The natural world, life, and dogs.
A forest trail run in the Payette National Forest this morning. A loop on trails maintained for mountain biking with lots of variety in terrain. Remote, at elevations between 6,000 - 7,000 feet. So peaceful. So pretty. My therapy. Maybe yours, too. Enjoy! Near a big aspen grove (the same one with the Basque tree… Continue reading Autumn in the Payette
Autumn is a second spring where every leaf is a flower. Albert Camus Change. Adapting. Each day, week, month, season, year, brings something new and evolving, something challenging, a change anticipated or maybe not, but necessary to absorb in order to move forward. My life-long mantra: Change is good. Change may not always feel good… Continue reading Everything Changes
I love aspen trees. Growing up in Seattle, in western Washington state, I was always surrounded by trees. There were the abundant evergreens – tall pines, cedars and firs. And the larches at higher elevations, that unusual pine whose needles turn yellow before dropping each autumn, adding flashes of bright color among its evergreen neighbors.… Continue reading Basque Tree Carvings
The bird has flown its nest and it is free to fly the skies of the world. The birds are gone. Well, most of the songbirds, anyway. I’m surprised how sad this makes me. This is the first summer I’ve taken an interest in any migratory birds other than the tree swallows who nest in… Continue reading Naturalism: The Birds Have Left
This weekend would normally have seen me traveling with my dogs from my home in central Idaho to the central part of Washington state. It’s a long drive, eight or nine hours each way, a trip I would only undertake for a special reason. Dog camp. My dog camp is why I make that taxing… Continue reading Dog Camp: Creating Family
All but one of these photobombs occurred in the first half of May 2020, when wildflowers were near their peak in the Payette National Forest at elevations between 4,000-4,500 feet. My dogs are patient as I constantly stop to take closeups of wildflowers when we're out in the forest. They explore nearby as they wait,… Continue reading Dog Photobombs VI: Early May 2020
Virtually all of the seasonal birds - the song birds - have departed for destinations south for the remainder of the year. I've been feeling their absence more intensely than I ever anticipated. More on that in an upcoming post. The remaining birds are those who fly these skies year round: mostly red-tailed hawks, magpies,… Continue reading Herding Ravens
Trying to get caught up - there are soooo many dog photobombs in my file folders - so here are the last I've found from 2018 and 2019. The next "edition" of photobombs will be 2020 photos. The original dog photobombs post is here, the second installment (sub-theme: fluffbutts) here, the third installment (sub-theme whatcha… Continue reading Dog Photobombs V
During a recent trail run I watched Conall do something I’ve seen him do before, but this time, in a flash of insight, it took on greater meaning. I had an “Aha!” moment. Suddenly, a behavior I’d observed without much thought was shown in a much broader and important context. Reflecting on memories of similar… Continue reading Counting the Pack
Whenever I stop to photograph wildflowers, trees, streams, cairns or vistas in the forest, my dogs patiently wait nearby, following their noses, until I'm ready to continue our run or hike. They often end up unexpectedly in the frame of my photo in classic photobombing style. This fourth installment of dog photobombs carries the sub-theme:… Continue reading Dog Photobombs IV
Wild Sensibility 