PICTURE FROM "CHIEF TIMOTHY TRAIL"

Pepper's people did indeed return, though with some disappointment in their Florida vacation. They suffered identity theft immediately, had rental car issues, and were disappointed in the loss of historic ambiance in some of the old communities.Two of the quilt shops on their route were out of business. When the airline offered them the opportunity to return a day early, they took it, so Ken was available to walk the dogs with us Thursday afternoon. And yesterday (Sunday, April 22), we got together again to walk the dogs on "Chief Timothy trail." This time I took the camera.

Trees in bloom; hills turn green

It was a lovely warm afternoon. I was too warm in my sweatshirt. We're now at that point where mornings and evenings are chilly while afternoons are quite warm, necessitating a change of clothes or layering.

Mike with Nellie and Bess

In fact, it was warm enough that Pepper and Bess chased sticks in the river, and Nellie waded in for a good long drink.

 
Many trees along the river are in bloom now, loaded with white blossoms. I'm not an expert in tree identification, so I'm not sure. Serviceberry? Maybe -- and that would make sense. I thought of hawthorn, which also does well here, but the blossom doesn't seem right.

Blackberry bushes grow in abundance along that trail, but Mike suggests it's a popular area at picking time. He might be right because it's very accessible. 

And then we came upon a different tree with larger white blossoms. Very pretty. I can't identify it either.

From the time we left the house until we returned, it was more than two hours. I think we walked about three miles. KW

ANOTHER NATURE HIKE

Wildlife Management Area on the Snake River near Asotin, WA

 Over the past week, we have been exercising three dogs – Bess, Nellie, and our friend Pepper. Bess and Pepper run and play while Nellie explores here and there at her leisure. So, we’ve been hiking in spots where dogs are welcome and we don’t have to worry about traffic. Our favorite is Critchfield Gulch, which is in our neighborhood. But there are other nice places.

Shirtsleeve weather -- finally!

Monday we went to a wildlife area near Chief Timothy Island, but the sky looked threatening and I didn’t take the camera. Pepper is boarded with her veterinarian, and on Tuesday she had her teeth cleaned, so we didn’t take her out. But yesterday was a lovely warm afternoon and we went to the Wildlife Management Area just beyond Asotin on the Snake River. The pictures here were taken there.

Interesting rock formations

Trophy houses with views

I’m not entirely comfortable with these hikes. The trail winds through grass, and it’s tick season. I removed a white one from Nellie’s head yesterday, and Mike felt one crawling on his neck this morning. Mike says he can always feel them, but I have a vivid imagination and feel them crawling whether they’re there or not.

Scenic

As we returned to the parking lot at the wildlife area, a young man pulled in and said that he was planning to fish. Mike asked if he could be successful when the water is so high. He said he had been in the past and would give it a try. 

Yarrow is everywhere

I think Pepper’s people return tonight, so our time of responsibility for her exercise comes to a close. KW

. . . AND MAMA IN HER KERCHIEF AND I IN MY CAP . . .

We're in the midst of a cold snap. It's not that cold snaps in February don't happen, but week before last the weather was so mild that Mike was doing yard work. "It's too soon," I said, continuing to nest in my sewing room. Nevertheless, we really didn't expect it to get as cold as it is -- lows around 20 with highs at 35 or so with a windchill about 10 degrees lower.

I don't think I told you this, but early in January Mike installed a blade on our 4-wheeler. He had intended to do it last year but forgot about it, and a white Christmas at the farm showed us again that if we had a blade, perhaps we could shovel the lane, thus making ourselves more self-reliant. A blade might also be useful for shoveling a little dirt now and again. 

So, Mike installed the blade and a manual lift, then removed the blade again, thinking he would have no call to use it this winter. But this morning we awoke to an inch of snow (if that) and he was determined to try his blade. First he had to re-attach the blade, and he then shoveled our driveway. Yeah -- it was sorta silly, I thought, since there wasn't much snow. But he was pleased that he didn't have to shovel it manually.

Mike hikes above Critchfield Rd. Snake River just visible. Snow on mountains.

It's been a winter of updates and fixes -- the blade for the 4-wheeler, a new laptop (by necessity), a fix for our old farm clock (a family heirloom), and a new charging unit for the camera. While I was fixing things, I took my sewing machine to the shop. These early months of 2018 have seemed stressful. Hopefully we're coming out on the other side.

Oh -- and Nellie has been "under the weather," as we say, this past week. Is this the end, we wondered, or will we get her through this and she'll continue for another six years. She was not down and out -- just difficult to care for. She's better now. In fact, yesterday we hiked a draw in our neighborhood, and she really enjoyed it. Everyone beat me back to the Dakota. KW

[This is the first time I've uploaded a video. Now that I know I can, I'll do better next time.]

THE LAST DAY OF SUMMER -- A WALK WITH NELLIE

I try to keep current with my blog posts – or else in the distant past. Nevertheless, when I took the pictures off my camera, I discovered that I had some nice landscape photos taken last Thursday, Sept. 21, the last day of summer. Mike had taken Bess and gone hunting. (The figure in the field in the above photo is Mike, and I think I see Bess, too.) So Nellie and I decided to take our own walk/hike.

As you can see, it was a brilliant afternoon with billowy white clouds. We headed down the lane and into the draw. Nellie has become a creature of habit and questions a deviation, but I convinced her we should take a new route, i.e., not climb Plank’s Pitch. I don't think she minds the Pitch much, but I do. From the draw, we proceeded into the gully, and Nellie enjoyed poking around in the grass and under the trees while I climbed into the field. The landmarks were familiar to us. We weren’t lost.

As we circled down into the old Plank field, we were then on the other side of the gully. I stayed above while Nellie explored near the brush. She found a deer trail under some trees and bushes, but surprisingly, she stopped and looked back at me as if to say, “Come down here, please. I want to go into this brush but not without your presence.” So, she waited patiently while I descended to her, and then she went into the brush to check it out. She didn’t stay there long, and we were once again on our way around the field.

At 14, Nellie has her physical challenges, but she can still negotiate pretty well in the field. Above, she takes the shortcut back to the lane.

This spectacular cloud appears to grow behind the house. Looking closely at the picture, you can see Nellie trotting back to the house through the field. She prefers the field to the gravel in the road.

 

Predictably, as evening approached, a storm developed.

Saturday Nellie and I again took a little walk. This time in order to avoid Plank’s Pitch we circled down off the road, entering June's field at the northern edge so that I could examine the elderberry and apple trees. And then we walked back to the house in the field above the lane. KW

MORNING WALKS

Central Ridge on the other side of Little Canyon

Nellie -- still walking

Rapeseed

Things start quickly with Mike in the morning. He’s outside first thing, and he might even walk the dogs before breakfast. I prefer a more leisurely approach to my day, but recently I’ve been trying to keep up with the morning routine that Mike and the dogs pursue. It’s so much more pleasant to walk in the morning than late in the day when it’s hot, though we walk then, too.

Cottonwood Butte in the distance

I usually take the camera along, just in case something unusual comes up – or more usually, in case the beauty of ordinary things strikes me.

And so, this is just a post to show some morning pictures, but I’m preparing another on serviceberries. KW

One day this old barn will be gone.

AN AFTERNOON HIKE

Here at the MW Homestead, we feel a little hemmed in, what with the sea of rapeseed all around. In previous years, the grain crops – or the lack of crop – has not prevented our moving around the property, but this year the dense growth confines us to the yard or to the road. Until harvest, we’re unable to hike around the property.

“I thought of someplace we could go,” said Mike when it was time for yesterday afternoon’s walk. As it happened, I had thought of a similar route. So, we headed down the lane to the draw . . . 

 

and from the draw we climbed a bank to access the neighbor’s field. 

 

Then we hiked around the edge of the fields . . . 

 

 

 

. . . until we were back at the road and home by the lane. 

It was at least an opportunity for some different shots of the house and the fields. It’s always the same subject. The changes are in the vegetation, light and shadow, unusual events – well, you know. This year is unique because of the rapeseed fields, which we’ve never had before, so I have taken a lot of pictures. KW