July 5 - Catherine's Pass and above

 Sunny day with temps in the mid-90s.

I had plans - two choices - when I woke up this morning but changed my mind and decided to head up into the Albion Basin to hike up to Catherine's Pass and over to Devil's Castle.

I arrive at the gate just after 7am, pay my fee and head up to the parking lot looking for moose, deer or coyote along the way - nothing. But there are flowers blooming - mostly tall yellow composites. They are along the road and in splotches on some mountain sides.

I have to slow for a Marmot crossing the road.

There are also rain-like looking clouds up here - hmmmm.

There are 5-6 cars already in the lot and 2 more cars that arrive soon after I do.

I quickly gear up and start up the trail.

After the initial sloping up where the trail levels out, there is a wet area with my favorites - Elephanthead and White Bog Orchid.

There's White Columbine in bloom too (as well as many others).

Can't for too long as the mosquitoes are out this morning. Nothing horrid (which is getting swarmed) but there are 5-10 buzzing around if I stop. Irritating.

It's uphill until I reach the meadow which looking nice this morning but no moose or deer. :(

Then it's more up until I reach Catherine's Pass. There are already few people here and some heading down. Again, not somewhere you want to stay too long but I do take a break for a few minutes.

It's still cloudy but there's signs of clearing to the west.

Then it's back uphill heading to Sunset Pass. Hey, I find Sulphur Paintbrush along the way.

I make my normal stop to look down onto Catherine Lake below and Lake Mary in the distance. The dark clouds are definitely adding to the morning sky.


Then it's up to Sunset Pass to check out the view of Mt Timp this morning. Pretty awesome!

I then head over towards Devil's Castle stopping for view a Mt Bluebird


and some flowers and view along the way.

Soon Devils Castle and the Supreme Lift are in view. I head over to the life for a look down the slopes. 

I think about heading down past Devils Castle and back thru the campground (I found this loop last summer when I camp below the Supreme Lift) but there were people starting down it AND I thinking the sun might come out which make butterflies possible.

Time to return to Catherine's Pass stopping to watch a Yellow Rumped Warble. Took me a while to get a photo as he kept hopping around.


I pass a bunch of people at Catherine's Pass and continue down.

At the end of the meadow, I see a Lazuli's Bunting. Funny, I've never seen one until my trip to Corner Canyon this Spring. I saw one at the Mormon Trail on Saturday and my 3rd now. Wonder why that it?

Farther down the trail, not far from those Elephanthead, I see my 4th Lazuli Bunting of the year and my life. Cool!

Good day!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Dec 5 - Sentry Trail (Antelope Island)

Image
Sunny day with temps near 50 degrees. Heading out to Antelope Island with the goal of hiking Sentry Trail. I arrive around 8:30am and as I cross the causeway I see a Kestrel what I think is a Northern Harrier (he's here every year) and surprise(!!) a Bald Eagle. It's December so its not unlikely but cold, snowy weather brings them down here and we have had none of the above. Maybe it's colder, snowier in Idaho but very much a surprise to see!! Lots of duck hunters out this morning. water levels are too low for boats so they are just standing in the water with their decoys. Still can' t believe they can hunt so close to people but it is what it is. I reach the island and head south towards the Ranch. Behind the Visitor's Center, I find one bison. Quiet drive until I reach Frary Peak. There I find a small herd of bison heading south along the mountains. A bit farther down, I spot a coyote moving north along the lake bed. A tiny bit farther, there's a herd of Prong...
Read more

Dec 18 - Antelope Island Cruise

Image
 Cold morning with temps in the upper teens but sunny skies are coming - a perfect day for a winter hike. (However, there will be no hiking today as I injured my knee while shoveling our 12 inches of unexpected snow on Wednesday. Hoping it's nothing more serious than a sprain so trying to be kind to it.) I arrive on the causeway around 8:30 am. It's sunny with temps around 20 and very little wind. There's snow along both side of the causeway and lots of frozen water (w/ a few open spots). There no Kestrel waiting this morning but there is a Rough Legged Hawk on the wheel structure (like last week and many times before). As I near the island, I see a black spot in the distance on Farmington Bay. I stop, it's a Bald Eagle! (This week I'm not surprised to see them with the snow storm and the cold temperatures.) Still lots of ducks (Shovelers, I think) near the island on the Salt Lake side. I arrive on the island and head south. I'm surprised that there are no bison...
Read more

Dec 12 - Antelope Island Cruise

Image
 Cloudy day forecast and it's 32 degrees out. Not my normal hiking day but I'm heading out to Antelope Island to check on critter movements after this weeks snow - and perhaps, squeak a hike in. I arrive on the causeway around 8:30. It's cloudy, 32 degrees. The snow that remains is almost a just a dusting across the landscape. The peaks on the island definitely has snow. As I cross I find a Kestrel and a coyote far in the distance. Duck hunters (a bunch of them) are once again near the island. I reach the island and turn south towards the Ranch. There are 2 bison along the road behind the Ranch. After them, it's quiet until just after the road to Frary Peak. (Note because of this week snow, the gates are down on the roads to the Gravel Pit, Frary Peak and Sentry Peak trail heads.) After Frary Peak, I see a lone bison moving north. Not to much farther south, there's a small herd (20'sh) of bison. A bit farther down the road is another small herd of bison. And sti...
Read more