First Wildflower of 2017 – Sagebrush Buttercup

Woke up this morning with a vision of a buttercup in the snow. I rushed out to Lee Metcalf National Wildlife Refuge, and intensely survey the areas under ponderosa pine. And what did I find? That’s right a Sagebrush Buttercup, and as one of our earliest bloomers, it is generally my first wildflower of the […]

Camas in Bloom at Packer Meadows

Trail through Packer Meadows

Every year during the first week in June, the camas blooms in the meadows of the Rocky Mountains. The dark blue flowers create a carpet that is best viewed from the air. How do we get in the air? Easy with the DJI Phantom.

Chaffin Butte

Sometimes the most magical places are in the back yard and in plain sight. Chaffin Butte (the “C” hill above Corvallis) is just such a place. This short, steep trail leads through sagebrush to the top of Chaffin Butte with panoramic views of the Bitterroot and Sapphire Mountains. [sgpx gpx=”/wp-content/uploads/gpx/Chaffin Butte.gpx”] The trail quickly drops […]

Calypso Rain

Fairyslipper Orchid

I’ve always love to walk to the rain. Everything becomes slow, and yet vibrant at the same time. Everything becomes a contradiction. There’s silence, yet sound surrounds. There are no people, but I’m not lonely. [sgpx gpx=”/wp-content/uploads/gpx/Early afternoon hike.gpx”]