The natural world, life, and dogs.
Some runs, that’s exactly how I feel: like a kid in a candy store. Happy. Awestruck. Stunned by what I see all around me. Following fluff butts Conall and Finn up through early-season snow to a scree field where the morning sun's rays have yet to reach. This morning was one such run. Fresh snow… Continue reading Like a Kid in a Candy Store
Several years ago, sharing photos of the rural valley where I live, an acquaintance commented, “It looks…bucolic.” Walking a country road as morning fog lifts. He meant it as a slur. He considers himself cosmopolitan, despite living in…Wyoming. The word bucolic is one I fully embrace, my raison d’etre for moving to Idaho’s mountains fifteen… Continue reading Bucolic
One of the delights of autumn, in addition to the leaves on the deciduous trees and shrubs turning color, is the abundance of bright berries. Like their earlier counterparts, mountain wildflowers, berries on mountain trees and shrubs come in bright colors, tickling not only our eyes but the mouths of the birds, deer, elk and bear who rely upon them as winter approaches.
Here in the central mountains of Idaho, Sandhill cranes are a regular feature. In spring and fall large flocks travel through on their migrations, but a few stay for the summer.
This afternoon I find a cricket on the floor in my kitchen. I retrieve the glass and folded magazine page I keep handy on the dining table for removing the occasional bee or stink bug that finds a way inside. I’m allergic to bees, and my dogs hate them, so much so that they come… Continue reading Uninvited House Guests
I’m in the yard with the dogs, moving a sprinkler and shoveling dog shit over the fence into the field, typical evening chores. Suddenly both boys rush toward the fence at the edge of the yard near the front door, noses to the ground, pouncing. Conall pulls back with that look on his face I’ve… Continue reading Bird Encounters, Part II – July 3-4, 2018
An Abundance of Wildlife Encounters during a Mountain Run on July 29, 2019 Conall was on edge during our forest hike yesterday (Good Sense, posted 7-29-19, a day later). This morning I took him running on trails we visit frequently at a nearby skiing and mountain biking resort. Finn stayed home because I wanted to… Continue reading Like Being in a Nature Film
This morning, we saw one. A wolf. In the wild. Running a trail in a remote part of central Idaho’s Payette National Forest in August 2006, my two Malamutes and I were allowed to commune with nature in a way most can only dream of. First, the wolf and Maia exchanged direct looks. Then Meadow… Continue reading The Wolf Visit
(Warning: Long post - book chapter length - because I’ve dealt with several dog-skunk incidents over the years, and because the stories are too funny – after the fact – to keep to myself.) September 2006 – Maia and Meadow at the Flying U Ranch, British Columbia The Flying U Ranch is a dude ranch… Continue reading Skunk!
Last night around 1:00 am, a plaintive howl woke me from a deep sleep. Many years ago, I awoke to a wolf howling from the nearby forest. I haven't heard that since it became legal to kill wolves in Idaho. But this wasn't a wolf. It was my Malamute, Conall. I was instantly reminded of… Continue reading Call of the Wild
Wild Sensibility 