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Archive for the ‘National’ Category

Cliff & Wade Lakes Area, MT

Thursday, July 7th, 2011

Have wanted to visit Cliff & Wade Lakes in Montana for some time, mainly because it’s an official wildlife viewing area. The area is located between West Yellowstone and the town of Ennis, just past Earthquake Lake. In the picture above, the Earthquake Lake avalanche area is in the center of the picture. Continue on the road through there to get to West Yellowstone.

Looking back on the dirt road to Cliff & Wade Lakes. It’s a dusty dirt and gravel road with some washboarding. People pass you going 35 mph and leave you in the dust. The road gets worse near the lake areas.

It turned out to be a bad time to visit the lakes. The area was crowded and it was dusty and windy. The one thing that made my visit worthwhile was seeing the above eagle. I’ll return to the area again when it’s not so crowded.

Between Earthquake Lake and West Yellowstone is Hebgen Lake (below), another popular boating and fishing area.

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West Yellowstone 2011

Monday, July 4th, 2011

Above, the Grand Prismatic Spring in the Midway Geyser Basin.

. . . and the buffalo do roam. Took around two hours to go from West Yellowstone to Madison Junction one day because of bison. First there were a group of females with young ones, then two young males walking down the center of the road. I should clarify that the bison were for the most part not causing the traffic jam–it was people wanting to get pictures. Later in the day, back in West Yellowstone, a young woman with children said her family just turned around and came back to town. Being in a car with young children would make the wait more difficult.

Gneiss Creek trail has two trailheads: one along the Madison River between West Yellowstone and Madison Junction, and another a few miles north of West Yellowstone. You can walk the whole 13 miles if you want! I just went maybe a mile along the Madison River and saw a number of birds, including the Clark’s nutcracker above. The trail is closed a lot of the year to allow for a bear habitat. Probably not a trail you should walk alone.

Pulled into a pullout for no particular reason and was surprised to see a family of sandhill cranes. Could not get close to them, but was thrilled to see the young one.

Near the campground I stayed at, along the Madison River, I was watching some osprey nests when I saw something stick it’s head out of the water. Found it was two river otters swimming upstream. They intermittently stuck their heads up out of the water to keep track of each other.

Posted in bison, Clark's nutcracker, marmot, National, otter, sandhill crane, West Yellowstone | Comments Off

Lowell to Lolo

Thursday, June 23rd, 2011

First picture, Lochsa Wild and Scenic River. The second picture is a stream that flows into the Lochsa. There were raging steams like this every half mile or so along the river.

Wilderness Gateway Campground is a major base for people rafting and kayaking the Lochsa River. The river was running so full and rough, from all the rain and snow melt, cannot understand why anyone would want to do this. Must be a testosterone thing. The campground was full of red-eyed vireo’s. I identified them from their voice, but never saw one because of the dense forrest foliage.

Completed the Northwest Passage Scenic Byway, following the Lochsa Wild and Scenic River to Lolo Pass. At Lolo Pass Visitor Center, there was still snow on the ground. They said it was the latest there has been snow. Leaving the pass, headed into Montana.

Lolo Pass Visitor Center

Red-naped sapsucker along Lolo creek, in Montana.

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Weippe, Idaho

Saturday, June 18th, 2011

Have driven on three scenic byways the past couple of weeks: the White Pine Scenic Byway, the Northwest Passage Byway, and the Gold Rush Historic Byway. A logging boom appears to be present in all these areas. The Gold Rush Historic Byway was my favorite, along Idaho 11 up a steep grade to the village of Weippe. This is where Lewis and Clark first met the Nez Perce Tribe.

Above, Musselshell Meadow in the Clearwater National Forest just east of Weippe. The bottom picture is a camas flower. Nez Perce Tribe members have the legal right to come into the forest to harvest the roots of the flower. There were some beautiful meadows filled with the blue flowers.

A Eastern kingbird and a flycatcher of some kind in the Musselshell area. There were a number of common snipe’s nesting in the area, but I didn’t get any pictures of them.

Weippe is half a farming/ranching town and half a logging town. Their backroads are like a roller coaster ride and fun to drive. Although they are gravel, they are good roads. Think the logging companies keep them wet to keep people from complaining of dust from the logging trucks.

The red calf above has to be one of the biggest ones I’ve seen. It wasn’t happy with the amount of milk it was getting from it’s mom.

On driving the backroads, I was about to take a picture of a ring-necked pheasant when a woman in a truck blocked my truck. She thought I was a real estate agent and came up to me saying “We don’t want to sell our land, if that is what you’re taking pictures for!” When I explained I was bird watching, she was very nice, even telling me about a nearby pond where you could see elk in the evening.

Hope Weippe stays a small rural village. Let the rich people stay in Sandpoint.

A Swainson’s thrush seen in the Giant White Pine Campground. Have frequently heard their unique call, but it’s hard to get a picture of them in the trees.

Since I was in the area, thought I should visit Dworshak State Park. It’s one bear of a drive there from the town of Orofino. Uneven two-lane road with sharp turns and no turnouts to let people pass. The park is more for boater’s and fishermen. Seeing cedar waxwing’s there, however, made the trip worthwhile. The bottom picture shows what they were eating. Not sure what kind of tree it is. There are also lots of berry shrubs in the area that will provide berries for them in a month or two.

Below, view of the Northwest Passage Scenic Byway along the Clearwater River as seen from the road going up to Weippe.

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Idaho Panhandle

Thursday, May 26th, 2011

Have been traveling in the Idaho Panhandle. The area has been affected by some bad weather recently. At Heyburn State Park, south of Coeur d’Alene, the water level at the lake had risen. The boardwalk to a marsh area was destroyed and some trails covered with water.

Above, an osprey and a yellow warbler (with a moth) seen at Heyburn.

Stayed along the Pend Oreille Scenic Byway for a few days. It’s a beautiful area. The lake, with its’ forest covered islands, reminded me of Skagit Bay and Anacortes in Washington.

Above, a pileated woodpecker seen along Lake Pend Oreille. The first one I’ve seen. One of the largest woodpeckers in North America, they have a very distinct call and sound like a jackhammer when drumming. The holes they drill are huge. Hope to see more of them and get a better picture.

The campground I stayed at along Lake Pend Oreille
had recently lost around 30 trees in a severe wind and rain storm. This was nothing compared to nearby Priest Lake State Park, who lost more than 100 trees, along with sustaining severe damage to one of their campgrounds. I stayed one night at the campground, in one of the less damaged campsites. The site had it’s own creek that appeared after the storm (seen above). The park is having to call some people who reserved sites for the Memorial Day weekend to tell them they cannot come. A cold front is coming through the area, so some may be relieved to not have to camp in cold wet weather.

A deer in the Lake Pend Oreille area.

Below, Lake Pend Oreille.

Posted in deer, National, osprey, Sandpoint, State, warbler, woodpecker | Comments Off

Into Idaho

Wednesday, May 18th, 2011

Headed north into Idaho. This year, took a different route, through western Idaho. From Boise, took highway 55, then highway 95, through mountain valley’s, usually along streams or rivers. Unseasonably cold weather in Boise followed me part of the way. It’s a beautiful drive, with lots of places to stay and explore.

Above, a view above White Bird, Idaho, where the initial battle that started the Nez Perce War took place.

Stayed at Hells Gate State Park in Lewiston for a few days. Above shows the Clearwater River (on the left) as it joins the Snake River. The State Park is along the Snake River in the middle of the picture. There are lots of beautiful trees in the area that look like pictures from a plant catalog. Lewiston is just 738 feet above sea level and has mild winters. Think it gets pretty warm in the summer though. The weather in northwest Idaho lets a lot of the State Parks and National Forest Campgrounds open in May, rather than after Memorial Day. Hells Gate State Park has one camping loop open year around.

Above, an osprey, with what appears to be a small bird in it’s talons, returns to it’s nest near the Visitor Center at the park.

Also, a wood duck near the shoreline by my campsite.

On my drive through western Idaho, all the rivers were running high and swift. This was the case in Lewiston as well. The Snake River was really muddy and swift. Wondered if that played a part in the osprey going after a bird rather than a fish.

Found that Walmarts in both Lewiston and nearby Moscow had been closed. The one in Lewiston is now a community center and the one in Moscow has a Goodwill store. Both towns are strong farming communities. That may have played a part in the Walmarts’ closing.

A young swallow let me take it’s picture.

After leaving Utah, stopped one night at a campground in the Curlew National Grasslands. On leaving, the young hawk below let me take it’s picture.

Posted in Lewiston, National, osprey, State, swallow, White Bird, wood | Comments Off

Great Salt Lake, Utah

Thursday, May 5th, 2011

Got to stay at Antelope Island State Park in Utah. When I passed through the area last September it was full.

The second picture above is Bridger Campground where Bison sometimes roam. Opened the door of my trailer one morning to find a bison 10-15 feet away. You just ignore them and they move along.

The bottom picture is the causeway from the suburb town of Syracuse out to Antelope Island.

There are lots of chukars on the island, but they don’t come out in the open a lot. I heard lots of them in the bushes near my campsite, but never saw any. It was just by luck when driving around, that I came upon the one above sunning itself.

A woman went walking up the hill next to my site early one morning. When she got to a ridge where she was somewhat hidden, I saw a bunch of heads bobbing up and down. Later found that it was a group of jackrabbits that had been surprised.

Meadowlarks are all over. You hear them all the time, but they, like the jackrabbits, don’t tend to stay still for pictures.

Have seen a number of coyotes. One evening was sad to see one go into the bushes where the chukars were.

Started seeing magpies as I got close to Utah. The one above is a young one.

Above, a horned lark. The first one I’ve ever seen.

Barn swallow at the Visitor Center.

The way here: Stopped a night at a Manti-la Sal Forest campground near Blanding, Utah. Next day drove through Moab for the first time. It has to be the “Yellowstone” of Utah. It was so crowded. I had hoped to stay at a BLM campground along the Colorado River near Moab, but no such luck. All the campgrounds were full. I had been watching the weather in Salt Lake City and when I saw that good weather was forecast and there were campsites available on Antelope Island, I changed course to Salt Lake City.

Below, sunset on Antelope Island. Least I should paint the island as idyllic, it can be very buggy. Depending on the weather, time of day, location, and other factors there are varying number of nat like bugs.

Posted in Airstream, bison, Bureau of Land Management, chukar, coyote, lark, magpie, National, rabbit, Salt Lake City, State | Comments Off

Bandelier National Monument

Friday, April 1st, 2011

Enjoyed visiting Bandelier National Monument near Los Alamos, New Mexico. There are an amazing number of holes in the rock cliffs all over the area. The area peaked in the 1400′s. The ancestral Pueblo people then moved close to the Rio Grande River, which is nearby.

Enjoyed staying in the campground at Bandelier. There were only a few people there, although the Visitor Center parking lot was full of visitors every day. The ponderosa pines in the campground made me of think of Idaho and Montana campgrounds. It is closed from November to February because of snow.

Bandelier is composed of 33,750 acres, but has only 3 miles of public roads. There are 70 miles of trails. The ones by the Visitor Center follow a stream and are easy to walk. You can follow one trail along the creek down to where it meets the Rio Grande River.

Two days in a row I walked along a trail along the creek that goes to the last official dwelling exhibit. Beyond this point, the trail takes you into the National Wilderness Preservation System. There were quite a few backpackers hiking into the area.

Both days on my walks along the creek saw a female black bear with two cubs. The first day, a ranger had chased them up a tree. He said the female has been coming to the area for 3 years because of the water and plant food sources. The second day, the ranger didn’t even bother to come. He had said they don’t pose a danger and would rather climb a tree than confront humans.

Above, an Abert‘s or tassel-eared squirrel. Have wanted to see one of these guys for a number of years.

Above, a vewpoint in the town of White Rock, a suburb of Los Alamos a little northeast of Bandelier. It is looking towards Sante Fe and the town of Española. The Rio Grande River runs down the center of the picture, but is hidden behind a hill. Saw both kayakers on the river and backpackers hiking into the area.

The city of Santa Fe is so beautiful. They don’t allow advertising billboards. You just see the official highway system signs along the highway. There must also be an ordinance on what colors can be used to paint homes and businesses. They are all an adobe color with just differences in the amount of yellow, red, and white paint added. So they don’t all look alike, yet blend really well together.

Below, Valles Caldera National Preserve that is just west of Bandlier. It was a private ranch until the year 2000. The owner’s sold the entire surface estate of 95,000 acres and seven-eighths of the geothermal mineral estate to the federal government.

Posted in bear, Los Alamos, National, squirrel, White Rock | Comments Off

Big Bend National Park, 2011

Saturday, February 19th, 2011

Stayed at Rio Grande Village Campground in Big Bend National Park for a few days. Had the first hot, dry weather I’ve had this year (in the 90′s). Had decided to just stay in the campground this visit, before the price of gas went up ($4 a gallon in the park). I drove all over the park on my first visit here and there was enough to do around the campground.

On driving from the town of Marathon to the campground, I was struck by the complete lack of roadside trash (not one plastic bag blowing in the wind)! Trash in the Rio Grande Valley area is omnipresent.

There are spring fed ponds (in the foreground in the picture above) along a nature trail in the campground. Water from the Rio Grande River enters the one seen above when the river floods.

Saw a number of roadrunners. Was surprised to see one “wag it’s tail”, hold it’s tail up and wag it right and left. Also intermittently heard roadrunners in trees making deep cooing sounds.

Cardinals and pyrrhuloxia were present in the campground area. Near the pond there were two young herons, along with common yellowthroats, a bittern, and a pied-billed grebe.

Coyotes were often seen walking through the campground.

There are mosquitofish in the pond. An endangered species, Big Bend Gambusia, or Big Bend Mosquitofish, are in a protected isolated pond.

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Hurricane Alex & the Rio Grande—July 2010

Wednesday, January 19th, 2011

Hurricane Alex, in July 2010, damaged most, if not all, birding sites along the Rio Grande. The river went from being 300 feet wide to 2 miles wide in places. The Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge’s tram and bicycle road is largely under water, along with a lot of their land. Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park has only recently reopened. It’s tram road is open, but many trails are closed. No javelina’s have been seen in the park since the hurricane and subsequent flooding, but javelina footprints have recently been spotted.

The Santa Ana Refuge will let nature take it’s course and let any water evaporate naturally. I like it with more water. There are newly created swamps that are at times full of birds. The cacophony of bird sounds in these areas must at times be like what is heard in Louisiana and Florida swamps.

Was thrilled to be able to get pictures of a green kingfisher in a new swamp area at the Santa Ana Wildlife Refuge. Think the background noise of all the other birds made it possible for me to get the pictures of it fishing.

On a sad note, I had planned to visit La Sal del Rey, part of the Lower Rio Grande Valley Wildlife Refuge system, but saw there was an advisory not to go there alone. A volunteer at the Santa Ana Refuge told me she went there with a group and heard gun shots. The Wildlife Refuge feels it’s not safe for individuals to go there alone. The Santa Ana Wildlife Refuge has a Border Patrol station connected to it. You sometimes see armed agents walking the grounds.