Mosaic Monday# 89: A-campin' We Did Go

Hollyhock

Some hikes get rated a lowly "ho-hum", while others enchant and electrify.  Our latest adventure to Granite Lake has secured a place in the latter category.  In fact, I would say it is in my top 5 of hikes completed in the last 3 years (and there have been 56 unrepeated hikes in that time).  Why?  The trail offered frequent (good) surprises.  For example, it would be dense as a jungle one minute, and barren under deep cedars the next.  The undulating terrain, with four creek crossings, meant an opportunity to use ALL our leg muscles!  I observed some new plants, which always makes for a winner with me.  Finally, the geography around the lake itself was also unique - Flavell Ridge to the left, a notch with a sky-high waterfall (from Blackwell Glacier) in the middle, and "A Peak" to the right.  (Yes, that is the genuine name of the mountain!)  Are you ready to go virtual camping with me?  Let's go!

Somebody really wants you to
know that there are 4!!

As we reached the end of our two-hour drive to the trailhead, we passed a bearded man on a bicycle.  He caught up with us before we departed, with a cheery "Did you see the moose?"  Apparently, back a bit on the road, a mama moose had been grazing the hillside with two calves.  Shucks - we probably were too focused on the map ...  For the next two days, we kept our eyes peeled, and saw nary an Alces alces.  Two cars were already parked at the trailhead, and later in the day we would meet a young man followed by a middle-aged man, travelling separately and both returning from the lake.  This meant a high probability that we would have the lake to ourselves!!!  But first we would have to navigate Granite Creek FOUR times ...

We left the trailhead at 10 am, and 5 hours later we had traversed 6 miles and climbed 2000 feet.  This is a snail's pace for us, and part of the delay was the first stream crossing.  We followed some helpful orange "ribbon" to a spot with an easier passage (lower water flow), but it made finding the trail on the other side more difficult.  (On our return, we stuck to  the bona fide trail and the creek crossing was perfectly manageable, saving us significant time.  Descent from the lake only took us four hours.)  In case you are not familiar with stream crossings, this involves taking off your pack, removing your boots and socks, donning your water shoes, hoisting your pack with your boots strung around your neck, striding quickly but safely through ice cold water and then rewinding the process on the other side.  I would estimate each crossing adds 15 minutes to the hike.  Do the math - four crossings - an extra hour!  We got lucky that a MASSIVE cedar had conveniently fallen across the creek right at a crossing - here I am strolling over it.

Early on the hike, I saw that hollyhocks and a purple-flowering plant were predominant.  At first glance, I thought it might be a larkspur, but closer examination suggested the pea family.  Wrong on both counts!  My purchase of Plants of the Rocky Mountains a couple of years ago has been a godsend for identifying flowers, shrubs and trees.  In this case, I discerned that my purple majesties are Columbian Monkshood.  You can be lured into its velvety folds, but you should be aware that all parts of the plant contain the poisonous alkaloid aconitine.  The flowers are harmless to handle, but are violently poisonous if eaten.  Just touching it can cause tingling, numbness, and in severe cases, heart problems.  Less than 20 ounces of the roots is fatal to a horse.   Beautiful but potentially deadly.

Shortly after the first stream crossing, we passed between two towering cedars, both adorned with carved signs denoting "Cabinet Mountains Wilderness/Kootenai National Forest".  Clearly, the one on the right has seen better days, and someone saw fit to add the one on the left.  Eagle eyes might also detect that Man with Hat is Man with Hat 2.  As I reported in this post, a little too much fun in the sun had taken its toll on Hat, and it has been reassigned to purely fishing duties.  So, today, we officially welcome Hat 2.

The slightly wider brim bumps into the backpack when it is full, so I
added a button that allows Man with Hat to secure the brim in
the upright and locked position

Within a half mile of the official entrance to the Cabinets, we arrived at a waterfall that has no name, but is accompanied by a fire circle, logs arranged in a seating area and several bare, flat spaces that have accommodated numerous tents.  The ideal spot for a break and a snack!  On a warmer day, this could be a superb swimming hole.  Check out the video below the picture!

Foamflower

At this point, we began to enter the deeply wooded sections of the trail.  Eons' worth of cedar needles muffled our footfalls.  Flights of fantasy imagined fairies, suspended behind the ferns, giggling at the clumsy hikers.  Aptly named foam flower floated above the forest floor on almost invisible stems.  And, lest you think nothing can grow under the limitless canopy, suddenly a grouping of orchids appears before you, prompting me to say "Hello, and what might you be?"  I am not entirely satisfied with these photos, but these orchids are so small that they are hard to photograph with my phone.  Also, I suspect they were a bit past their prime.  Nevertheless, my book once again came to the rescue and I can tell you these are Spotted Coralroot Orchids.

Before the fourth and final stream crossing, the scenery opened up enough to offer our first view of spectacular A Peak.  Near here, yellow columbines added themselves to the floral display.

Left: Yellow Columbines;  Upper Right: A Peak; Lower Right: A hand-carved sign points the way to Granite Lake

The last creek crossing is a half-mile before the lake, and our pace quickened in anticipation.  We emerged from the woods to this jaw-dropping view of A Peak, with Granite Lake below it.  A full 4000 feet below it.  You could be deceived into imagining that A Peak was leaning over the lake, its upper reaches about to crash into the water below at any instant.  After some moments of stunned admiration, we commenced the normal activities of setting up camp.  Choosing a site.  Erecting the tent.  Hanging the backpacks in a bear-safe manner.  And then Man with Hat went fishing.  (It was quite windy and he did not have much luck.)  I sat on the log jam at the outlet of the lake, doing word searches and keeping an eye out for birds.  A few dippers and a bald eagle made an appearance.  It was a delight to watch the light changing as afternoon morphed into evening.

We will buy the mac n' cheese dinner again (it was a new one for us).  All too soon it was time to retire to the tent.  As we brushed our teeth, a single mule deer approached through the woods.  She did not move off; she clearly wanted to be right there.  Strange.  After we had zipped ourselves into the tent, we heard something knock over the trekking poles, which we had left propped near the seating area of the fire circle.  Man without Hat peered into the gathering darkness, and darn if it wasn't that mule deer again.  He got out and brought the poles over to the end of the tent.  Snuggled down into our sleeping bags once again, it wasn't too long before we could hear the poles banging around right above our heads.  Yep, you guessed it - the deer.  We reckon she was after the salt on the handles from our perspiration.  The poles were moved inside the vestibule of the tent, and that finally seemed to put her off.  But my nerves were jangling and it took me quite a while to drift off to the land of Nod.

Early to bed, early to rise.  We emerged from the tent at 6 AM, witness to the sun's artwork - she had flicked her paint brush over the top of A Peak - stunning!

When you arise early, it is a license for a slow start.  Some coffee.  A fire.  Navel-gazing and contemplating the wonders of the universe.  We wandered down the trail to one of the "ponds" created by Granite Creek, in the hope that we might spot a morning moose.  Not that day.  But nothing could dispel our joy to be the only two humans in this incredible slice of paradise, with nothing more than birdsong to disturb the peace.

And did I mention the birthday of a certain Man with Hat?  Yes, this day also welcomed another circle around the sun for my esteemed husband.  No cake with candles, but I did carry two cards in my backpack for him to open in the morning.  Happy Birthday again, my dear!

The previous day, Man with Hat described the far end of the lake, which he had been able to access via his inflatable pack raft.  "You think it's spectacular from here?  You should see it up close!"  And so it was that I found myself paddling away to distant shores.  And he was right.  The sheer scale of the cliffs.  The myriad of waterfalls that can only be seen when you get close.  The incessant pounding of the water on rock as it leaps downward from the glacier to the lake.  The below mosaic is the best of the pictures that I took from the boat, and the video may help you visualize some of the waterfalls.

While Man with Hat gave fishing another try (still not much luck), I resumed my word-search/bird-watching game, this time with a bit more success.  Audubon's Warbler.  Steller's Jay.  Western Tanager.  And a lovely swallowtail butterfly floated past, alighting on a nearby Cow Parsnip.

It had been a thoroughly delightful morning, but all good things must come to and end, and so we departed the camp at noon.  On a hike, I never take all the pictures that I want to on the way out - it would take too long and more importantly, I might wear out the patience of one Man with Hat.  So, I had my mental list of plants to capture on our return route. 

Upper right: Nodding Onion; Middle right: Stonecrop; Lower right: Fruit of Solomon's Seal

Left: Fading lupines; Upper right: Bead lily, ferns and moss on a rock; Lower right: Aspen Fleabane

At the outset of this post (I know, that was a LONG time ago), I mentioned the dense jungle.  Check out these pictures.

Left: if you look closely, you can see a cow parsnip that is taller than Man with Hat

I am always amazed that I miss something along the way.  As we returned, I spotted these showy white flowers.  Hmmm, what could they be?  A quick consultation of my Plants bible identified them as Mock Orange.  Really?  I have two of these in my garden and they don't look anything like this!  It is now my aspiration!

On the way down, we passed a couple with a dog, and later, a single man intent on some fishing.  We encouraged them to persist through the stream crossings, the jungle and the spooky forest.  As we experienced it, the glory of Granite Lake is something meant to be shared. 

Mosaic Monday

Welcome to Mosaic Monday, a weekly meme where we get together to share our photo mosaics and collages.  Please include at least one photo mosaic/collage in your post.  The link will be open from 1 p.m. Sunday until 11 p.m. Monday (U.S. Mountain Time).  Remember to add the link to your Mosaic Monday post and not the one to your blog.  Please link back to this post so that your readers will be able to visit and enjoy more wonderful mosaics; taking the MM blog button from my sidebar is an easy way to link back.  As host I will visit every participant and leave a comment so that you know I stopped by.  Please try and visit as many other blogs as you can, especially those that join later, so that everyone's creativity can be appreciated fully.  Thanks for joining in today and sharing your mosaics with us.

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