Thursday, June 30, 2016

Boulder Meadows 2016 with Kiwi




We thought our Suburu, which had been in need of a warranty repair, would be ready yesterday and had tentatively planned to be ready to head off to Coeur d'Alene.  Finally, around 2 p.m. Bill called and learned that it may be today or maybe even tomorrow.

That knowledge opened the rest of a hot afternoon to another outing---this time Boulder Meadows.  Most of our trips to the stunningly beautiful place east of Naples off Twenty Mile Road have occurred in late June.

So, the timing was perfect.  After attending to all animals, making sure they were in safe and cool places for the rest of the afternoon, we decided to bring our 11-year-old Border Collie Kiwi along.  

She was ecstatic, as she often is.  Kiwi was blessed with extra adrenalin, and her emotions often run high.  

So, off we went, arriving at the meadows around 4 p.m.  We had them to ourselves as no other cars were parked at the entrance.  I'm sure the place will be packed this weekend.

The nice part about the meadows besides the fact that their sheer beauty makes them seem almost unreal is that visitors can easily take off across country or they can stick to the network of nicely maintained trails. 

Bill, Kiwi and I did both, first simply setting off across the first meadow, heading toward the creek.  We encountered some standing water and had to turn a different direction two or three times before finding the main trail which leads to a creek crossing. 

The nice aspect of yesterday's visit was that we had no set goal in mind other than simply enjoying a leisurely walk through lush grass accented by Indian paintbrush, buttercups and other wildflowers, and, yes, some red and yellow hawk weed.

The latter seems to have taken over areas in the back country, and I'm thinking it's probably here to stay.   

After returning to the parking lot, I suggested we try some selfies at the benches around the fire pit. Kiwi usually loves to pose for pictures, but at times her overcharged adrenalin created some interesting moves. 

Then, the question came which did not surprise me: do you mind if I go fishing for a little while?

Soon Bill and Kiwi took off toward the creek while I sat on a bench, nibbling away at tater chips, enjoying an ice-cold Sierra Nevada ale and surfing with my cell phone.  Amazing cell reception up there, as it's not far from the transmitters on Black Mountain.

In fact, on our way up there, I sent a "safe travels" message to Annie, whom I figured had long since gone to bed in Madrid.  She answered almost instantly, noting that the Spanish eat really late.  She had gone to dinner with her geocaching friend Alvaro and had just gotten back to her motel.

This morning, she has flown safely to London and is taking in all the sights and sounds and maybe even spending some dollars, thanks to the devalued pound.  Good timing there too.  

Back in Idaho, I don't know who enjoyed our outing the most---Bill, Kiwi or me----maybe it was even steven cuz any trip to Boulder Meadows is always special. 

Happy Thursday.  



































A lovely wide-open view of the Selkirks and Chimney Rock on our way home. 


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