We decided to take a break, escape the near record heat, and find some place to cool off. We had no interest in joining the masses at the local beach, we wanted peace, quiet, and cool exhilaration. Fortunately, we know of the perfect place that does indeed meet all the above criteria and shall remain nameless. We seem to be the only ones to ever hike into this mountain wonderland in the late spring... and will be more than happy if it remains that way. It's not the highest hill by any means but at around 6,000 feet it was a perfect place to cool off.
There was a good thirty feet of snow on top.
On the way up we were able to find a few more morels for tonight's dinner and see how the huckleberry bushes were progressing... they look great so far.
Walking through a small mountain meadow halfway to the peak.
The second leg of this hike leaves the trail over ten feet under the snow.
Wild flox overlooking natures playground.
On top of our little part of the world and, for a brief moment, free from the things of man!
8 comments:
Beautiful! It's like taking a mini vacation to a gorgeous cool spot by looking at your photos. Nothing but heat and humidity here and it will stay that way until well into October or even November. So, I am truly enjoying your photos of a little snow... Silke
Wonderful, wonderful. How I loved northern Idaho and that whole area. Thank you for taking that hike for all of us!
We have places we go on the Blue Ridge Parkway not many people seem to know about. We go there for refreshment and to keep our longing for a simple, natural life fueled.
Leslie
Snow! I can't even imagine it as we roast. Does it really exist or is it just a cruel myth to tease southerners?
On huckleberries: We have a tree we call huckleberry here, that likes to grow as an understory bush, by rivers. I used to love picking the berries when I was a child, so I ordered something and what came looks more like your huckleberry than ours. Hope it survives here!
Hey Silke,
It was great, like winter but with 70°weather. That is really warm for up there, the last couple times we made the trip it was really cold on top.
Hi Leslie,
Sometimes I think that people find it strange that I would want to be out in total seclusion, but you understand. It is almost, perhaps, a way to connect with ones spiritual side.
We have to enjoy these places, especially with the young ones, as I believe they are disappearing fast and the next generation may lose all knowledge of the magnificence that the wild can bring.
AccidentalHW,
Snow, it does really exist. I can tell you that climbing a mountain in order to get to the snow is much funner then having it all over ones yard.
Many of the wild huckleberries and blueberries in our area also grow right next to rivers and streams. Hopefully your garden huckleberries will do well, I would love to see them.
Huckleberries. . .yum.
They were all over the park we were at last week; we may have to go back. I remember reading that cultivating huckleberries can be tricky, but I wonder if it's just because they're so teensy.
Stefaneener,
Picking huckleberries is very time consuming. We are pretty fast, but still can only pick around 1 gallon an hour in a good spot. It's worth all the effort when I open my freezer in January and have access to those delicious, nutritious berries... yum!
Everything I have read claims it is difficult if not impossible to grow productive hucklberry plants outside of their natural environment... it would be interesting to try though.
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