journal

Two black border collies standing on a rocky ledge overlooking a green alpine valley with mountain peaks and patches of snow under a cloudy sky

Jess had the time of her life in our third week of cabin staying this summer. This one sits way back from the road, behind a locked gate, so I can let the dogs run free. It has a front and a back door, and when the dogs are not paying attention I slip out one of the doors and go hide in the meadow or in the woods, and then yell ‘FIND DAD.’ They nose me out and so it usually doesn’t take long for them to locate me. Last night though I had a good spot. I climbed on the back bumper of my chevy truck and leaned against the black nylon bed cover. Jess ran almost right under my feet. Another good spot is to lie down randomly somewhere in the meadow grass, after circling around a bit if I have the time, to alter the scent trail they follow. Good fun between Dad and three border collies.

Jess’s senses are so much greater than mine or 9+ year old Beau and 12+ year old Hayley. Several times I noticed her listening for mice in the rose bush patch, then jumping up in the air like a fox or coyote to try to press one to the ground.

She also heard what were probably deer coming near the cabin in the evenings, when I didn’t hear a thing. One night when we went out in the middle of the night I saw eye shine above the cabin. Probably deer, but the forest service says this is bear country.

It is always good to get home to the garden and chickens, my big oak tree out front and my beloved home. It is when you settle back into your routine that you realize how amazing and renewing the adventure was that you came home from.

lush green alpine basin with scattered evergreen trees and rugged mountain peaks under a sky with puffy white clouds

Two black and white dogs standing alert on a green grassy slope with rocky terrain and tall pine trees under a cloudy sky

Bright pink wildflowers growing beside a moss-covered rocky stream with flowing water

Yesterday (July 31st) the dogs and I hiked up into a secluded basin that I have been to a couple of times before, but It has been at least a decade since the last time. The only trails up there are ones made by elk. I used my GPS to mark the path so that I could find it on the way back.

Once we made it to timberline, around 11:00 a.m, the dogs and I had a late breakfast. I thought I might take a nap but wasn't feeling tired at all. So I left my heavy pack and explored the alpine. I remembered a lot of the landmarks and circled up around by a high mountain lake. I kept going because one of my favorite pictures of all time was taken up there of Ben, who has been in dog heaven since 2013.

It was of a alpine clifftop that Ben ran ahead to and climbed up on.. I snapped a photo right at the moment he was at the summit looking down. Yesterday I didn't remember exactly where it was,but went around a bend up high and there it appeared in front of me. This time Beau ran ahead and and I got to repeat the photo that I took so long ago.

We couldn't stay up there long because thunderstorms were predicted and in fact lightning started hitting just after we got to treeline, some of it very close. I backtracked my route down out of the basin with no problems. Part waydown we were in a hail storm that me and the dogs took shelter from under a lodgepole pine.

We ended up hiking 13 miles yesterday, a lot of it on very steep slopes. I fell asleep easily being so exhausted but was woken at 11:00 p.m. by nocturnal leg cramps, probably from the extreme exercise of that day. I have learned that when I get these don't try to stretch them out; just try to relax. Otherwise they can be excruciatingly painful. What worked this time was to rub my thumbs and fingers on the cement floor of the cabin. In a few minutes the cramps lessened after doing that.

So today is an off day with no hiking. We might go somewhere tomorrow. I took the dogs down to the Arkansas River too go swimming after sticks, which seems to be Beau's favorite thing to do in the world. Jess follows right behind him in the river.

A collage of three images showing a glowing tent under a starry night sky, a close-up of pink and white wildflowers with green leaves, and a black and white dog sitting attentively in tall grass

Three dogs exploring mountainous terrain with patches of snow under a blue sky with clouds, and rocky slopes in the distance

Two black and white dogs standing on a snowy mountain trail with a backdrop of rugged peaks

Trail rides like this are probably a good option at my age (71), since if something were to happen like I was thrown, there would be people around to help. I would love to own a horse like I did when I was young but it can be an expensive proposition to do so. Animals have always been a huge part of my life. If I were to have one I would ride it out on trails all of the time. Always riding in a ring or enclosed area just seemed boring to me. When I had a ¾ Arabian years ago I would take him down a narrow trail to a canyon, then at the bottom would let him loose. Oscar would run up and down the canyon and back to me, which is a pretty nice memory to have of my buddy, who certainly has passed on a long time ago.

(click on photos below for larger image . . . - Esc or clicking outside of image will close it)

Purple wildflowers growing beside flowing water cascading over moss-covered rocks

Pink wildflowers growing next to a rocky mountain stream with flowing water surrounded by green plants

Fast-flowing mountain stream with moss-covered rocks and green vegetation, including two pink wildflowers near the water's edge

Cluster of vibrant pink wildflowers with green leaves growing closely together in a grassy alpine meadow

Cluster of wildflowers with tall green leaves, featuring yellow and pink blooms in a dense natural setting

Two Border collies standing on green alpine vegetation near tall evergreen trees and rocky terrain in a mountainous area

Two black and white dogs standing on lush green grass surrounded by tall evergreen trees with rocky terrain and a mountain slope in the background under a cloudy sky

Cluster of light purple and white columbine flowers growing among rocky terrain with green leaves

Cluster of delicate light purple and white alpine flowers surrounded by green foliage and rocky terrain

Black and white dog standing on a rocky ledge overlooking a grassy alpine basin with patches of snow and scattered rocks

Pink and yellow wildflowers growing beside large textured rocks casting shadows

black and white border collie resting beside a large rock on a grassy mountainside overlooking a green alpine basin with wildflowers and shrubs

Two border collies on a trail in a forest clearing with green bushes and tall pine trees under a partly cloudy sky

Cluster of tall wildflowers with bright yellow and deep purple petals surrounded by green foliage and forest floor

Lichens and moss growing on the rough, decaying surface of fallen tree bark surrounded by pine needles and small green conifer branches

Mountain basin with dense evergreen forest, rocky peaks with patches of snow, under a sky filled with scattered white clouds on a clear day

Mountain landscape with rocky peaks in the distance under a blue sky with scattered clouds, dense green conifer trees covering the slopes and a rocky hillside in the foreground

tall evergreen tree in foreground with dense green shrubs and trees in a mountain basin under a bright blue sky with scattered clouds and rugged rocky peaks in the background

Mountain landscape with green forested slopes, rocky peaks with patches of snow, and a partly cloudy blue sky

Mountain landscape with rocky peaks, green grassy slopes dotted with shrubs and pine trees, and a bright blue sky with a few white clouds

Border collie with blue eyes lying in green grass looking up

lush green alpine valley with scattered evergreen trees under a partly cloudy blue sky, surrounded by rocky mountain peaks with patches of snow

Black dog standing on a rocky alpine cliff with rugged mountains and patches of snow in the background under a partly cloudy sky

Black dog standing on rocky outcrop with a mountainous ridge behind and partly cloudy sky overhead

Two black dogs standing on a rocky outcrop with rugged mountain peaks and patches of snow under a partly cloudy blue sky

Two border collies near a small alpine pond surrounded by rocky hills and green vegetation, with one dog standing on a patch of snow

Black and white border collie sitting attentively on green grass surrounded by tall pine trees with a cloudy sky overhead

Dense evergreen forest on a hillside with a mountain peak visible through the trees under a cloudy sky

Two black and white border collies resting and sitting in a lush green meadow with wildflowers and tall grass

Wet black and white border collie sitting attentively in green meadow grass with small yellow flowers

Wet black and white border collie with a blue tag sitting attentively in tall green grass with small yellow and white flowers

Close-up of green foliage with several pink clustered flowers and one purple flower with a yellow center

A black dog standing on a patch of snow on a rocky mountain slope with alpine green vegetation and steep mountain peaks under a cloudy sky

black and white border collie standing on a rocky ridge overlooking a grassy mountain slope with patches of snow under a cloudy sky

Clusters of pink and white flowers atop tall, bright green leafy stalks surrounded by grass and various green foliage

cluster of purple wildflowers surrounded by green broad leaves and tall grass

Cluster of various wildflowers including tall yellow blooms and purple orchids growing in green meadow grass

Cluster of tall yellow and purple wildflowers surrounded by green leaves and grass in a meadow

Two black and white dogs resting on a sleeping bag inside a rustic wooden cabin with a small window letting in light

black and white border collie standing in the open doorway of a rustic log cabin surrounded by tall grass

Small delicate pale pink flowers with bell-shaped petals hanging downward, surrounded by green leaves with water droplets

Close-up of a slender plant stem with clusters of small pink and white flowers surrounded by green grass and foliage

Tall slender stems with small purple and white tubular flowers growing among grass and leafy plants in a sunlit natural setting

Tall evergreen trees in a forested mountain valley with a bright blue sky and scattered clouds above

Tall purple wildflower with narrow leaves in a mountainous forest clearing under a partly cloudy blue sky

black and white border collie standing in a grassy alpine meadow with tall evergreen trees and mountainous landscape under a partly cloudy blue sky

Mountain valley landscape with dense evergreen forest, tall pine trees, and a partly cloudy blue sky

Two plaid shirts and two cowboy hats hanging on the interior wooden wall of a rustic cabin

This trip has reminded me of the long history I have visiting the Yellowstone region. It was one of the primary epic vacation destinations for my family when my daughters were young, along with Yosemite, Carpinteria, Big Sur, and Monterey on the California Coast, and Disneyland. It took us five trips to Yellowstone before we saw our first grizzly bear. Once we saw a minutes old bison calf next to it’s mother. We hiked down to Osprey falls on the Gardiner River. In the summer of 1988 we visited in August when fires were burning the dense lodgepole pine.

Later, after the year 2000 I started visiting Yellowstone on my own. I learned that August in the Hayden Valley was the best time to see grizzlies, because during the bison breeding season the big buffalo bulls would fight, and sometimes kill each other. A 2000 pound carcass attracts a lot of predators and scavengers. Once I stopped above the Yellowstone river where several people had scopes set up. They invited me to look, and around a bison carcass were seven grizzly bear, taking turns to eat. I was told there had been eight there. Another time I witnessed a mother grizzly and her cub leave a carcass and head east towards the highway, where there was a line of people watching her. A single ranger got the crowd to separate into a large gap. The mother and cub milled around for a while and then walked right through the gap, then swam across the Yellowstone River. I photographed all this and then went up to the ranger and got his email address, where I sent links to the photos. He was a teacher from Kansas on a summer job and was grateful to be able to share the photos with his students.

On this trip it felt so good to be on the back of a horse again, and my history with them also came back to mind. As I mentioned above I had my own horse, a ¾ arab during my teen years. He and I spent all the time on trails, and had no trouble being alone out there with me. (Some horses get very unsettled going out alone). Selling him when my wife and I were starting out was a very hard thing to do. When I delivered him to his new owners he followed me the length of the corral and watched me get into my truck, trying to figure out why I was leaving him.

My first job was with the Bureau of Land Management, as a botanist out in Western Colorado. I went on a week-long pack trip with other resource specialists in Powderhorn Primitive area near Gunnison, Colorado when it was up for a new resource management plan. I developed a good bond with my horse for the week. In one instance we were all going up a very steep trail, called ‘The Slide Trail.’ Up ahead of me I saw the other riders having a lot of trouble trying to lead their horses up the trail holding the reins. I tied the reins to the saddle horn and let my horse pick his own route up the trail, while running behind him holding on to his trail, and made it up with no problems. Later I found a reference to someone else doing this on a steep trail - see text and link below.

One day everyone was collecting their mounts after we had stopped for lunch and let our horses graze in an alpine area. I stood up and called my horse’s name. He looked up and came walking over to me.

__________________________

"If you are following another horse that has gone up before you, again, simply allow the horse to go ahead. He’ll be fine. If your horse has been trained to allow this, you can also hold the horse’s tail and allow him to pull you up the slope. Most horses don’t mind this, especially while they are concentrating on getting up the hill"

https://westerntrailrider.com/wordpress/blog/2014/05/making-steep-ascents-and-descents-on-the-trail/

thin, leafless tree branch with multiple smaller twigs extending from it on a white background

More Journal Notes:

July 10, 2023

I drove past the Wind River mountains of Wyoming on the way up, then went over to the East Side of the Tetons near Driggs, Tetonia, and Ashton, Idaho and camped. I was scheduled to stay in another cabin on the way up, but high water in a creek prevented me from getting to it. I video taped the water flowing down the road with spring runoff, and sent a link of it to the Forest Service Office that I reserved the cabin with. The response I got was 'I am so sorry, I meant for you to take the other road at the fork'. That certainly did not help me after the fact. I was just following the route they had originally sent me.

So I had to improvise for a couple of nights. I found I could just sleep in the truck by laying the driver's seat all the way down. There was still plenty of room for the dogs, since my truck has a full back seat (crew cab) . Then it was a lot quicker to get going in the morning, compared to sleeping out on the ground. And in all honesty, I felt more comfortable sleeping in the truck rather than outside in grizzly country.

Man in a plaid shirt and cowboy hat reaching out to a black and white dog inside a rustic log cabin with light coming through the open door

On the way back south from Yellowstone, I was able to see Grizzly 399 for a short while, before she walked into some trees with her two cubs. She is the most famous Grizzly in the world, and may intentionally stay near roads to protect her cubs from male grizzlies.

I was going to return to the truck and set up my large spotting scope, but did not have time. Below is a shot of all the bear watchers on that morning.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grizzly_399

Two images showing a nighttime outdoor scene: a glowing tent under pine trees with a bright star in the sky, and a star-filled sky with the Milky Way visible above a dark silhouette of hills and trees

Mountain landscape with evergreen trees below a partly cloudy blue sky and a close-up of a vibrant pink wildflower surrounded by green foliage

“Wherever you go, go with all your heart"