of them to the wind. I made several attempts to photograph the action but as soon as I set up the camera the birds would vanish. Today was my lucky day and I managed to catch a female at work. The color pattern on the males is more distinctive but today must have been ladies day at the thistle patch. Botanists will recognize the root word “Carduus” as one of the two genera considered to be true thistles. The other genera is “Cirsium.”

female Goldfinch — Female Goldfinch in Canada thistle (Cirsium arvense) 7/27/2007

byLarry

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Larry Rea July 29, 2007 October 3, 2017 Birds

Winter Rim, Lake County, OR

July 19, 2007: Lakeview, Lake County, OR: It wasn’t the most restful night but we were happy to have a bed to sleep on. In the early morning we awoke to the sounds of doors slamming and cars starting.

We visited briefly with some of our neighbors as we prepared to leave: one lovely lady, a retired professor from Portland State who was in town for her 61st high school reunion, and a retired couple from Indiana, who had been out in the desert searching for sun stones. (They collected a cup full in about two hours.)

Northbound on State Route 31, we stopped at Paisley, home of the mosquito festival, and inquired at the Forest Service District Office about the local area. We bought some maps but wildflower information was in short supply. I had worked at Summer Lake for the Game Commission some forty-eight years ago and remembered a small lake high on Winter Rim that might be interesting so we headed that way. Our time was short so we didn’t hike in to the lake but we found several interesting flowers including Calochortus macrocarpus.

Calochortus macrocarpus Slide Lake 7/19/2007

We also took time to see the “Hole in the Ground”, a crater north of Fort Rock that is 500 feet deep and about a mile in circumference. It would be easy to imagine it was formed as a result of a meteor strike but Ellen Morris Bishop, in her book “In Search of Ancient Oregon”, describes it as a maar (formed when cold water reacts with hot lava to create a huge steam explosion).

Then we pointed our noses north again, stopping only to refuel, and headed home.

We drove 987 miles in three days. We’ll know our way around next time.

byLarry

Related Images:

Larry Rea July 21, 2007 October 26, 2017 Traveling With Marvin

Hunting Calochortus bruneaunis

July 18, 2007: Burns, Harney County, OR: Marvin and I were up early this morning, ready to hunt for Calochortus bruneaunis. Continental breakfast at the motel began at 6:00 AM so we had a couple of fat pills, a couple cups of coffee and headed for the Alvord Desert. It promised to be a warm day and a gusty wind was swirling dust devils in the desert. We stopped roadside a few times to check for wildflowers but the heat and the wind made life outside the air conditioned comfort of the car miserable.

As we passed the Alvord Desert we were surprised to see a fairly large encampment. Airplanes and sailplanes were tethered to the ground. We saw one brave soul wind sailing across the dry lake bed that forms the desert. The temperature was above ninety and the wind must have been blowing about 40 knots.

Our location data for C. bruneaunis was vague and we were unable to find any specific information. Regional roadmaps for this area have not been published by government agencies like BLM so we had to rely on commercially prepared highway maps… in many cases we could not find the side roads indicated on our maps.

We crossed into Nevada at Denio then turned west on State Route 140 toward Lakeview. We were delighted to see a wild burro standing roadside and the high desert scenery was magnificent, sagebrush and rocky outcrops dominating the view.

Crossing the Warner Mountains it began to rain and the temperature dropped to 65 degrees… much more comfortable.

We arrived in Lakeview early afternoon so we stopped at the Interagency Headquarters seeking information. Unfortunately their botanist was in the field but Dianne, the receptionist, was very helpful. She thought we were a few weeks late in our hunt for wildflowers but she did show us some areas that might still have flowers in bloom.

There are four motels in Lakeview. All four had “no vacancy” signs displayed. We were fortunate to find rooms a few miles north at Hunter’s Lodge. Gasoline stations, restaurants, and motels are rare in these parts so make plans accordingly. Top off the fuel tanks when you have opportunity and make reservations ahead. We carry a refrigeration unit in the car so we can keep some perishable foods. We also carry a generous supply of potable water.

byLarry

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Larry Rea July 21, 2007 October 26, 2017 Traveling With Marvin