Quick Backpack Trip: In search of the Lost Dutchman mine...

At a party a few years ago, after being plied with a few beers, a friend (Quakes, you know who you are!) told us about a "lost" miner's cabin--an intact building with tools still hanging on the wall, now surrounded by dense forest, along a forgotten road...

Probably to our friend's delight, this has set Dave & I off on a few dayhikes looking for the place. With the prospect of a sunny day or two, we planned a quick overnight backpacking trip to more thoroughly explore this area of low hills (c. 8,000 feet) along the Continental Divide. Here's Dave at the Land Rover, marking the "trailhead" with his GPS (this has somewhat simplified our old map & compass exercise of, "Where the hell did we park?"):

"Trailhead" in quotations since we follow no trail. Sometimes we are on closed Forest Service roads, but much of the time it's cross country through the dry lodgepole pine/subalpine fir forest and open parks (note the extensive beetle kill of lodgepole pine):

It was lovely to hike through gardens of Arrowleaf Balsamroot (Balsamorhiza sagittata):

And mixed meadows of wildflowers:


This is a prime year for Beargrass (Xerophyllum tenax), which in some years hardly blooms at all:

It's called "Bear-grass" for a reason, since bears do like to nip off the flowers and seedheads. So, each time you see a boquet of Bear-grass:

You know it began with a clump of Bear-dump (note the maggots in this rich specimen--it wasn't easy keeping the dogs out of it, either!):

Well, enough scatology. We thought we hit the motherlode when we came upon this lovely sight--oh boy, come late August, there'll be coffee cans overflowing with huckleberries:

Alas, like the miner who mistakes pyrite for gold, we found with a close look (and a little help from Schlieman Wildflowers of Montana) that this was Fool's Huckleberry (Menziesa ferruginea):

Dang. Still, we can take a lesson from Jack- and Molly-The-Dog--a cool, clear stream and a friend to hang out with, and hey, life is good:

Ah, hey dogs, we human people will be drinking from that creek, so let's keep the mud downstream of the cooking fire (built near the stream so that next year's high water will wash away any sign of our being here):

Though we found no historic treasures on our hike, there are a number of new wildflowers coming into season, including White Bog Orchids (Habenaria dilatata):

Western Sweet Cicely (Osmorhiza occidentalis; the roots make a tasty anise-flavored cooking ingredient and tonic):

Low Larkspur (Dephinium bicolor; ranchers consider it a weed and kill it with herbicide):

Pearly Everlasting (Anaphalis margaritacea):

And Western Serviceberry (Amelanchier alnifolia; not much of a flower to look at, but oh, what a sweet fruit to eat, if you can beat the moose to it; it was favored by Indians in making pemmican):

The trip ended with cold rain and sleet showers as a front pushed down from Canada, but that's why we carry raingear even on a dayhike.

Skywatch Friday: Rainbows & Lupine Skies

July in the Northern Rockies. Nights are clear and cool. The morning begins with a cloudless sky (view to Highland Mountains from Butte, Montana):

Clouds build as the warm mid-day sun lifts moisture from the valleys and it condenses over the ridges of the Continental Divide )view to Pintler Mountains from Mule Ranch/Big Hole River):

Thundershowers sweep across the Big Sky, and if you're on the lookout, most days bring a rainbow (mid-afternoon, looking East from the Butte Hill):

Or two (note the extremely high angle--caught at sunset from my front porch in Walkerville):

And, my favorite Montana sky of all: the one caught in the water droplet that forms at the center of a lupine's leaves:

Back Home Again: Pintler Campout, Pine Marten, Wildflowers

A good night's sleep upon our return from Portland, Maine, and Mrs ER & I were ready to revisit Montana. In part, this was to escape the fireworks madness of Butte America where all residents above the age of six are required to set off inordinate quantities of firecrackers, roman candles, sky rockets, and other bombs in a weeklong orgy of Independence Day celebration.

We packed the tent and headed to a nearby campground at the edge of the Pintler Wilderness. Turn here:

Common Paintbrush (Castelleja miniata) lit up the roadside:

Interspersed within, the occasional -- and very whimsical -- Elephanthead (Pedicularis groenlandica):

At the campground, we were welcomed by lupines no mortal landscaper could improve (cf. Solomon's altar of unhewn stone):

After setting up camp, we took a short hike. As I waded into an elderberry bush with MollyTheDog for this photo (Sambucus sp):

MTD spooked a creature from nearby brush that we first thought to be a squirrel. But no, it was a pine marten!:

One of the most insatiably curious creatures on the planet--if you stay still and appear non-threatening (and perhaps make a few squirrel calls--they eat pine squirrels), they simply must get another look at you (thought they seldom hold still for a photo):

On next day's hike up into the wilderness, we were greeted by many early summer wildflowers, including--

A meadow of Western Groundsel (Senecio integrrimus), which attracted innumerable butterflies. I was able to stalk a few for decent photos:




Trapper's Tea (Ledum glandulosum; a soothing tonic, but the alkaloids can be poisonous):

Rosy Pussytoes (Antennaria microphylla):

Heartleaf Arnica (Arnica cordifolia; flowers make an excellent antibiotic salve):

Pygmy Bitterroot (Lewisia pygmaea):

Aster (Aster sp):

Beautiful but lethal Mountain Death Camas (Zigaenus elegans; Indians would sometimes accidentally dig them along with tasty Blue Camas):

Western Meadow Rue (Thalictum occidentale):

And the cottony blossoms of a Willow (Salix sp -- maybe lasiandra?):

After a few days of quietude, hordes of mosquitoes, and an ear-splitting mountain thunderstorm or two, we were ready for the tailend of the July 4th holiday in Butte, Montana: bring on the skyrockets, oh little children of the 'hood.

EcoRover Goes to Portland (Maine)

As those who know me will attest, I do not like to travel. Especially in the summer, when each day outside of Montana feels like a day taken from my life (in the same way, a day of troutfishing adds a day). Alas, but I have a research grant which entails publications and the inevitable and associated act of presenting papers at meetings...

Despite my reluctance to travel, there are several good reasons to venture downeast to Portland, Maine: fresh lobsters, the North Atlantic coast, and -- best of all -- its proximity to Boston, where daughter Emily attends college. We arrived after midnight and all the compact rentals were gone. In fact all the cars were gone. EcoRover in a Ford F-150 behemouth, oh man, what's wrong with this 10 mpg picture?:

Puffins
Apart from my conference, the first order of business:
Atlantic Puffins (Fratercula arctica)

Puffins are a small auk driven to extinction by egg collectors and "hunters" (they killed the birds for fishbait) in coastal U.S. waters. Thanks to Audubon Society's Project Puffin, the birds have been successfully re-established on several islands, including Eastern Egg Rock:

We saw many puffins and a host of other rare seabirds such as Arctic Terns, but in the dense fog only this single photo came out (serious limitation of my little Canon elph):

I highly recommend Hardy's cruise for any bird watcher, endangered species supporter, or other naturalist. Despite the dense fog that rolled in, we had a great time (Mrs ER and Emily on the dock, before the cruise):

Lobsters
Hardy's Puffin Watch sails from New Harbor, also port for lobstermen. The lobsterman is a glorified figure in Maine, as this sculpture in Portland suggests (I like the tender, father-child relationship):

The glorification is well-deserved, however, for in addition to providing fellow humans with the tastiest bug on planet Earth they have also worked closely with fishery scientists and regulatory agencies to insure that the lobster harvest is truly sustainable. We watched these lobstermen sort their catch:

And soon were on the upper deck of Shaw's enjoying this marvelous fruit of the sea:

Portland Museum of Art
Little old Portland has a first class art museum--who'd a thunk it? In addition to some choice pieces by the likes of Renoir, Picasso, Monet, Matisse, etc, the current exhibition on "Art Colonies of New England" was simply outstanding. Moreover, there were some wonderful surprises, such as "Dragon Cement Company" by Yvonne Jacquette:

And Monhegan Island by Louis Lozowick, a Russian emigre artist who also did a number of pieces on early 20th century American industrial cities, such as Pittsburgh PA and Butte MT:

J's Oysters
With Emily on the train back to Beantown and a mid-day break from sessions, Mrs ER and I wandered upon one of Portland's finest:J's Oyster is exactly what you want a good oyster bar to be--friendly, a bit hard to find, favored by locals, and (of course) fresh, tasty oysters:

We also shared a bowl of mussels (in a traditional lemon-garlic-butter sauce) and declared them exceptional. In part, the charm stemmed from the friendly atmosphere--Mrs ER and I dined at the bar, and weren't through our first dozen before becoming "new best friends" with the locals:

Sebago Brewing Company
With the conference over, we sought out a brewpub. This was a bit challenging, because none were listed in the directory and the hotel staff knew only of Shipyard Brewing--a rather undistinguished beer. Mrs ER found a listing in a brochure for the Sebago Brewing Company (they've since expanded, but this is the original location):

They have two outstanding beers in their lineup: Frye's Leap IPA and Boathouse Brown Ale (EcoRover takes micro-brewed beer seriously):

The crab cakes were pretty good too, and the mussels (once again) exceptional (made with a lovely Brown Ale sauce):

I'm a little sorry that we were in Portland for four days but that I got to see so little of it. What I did experience makes it a wonderful small city, and a place I look forward to visiting again. Cobblestoned alleys and little shops to explore:

A city where kids get paid to paint graffiti/murals:

 [this photo removed upon request--see comments]


Where resident appreciate a cool ride:

And a good selection of fine Thai restaraunts (locals told us Tom's is the best, and we agreed):

There was one minor glitch, and that was our stay at the Eastland Park Hotel. Overpriced, it was a leit motif of humor for five days: it didn't take long to realize the big wet spot in the middle of the rug was the source of the cat pee smell; the air conditioner (which, thanks to cool rainy weather we luckily did not need) roared like the "jake brake" on a Mack truck; the room staff was always out of something ("Sorry, no washcloths today!"); the room telephone which would ring and flash but from which no voice could be heard; hotel security that needed three trips to locate & quiet the partying neighbors; the elevator that did not go to the top floor lounge; and the desk staff that found it almost impossibly hard to switch the room charge to another credit card. Oh, and let's not forget the fire alarm/emergency evacuation:

Well, Pobody's Nerfect!

Skywatch Friday: EcoRover sees a Big Apple sky

Living along the Continental Divide of the northern Rocky Mountains in Montana, I sometimes fall into thinking that nowhere else in the world has amazing, beautiful, and awe-inspiring sky. Yeah, I'm such a provincial. But willing to admit when I'm wrong. On a recent trip to Maine, we were grounded in New York City's JFK airport (FOUR HOURS sitting in the plane) while one of the fiercest thunderstorms I've ever seen in my life blew through. Here's an unretouched photo of that incredible NYC sky:

Wow.