Morning Hike along Bear Creek
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Morel Picking along Big Spruce Creek
Out of wildfire comes a delicacy, the famed morel. Notice, I called it a morel, not a morel mushroom. Morels are fungi, but not a mushroom, technically. Anywho, the short hike up Big Spruce Creek goes through a burn that left the charred earth ideal for the growth of morels. [map style=”width: auto; height:400px; margin:20px […]
Sweeney Ridge until the Deep Snow
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Blue Mountain Trail 6.01 to Hayes Point
Another short mid-day hike on Blue Mountain that was quite enjoyable with a few singing Yellow-rumped and Orange-crowned Warblers. This time I hiked along Trail 6.01, which is multi-use route and shows the effects of ORV traffic. Fortunately, not one noisy, smelly hunk of metal screamed past me, and the scene was largely silent except […]
Through the post-fire forest of Blue Mountain
The Blue Mountain fire raged along the steep slopes a few years ago, and that apparent destruction has turned into a flourish of life. Mountain and Western Bluebirds patrol the naked spires of Douglas-fir and Ponderosa pine as Orange-crowned Warblers and Dark-eyed Juncos haunt the lower reaches. A warm May hike through this area is […]
Mill Creek – Trail 1310
First Speed Hike of 2015
Well, I made it…hiked 6 miles at a single go. Started on Blue Mountain trail 3.10 and it went all uphill from there.
Onwards and Upwards on McClain Creek
Jeff and I went for a terrific spring hike along the McClain Creek road leading to the Mormon Ridge trailhead, which eventually leads to the apex of Lolo Peak. The weather was unbelievably pleasant with temperatures in the high 50s when we started. It was so warm that I spied the first blue of the […]
Spring Sprung on the Fire Ecology Loop Trail
What is glorious day! Temperatures crept near 60 degrees and sun spread its warmth. Time to make the legs burn with 2015’s first “real” hike. I decided that the Fire Ecology Loop Trail in the Bass Creek/Larry Creek Area would be the perfect selection. The hike itself is relatively easy as it loops through a […]
Woods Gulch to the Ridge
Woods Gulch, home to the Flammulated Owl, is one of my favorite short hikes in the Rattlesnake area. The hike itself is awesome as it blasts straight up the gulch, along a small creek, until you reach a ridge that is the haunt of hte small, dark-eyed owls. Today, we were not looking for owls, […]
South Fork of Lolo Creek
Vida, Olivia, and myself went for a quick evening hike along the South Fork of Lolo Creek. The waters were raging as the intense spring run-off continues to build. The star of the hike was a small female rubber boa that was just lying on the trail (made me jump a few feet when I […]
Weir Hot Springs and a Wonderful Day
The intense sun is warming the landscape and the snow is receding up the mountainsides. It is that odd time of year when you can’t really hike up too far, but you really want outside in that sunshine. The solution take a relaxing drive over to the Lochsa and hike to Weir Hot Springs. The […]
Beautiful Day for Jerry Johnson Hot Springs
A beautiful day demanded a hike, but most of the area hikes are gumbo-like mixture of slush, mud, and ice. So what to do? Take the short hike into Jerry Johnson Hot Springs in Idaho near the Lochsa River. The hike is a little less than a mile and half, and it is incredibly easy. […]
The Deep Snows of Lolo Pass
Silence, absolute silence. Not even the croak of a raven breaks the stillness of this white landscape. Deep, light snow covers everything up here near 6,000 feet. Snow ghosts surround me with their bowed tops. As I step forward only the muffled “woomph” of the snowshoe results in any sound. It is so quiet that […]
Glen Lake in the Bitterroots
On Sunday, I undertook a “short” hike up to Glen Lake in the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness Area. I was told that the hike was 2.5 miles, but it is closer to 3.25 miles and bit more uphill than I had anticipated. Almost the entirety of the trail takes you through the post-fire environment left by the massive […]