Letting Go of the Bay Leaf

Sunday, August 4, 2019

Mosaic Monday #39: Summer Days, Drifting Away

Female Nokomis Fritillary butterfly on bee balm in my garden - thanks to
David of Travels with Birds for the identification

"August is like the Sunday of summer." Unknown.

Well, folks, I don't know about you, but I am not even close to ready for summer to flit on by, so we are going to ignore for the moment that the calendar page has inexorably flipped to August. Instead, we shall linger in those lazy (well, maybe not so lazy), hazy (well, we actually have crystal blue skies here in Montana) days of July 2019.

Evening light at our lake

How did you spend your July?

It will come as no surprise to you that I treasure the long light of summer. It enables early mornings on the deck, with coffee of course. Or twilight walks to the lake at the bottom of our property. And sunset kayaking with my dear neighbor friend on her lake.

Early July saw regular rainfall, and I reveled in pulling on my wellies and wandering a sparkling fresh world.

Storm clouds gather on the western horizon

The naturally occurring plants on our property provide unending entertainment and photo opportunities for me.

Left: Showy Death Camas Upper right: Blue-eyed Grass

Lower right: White Spirea

On one such outing, my little eye spied something white in the dead branches of a lodgepole pine. Can you see it? Hmmm .... what could that be?

Upon closer inspection, it was easy to identify a mushroom, impaled on the branch. Now, how did that GET there? Why, your local neighborhood squirrel put it there.

Being off the ground helps the mushrooms dry quickly and become tough and brittle. These dried mushrooms resist decay and the squirrels stash them away for winter snacks. For me, this falls in the category of "Now I have seen everything!"

Everyone knows the saying "Make hay while the sun shines," and now Spousal Unit and I have a new appreciation for it. My dear neighbor friend and her entire family engage deeply in the haying process during the summer. When conditions are right, it's all hands on deck for this labor-intensive operation. That's how we found ourselves at the farm, helping where it was needed most. (Actually, my role was observer and photographer.)

Mowing. Mown hay has to dry thoroughly before it can be raked and baled.

Raking - Spousal Unit is driving the red tractor, a 1959 Ford

Workmaster 641 - suffice it to say he was like a kid in a

candy store!

Baling - hubby of my dear neighbor friend drives the

tractor while his grand-daughter drives the baler

under the careful oversight of her dad

Looks simple and organized, but the bales to the left and the mown hay to the right - a gargantuan team effort

Spousal Unit loads bales onto the sled while my dear neighbor friend

drives the tractor

Spousal Unit moves bales from sled to elevator, which takes them to

the hay loft, where dear neighbor friend stacks them

Hay loft. This hay is kept for the farm to use; the

rest is sold and goes direct from the field to the customer.

Work hard, play hard. That could be Montana's motto. So, when my dear neighbor friend needs to relax after all that haying, she kayaks on the lake. And sometimes I am along for the ride.

We got this close to the loon nest only after concluding that the eggs were unlikely to hatch. And wrong we were -
2 weeks later the eggs lay broken in the nest and the young ones were bobbing about

Stuffed breakfast biscuits

The family summer vacation is as iconic as motherhood and apple pie, and during July we were glad to welcome friends from Cleveland, along with their twin sons. In his usual fashion, Head Chef fed them well.

A highlight of the visit was our hike along the Highline in Glacier National Park. But that's a subject for a future post. For now, I will tease you with a picture taken by one of our visitors - this year is a bumper crop of beargrass!

Of course, there's nothing like a summer night to light a fire and host neighbors and friends for chit-chat and s'mores. When the last guest has gone, and the stars are sprinkled on the night sky like so much glittery confetti, we linger by the fire. And we give thanks. For our dream home. For excellent health, to enjoy the glorious world on our doorstep. For good neighbors. And for long summer days, even as they drift into the past.

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 in later, so that everyone's creativity can be appreciated fully.
Thank you for joining in today and sharing your mosaics with us.

Thursday, August 1, 2019

A Piece of Cake

Carrot Strawberry Jell-O Cake

I have been looking forward to this post for ages. Finally, a chance to link up with other memes, and thus give back to those who have faithfully linked to Mosaic Monday. An opportunity to write a simpler post than I normally do, spotlighting a few recent fun subjects without the need for structure or logical flow. I know, I am a nut, but for me this is freedom! Having my cake, and eating it, too!

I made this cake as an experiment since I have learned the hard way that baking at altitude can be unpredictable, even with guidance from "Pie in the Sky - Successful Baking at High Altitudes". I had it in mind for a future Munch and Make gathering, and I wanted some quality assurance. The result was a delicious cake that provided many a breakfast pastry for Spousal Unit and me. On the other hand, it is a long process, and I am not sure I will always have the time for it. (And I grabbed the wrong Jell-O from the pantry - this should have been a strawberry Jell-O rather than vanilla pudding. I liked it anyway!) If you would like to try it, visit Natalia for the recipe.

On the subject of cakes - Fleur Bakery in Whitefish recently moved into bigger digs on the main street of town. I love a good coffee/tea shop, so this was good news to me. The bakery filled a gap left when the Red Caboose closed - the Red Caboose had a cool vibe and comfy seating, and I was sad to see it go. So I had to check it out. I've been in twice and so far I will give it a B. Robust coffee but I have to ask for sugar. Seating is a little formal - I would like a few oversized chairs or couches. Macaron was average; the beet tartine made up for it!

And the dainty china is a nice touch

Do you have a gift shop that is your 'go-to' for unique items? For me, it is Flair in Kalispell. Many Montana-made gifts. A diverse selection of funny items such as socks with patterns or quotes. So for a recent birthday, I dropped in. I walk the whole shop, with a particular eye for the sale rack. This day, bingo! Lately, every time I pull out my wallet, I have been a bit embarrassed by the worn corners. So, this charming wallet caught my eye - and on sale, too! Oh, don't worry, I didn't forget the birthday present.

"Caution" socks for Spousal Unit's birthday - THAT'S a
story for another post!

I know all of you have been worried sick about my unfinished Christmas ornaments. At last report, 25 out of 30 were complete. Drum roll, please! All done! After all, as some retail outlets are already telling us, only 146 days until Christmas!

Josie really does have 2 ears!

Aren't sleeping cats just adorable? Most of the time, my attempts to sneak up on them are unsuccessful - darn them for having such good hearing! But this day, I managed a couple of cute shots.

Despite the heat, Maggie likes to cover her nose ...

Last night, our neighbor stopped by and surprised us with Flathead Lake cherries. Cherries thrive along the shores of the largest fresh-water lake in the US west of the Mississippi. The combination of a northern climate and winter temperatures moderated by a huge water body, provide ideal growing conditions. SOOOO good.

This morning, our son sent us pictures from the UK, where he is visiting his paternal grandparents. This warmed my heart in so many ways - we are thrilled that he gets this special two-on-one time with them. Also, it is delightful to know he is thinking of US! And, while visiting the Thorp Perrow Arboretum, he was so thoughtful to take pictures of subjects he knew would interest us. Here are a few.

I hope you've enjoyed this post as much as I have reveled in putting it together. From Montana, wishing you the joy of the simple things in life!

Please do take the time to visit my fellow blog hosts at the following memes! I appreciate you all.

All Seasons
Friday Bliss
I Like Thursday
Nature Notes
Saturday's Critters
Thankful Thursday
Wandering Camera
Willy Nilly Friday

Sunday, July 28, 2019

Mosaic Monday #38: The Beanie, The Gaiter and The Wife

Fit as a fiddle at Lubec Trailhead

What do these three things have in common? As of 2 pm Mountain Time on Wednesday, all of them were nearly blown off Calf Robe Mountain while hiking near Firebrand Pass. That's right, this is the latest installment in "How to Risk Your Life While Hiking" series. Read on, dear readers, read on!

The day started well enough. Spousal Unit obtained our pre-reserved back-country camping permit without incident, setting us up to enjoy one night each of camping at Ole Lake and Ole Creek. My dear neighbor friend played shuttle, so that we could leave a vehicle at our exit point. As we drove, we talked about Ole Lake's reputation for mosquito infestation, and she mentioned that we were unlikely to be pestered by the winged ones given the wind advisory. Little did we know how true that would be!

Monkeyflower

After bidding her a fond farewell, we departed the trailhead with great expectations for the adventure ahead. In June, we completed our one-night backcountry camping "experiment" (see June 23 post), and this two-nighter presented additional challenge and FUN! I was immediately enthralled with the trail as it passed through colorful meadows and aspen groves stunted by decades of wind and harsh winters. Mushrooms were abundant, some as big as dinner plates. At one gap in the trees, we glimpsed a spectacular beaver dam, together with its lodge.

Yes, that is my boot in the lower picture to give you a sense of size!

Upper Left: Parrot's Beak; Upper right: Lupines in meadow

Bottom left: Aspens; Bottom right: Caterpillar

As we continued our ascent, we met about 20 people already on the descent (one group of 12 might have been an organized hike), and all warned that they failed to reach the summit due to the wind. One buff-looking hiker, who planned (like us) to camp at Ole Lake, described himself as crawling across the Pass. He decided to turn back - if something happened to him, who would be there to help? (I suppose that's why the permit advises AGAINST solo hiking?) Another hiker cautioned that the wind could easily whip your hat or sunglasses off your head.

Top: Lupines

Bottom left: Lanceleaf Stonecrop Bottom right: Monkeyflower

We thanked them and proceeded; we could SURELY handle it! As we reached the final slope before the Pass, I was knocked over by - you guessed it - the wind. I landed on a flat slab to the right of the trail, grazing and bruising a significant portion of my right thigh.

Approaching the Pass - looks calm, doesn't it?

I picked myself up, examined the damage and carried on. We could see two approaches to the pass - the normal trail to the left across a scree and a small snow field, and a steeper animal trail that appeared more sheltered by trees and the normal topography. We opted for the latter (against regulations!!!)

Firebrand Pass is the flat spot straight ahead between the two mountains. If you look closely at the left-hand

mountain, you can make out the trail crossing the rock scree halfway up the mountain

Man with Beanie hunkers down behind trees

When we reached the top, we could not believe the force of the wind. (I wish now that I had taken a video so that you could at least hear it.) A cairn in the middle of the pass seemed to mark the way, and Man with Beanie made his way to it, deeply crouching. I was half-seated on the rocks some distance from him, and I finally decided to crab my way over to him (just like a baby might before it learns to crawl) because we couldn't even communicate over the howling of the wind. Once I reached him, we talked over the options and decided to descend a short distance backwards and take shelter for an hour behind some trees. Maybe the wind would ease. As we reversed course, the wind grabbed his beanie and tossed it into the air. Lucky for him, we found it lodged in some moss a short distance away.

While we were waiting, I went as far as I dared onto the Pass to get a shot of the view westward. This picture is like offering candy to a baby - you want more!

After 30 minutes and no sign of the wind abating, we decided to approach the south side of the Pass, in the hopes it might be more sheltered. Nope. A very short distance demonstrated the wind power, even pulling a neck gaiter out of the pocket of Man Not Wearing Beanie. Once again, we quickly located the gaiter as we beat a hasty retreat. Defeated, we began our descent. By now we knew it would be necessary to hitch a ride to our truck, parked at the exit point. Appearing on the mountain above us, like manna from heaven, came a young couple. We shared our wind stories, and then I asked if they were heading our direction. They kindly agreed to give us a ride as long as it would not delay them in picking up their daughter from daycare. Perhaps I was thinking too much about keeping pace with people 20 years younger than me - a few minutes later, before I knew what was happening, the wind had pushed me off the narrow trail. Belly down on the rocks, I was clinging to the edge of the trail to prevent sliding down the scree field. Man Not Wearing Beanie and the young couple ran to my aid. I suffered a hard blow to my right forearm that left a quail's egg size lump, scrapes on my right shin and a broken nail on my left hand from scrabbling at the rocks. It could have been much worse! We have since learned that some people call this area of the mountain the Elephant's graveyard. It could have been mine!

The good news? We didn't see a single mosquito all day!

AND we decided that we deserved a night that did not involve a tent or wind, and that's how we found ourselves at the Izaak Walton Inn, enjoying all of its creature comforts - adult beverages, a hot shower, a delectable meal and a comfortable bed.

The next day, we cooked our camp breakfast on the tailgate, parked at the Bear Creek put-in on the Middle Fork of the Flathead River. Not quite the Ole Lake campground, but the oatmeal with a handful of dried blueberries was delicious.

By 9.15, we were on the trail to Ole Creek. After a mile, the Fielding Patrol Station cabin was a pleasant surprise, situated in a lovely meadow with a small stream running behind it. Too bad it's not available for rental!

Left: Huckleberries

Upper right: Sulfur Buckwheat Lower right: Nodding Onion

We covered the 3.5 miles to the campground in short order, noting the location of a bumper huckleberry crop that we could pick on our way out the next day.

Of course, there was one more hurdle to jump before reaching the campground - Ole Creek has no bridge, is deep enough that it must be forded and of course the campground is on the other side!!! Below is a video of me fording the river the next day so you can get the idea. Trust me, that water was bone-chilling cold!

Ole Creek Campground is a delightful camp nestled between Ole Creek and Soldier Creek, which runs directly behind the food prep area. Quite convenient when you need water for your meal or coffee! The tent was up in no time, and since we had arrived so early, we passed the time rambling a couple miles further along the trail, collecting firewood and playing cards by the fire.

We were very amused to discover a new style of pit toilet at this campground - new to us anyway! We have since heard that this is called a "low rider" and is likely to become more common than the small shed-style pit toilet. Not sure how I feel about THAT!

After our gourmet dinner, we strolled back to Ole Creek to collect more firewood, followed by a dessert of s'mores with coffee. The Honey Jack was a special treat.

Earlier in the day, we had predicted the day would close without seeing a soul, but just as we were preparing to go in the tent, three hikers appeared. They had already covered 20 miles, and planned to finish the day with the 3.5 miles back to the trailhead. Wow! I hope the mosquitoes did not pursue them; they were sure nipping at us on our way to the tent!

It was a cold night and we were pleased to have our "long johns" and our down sleeping bags. Hot coffee and a campfire were a welcome start the next morning.

All too soon we had packed up camp, forded the creek (brrr …) and left the Ole Creek valley below us. We stopped only to pick hucks (a half gallon in about 30 minutes), and before we knew it, another hiking adventure was complete. Although I was a little scraped and bruised, I would not give up hiking or backcountry camping any time soon. As Man with Beanie likes to say: "This is my happy place."

Mosaic Monday