Takhini Elk herd

Sept. 14 2008
Not so wild.
The Takhini Elk herd is an introduced herd. And has been penned up all summer.
It is all very contradictory.
I am glad to see them alongside our highway again.

Pond Creek

Mary, you are right! Mary thought me to make a psh, psh ,psh sound when a chickadee flies up to you, and indeed soon I was surrounded by at least 6 Chickadees.
This is so neat!
Here in the woods, there are always Chickadees. I also always encounter Juncos, but they apparently are migrants, and will leave for a short period. I will have to watch them this winter, now that I recognize them faster, to see if some do stay, or do we get a few migrants from the North?

Today I left at 8 am., just after daybreak. The day didn't look so promising. Yesterday was sunny, today cloudy. It even started to rain a little bit. But I was eager to go and left without rain gear, why not?
I took my bike, the long way towards Pond Creek. It's a familiar area in the winter, but last year in the Summer we got hopelessly lost in the area. All summer I have wanting to check it out, so next time I'll know the way.
I say the long way, because in the Winter we go across the 911 pond, in the Summer there are trails from the Champagne road. Which also saves me having to swim the Mendenhall river.
I go the same direction as towards the 911 pond. Interestingly enough, last time I went I think I had a hailstorm right on the highway where turning towards the pond.
Today that is where it was drizzling.
I stay on the highway, cross the Mendenhall bridge and turn left on the Champagne road. I only takes me half an hour to get to the trail. The weather is very calm.
The first part of the trail is beautiful, but very bumpy, (on the way back, I walk this stretch).
It is a meadow with little willows and miniature Spruce trees. Her and there a stand of poplars, some bright yellow, others bare. On the trail the yellow leaves. This all surrounded by dark Spruce Forest and the red mountains beyond.


15 minutes of bumping along, the road goes Eastward into the forest. It is here I sit under a Spruce tree, to stay out of the rain. I marvel how dry it is under here, only to come out and realize it stopped raining.
15 min. through the forest, where the road is more smooth. The old ruts of trucks, smoother then the newer ruts of ATVs.

At 9 AM. I come out in the open. The beautiful grass meadows. The grass is yellowish,
with the silver of Wild Sage. And more silver yet is mats of tiny leaves from an Antennaria (pussy toes). And some patches of grey mud, where the Glasswort grows which is pale dark red now, it used to be bright red a month ago.

I am South of the 911 Pond, the Mendenhall River in between. Which you don't see, because of the forest, These meadows large openings in the forest, some stringed together, some separate. It is a beautiful maze.

Anyway, today I will make sure I know which way leads to the little bridge at Pond creek. Thank you, thank you, whoever made that bridge. It's been there only a year or so. Mary spotted it on a ski trip last winter. Before that we had to ford the Creek, to continue. It is a deep creek. When I say ford, I think it means on can still walk, but in this creek that is barely possible, you kind of lunge yourself through it.

Back to the track; I follow the meadow, where it takes me, first South and then East, at the end it comes out on a bigger meadow, I turn South again. At this point there is a good visible trail. And I am following the main trail. But this trail is not always visible. The biking is actually fairly smooth. Going through a narrow, Oh I am
lost again, now, trying to recall it. Any way at one point the trail fades, and there
I can go right or left. Right seems obvious, but it is left. Ah it is impossible to
remember it all, I just have to go there twice a year, till it is totally imprinted in my memory.
Because at one point I have to turn into the forest, South. There is a tiny piece of blue ribbon hanging there, to mark the entry of the trail.

By the way, some one from Champagne, has a leash on this land, grazing pasture for their horses.

But lets keep going; Going South, following smaller meadows, which are attached by a trail through forest. When I come out on a little elevation, before descending in the willows, Someone has changed the trail. I follow the new trail, which follows a grassy ridge. And descents in the willows towards a stand of poplars, which I always use as an alignment to know where I am. I walk with my bike now, sometimes riding , but eventually I leave it behind. The new trail picks up the old one again, by an old big willow, which is another trail marker for me.

At 9.30 I reach Pond Creek, oh beautiful One, How delightful to see you!
It is a winding Creek.
The bridge is playing tricks on the mind, as it is a few bends away, placed in the opposite direction. As the creeks folds upon itself. The bridge goes from North to South, while the general direction of the trail is South.
Do you get it? I barely do.

On the other side, there is a long story again, and I do play around here for an hour, before I return.
The return trip takes me 2 hours, as it is slightly uphill.

Riverdale

Hidden Lakes and Grey Mountain.


Riverdale is a neighbourhood in Whitehorse. It is approximately a half hour walk from down town. Riverdale, being a beautiful neighbourhood itself, is surrounded by beautiful hiking and biking trails. In local stores you can buy a map. I bought mine at Icycle Sport.

Today, my long time employer and friend Fabiola Rayo, took me up one of her favorite trails.
Right from her house, we walked for only one hour round trip, and I finally got to see a part of Hidden Lakes. I did not now; it is gorgeous.

I think we first went up Peewee Hill, then Heartbreak Hill. ( These wonderful names, thanks to the mountain bikers, I think.) Saw a Hidden Lake, around another bent saw Schwatka Lake. We did get views of Whitehorse, but as I am always interested in Wild places, I didn't pause to have a good look, but I am sure Whitehorse did look good!
We came out on the Chadburn road and took other trails to get back to her house.

And I have to add, I was invited in to share a delicious Chilean meal.
I accepted the invitation gladly. Mercedes thank you so much.

Wasps nest

Sept. 7 2008
In 'Peterson Field Guides, Insects' I read that these wasps are probably Yellowyackets.
When I zoom in on the original photo, they have yellow and black bands on their abdomen.
I will not go back for a closer look.
When I found this nest quite by accident, I was looking for rocks, I couldn't resist some photos.
It is a pretty big nest. This year we don't have many wasps, at least not yet.
When I came upon it, all was calm. When I walk around the nest, they obviously notice me, and some come after me, excitedly. I run away. When I look back, everybody is out and about,
zooming around the nest.
The nest is made by the wasps. It is a paper nest, it is quite amazing. They make the paper.
Twelve years ago I was stung by a wasp, which is in it self very painful, back then I had an allergic reaction(redness and swelling). over the years, after that I have been stung a half
dozen times, but never again had an adverse reaction.

Sand Dunes

Sept. 8 2008
In a place in between the Kusawa road and the Takhini river, there is this most incredible place; The Sand Dunes. You'd never know it if you weren't told about it. Years ago I happened to have a flat tire on the Kusawa road.( I advise you to drive slow on rough roads) Someone helped me to get my tire off, we got talking. Indeed, thank you so much gentleman, he told me.
At the end of a weekend camping, Sue Herbrick, our kids and I, decided to check it out. We tried to find it but no luck. We all get in the car again and drive on. Till Sue sees an opening in the forest, and says"lets try here" . We walk through the forest in the direction given.
And again today; what an amazing sight. Suddenly there's sand, lots of it, a tiny desert. With kids, what great fun to find such a BIG sandbox. But many, many times we have had great times with adults too.
Like today with Jane Jacobs. It's a place where our imagination runs wild. I will one day write more about it in detail, when I visit it again.
Today was again a lovely sunny day, and hot, walking over the dunes. We picked liters of Cranberries, hauled drinking water from Stony Creek, picked a few last Raspberries. Ate a dinner straight out of the garden(and wild).
All by all a splendid day!

Rock-Flipping Day

Sept 7 2008
What did I find?
To respect even the little creatures, I tried to put the rock back in place as good as Icould.


Sept 7 2008
First I started flipping the 'wild' rocks around our house, which are few, nothing exciting , but nevertheless interesting. And maybe what I say is all quite obvious to you. I always come upon people that are really far more aware then I am.
The rocks here are darker on the underside then on the top; moisture.
Little grains of sand and tiny pieces of debris stick to it by means of little threads. I did not hold it under a microscope, so when I say threads, don't take it to literal. The hole, the rock would leave behind, was smooth, but filled up with loose sand, falling in from the sides. But if I was able to look in; everything in there was compressed to that smooth surface, tiny little sticks, etc. Sometimes live roots would run along that surface. And when there was ants, you could see holes in that, not so smooth anymore, surface. What was also neat; that most rocks here have more under the surface as is showing on top. Actually most of the rocks here I could not flip, as they were firmly implanted.

Later that day I went for a walk, to the 'old moose trail'. It runs through an old creek bed and there I found, the rocks too big and impossible to move, but one had a 'lid' on it. What I found is what you see. I think it is indeed a centipede.

Rusty Blackbird

Sept. 6 2008

Enjoying my yard yesterday, it wasn't till 5 pm, I set of to the wild, to my very well known 'moose skull lake'. See pictures below and above. When I walk to the lake I cross that bush road , where I saw the bear, and indeed there are footprints. There is claw marks in the ground. In a brochure from the Yukon Government, it states that, that means it is mostly likely from a grizzly indeed. I did find the print rather wider then long, which means the opposite. But measuring the print, 8 inches wide, again suggests; Grizzly. Because it all went so fast I thought it could have been a brownish Black Bear.
The day is sunny and calm, but when I arrive at the lake there is still a slight ripple in the water, later on when I leave it is like a mirror. Well you see what it is in the photos I posted. The photo from myself was taken last week at Squange Lake. Here in the Yukon, a photo never catches it all, there is Beauty 360 degrees.

When I arrive, there are no birds in sight, but on the North end of the Lake, 3 interesting ones fly out of the grass, on the lake shore. I zoom them in with my camera, and looking at them at home, it turns out they are Rusty Blackbirds, which delights me, because that is not a bird I readily recognize yet. At the East end of the Lake there is a lone duck, and walking on the south side, there is a shore bird with a longish beak, making a certain sound. When I read my bird books; it suggest that the Shorebirds all have different voices. So much to learn, next time I will take particular notice of the sounds. For me, being more a visual person I guess, when I hear a new sound I have to analyze it and write it down phonetically right away. My memory doesn't carry the sound home.

As I probably have said before; the more I wander around at 'my little lake in the back' (moose skull). the more I love it.