About 50 years ago I first visited this magnificent place.
Twas on horseback, i.e., my Half Arabian mare named Tiny.
We rode in from a mountain trail and spent the night bedded down in one of the meadows.
The occasion: the Gold n' Grouse 4-H Trail ride.
Dan Lund, a club member, had invited me to go along. My memory on the details of the experience is a bit sketchy, but I'm pretty sure we started and finished at the McNall Ranch in Grouse Creek.
I also remember that Ruby Lund, Dan's mother, was one of the main cooks.
And, I always tell the story about how Leonard Wood taught me what to do when encountering packed-in snow on a steep mountain grade.
He told me to get off from Tiny, wrap the reins around her neck, get behind her, hold on to her tail and send her up the hill.
It worked.
When we rode into Boulder Meadows that first time, I thought it was one of the most beautiful places I had ever seen.
Now, 50 years and dozens of trips later (by car and then on foot), I still hold the area in great esteem.
Yesterday was the first time that I recall walking through the meadows in the month of July. Usually, we go in June or in the fall.
One disturbing aspect that I noticed right away was the amount of hawk weed that has taken over along the trail leading off from the camp site.
Bill and I both agreed that it's probably been there for a few years; we just haven't seen it in bloom.
That aside, the place was teeming with wildflowers, the usual lush, green grass, old grayish white snags, and those striking pointed alpine evergreens.
Light also plays a factor in a walk through the meadow with a nice blend of shade where wildflowers provide beautiful accents to the greenery and open sunny areas showcasing the abundance of rich grass.
Unlike last year, when we visited at an earlier time, we could easily cross the smaller creeks without getting our feet too wet.
Crossing a creek and walking a trail was a big deal for me yesterday, especially after nearly eight months of dealing with knee pain, lower back pain and topped off by merciless plantar fasciitis.
I have medical experts, some exercise regimen and orthotics to thank for eventually getting myself back to somewhat normal.
I don't think old bodies ever get back to normal and I don't have plans to climb Scotchman Peak, but I can happily say this morning that our brief walk along the trails yesterday turned out pain free.
We took it easy, avoiding hills, but the experience still felt like a major triumph. To have such an experience in one of my favorite places was exhilarating.
As is usual on our visits, we met two nice young people at the beginning of the trail, Jack and Stacey, both University of Montana grads.
Jack works for Idaho Fish and Game out of Farragut. He and Stacey, who works at a store in Frenchtown, Mont., had gone on a hike to check on game cameras put out by IDFG.
At the end of our walk, we met a couple from the Twenty Mile area who had been walking with their two big beautiful dogs.
Other than that, we had Boulder Meadows completely to ourselves.
Before heading up Twenty Mile Road, we had stopped at the Naples Store--which I just learned has a hardware section, to buy some small buckets in case we found huckleberries.
Bill remarked, as we walked out the door, that those three white buckets cost $6 apiece.
"Well, we'd better get berries," I said.
We've heard that the berries are good this year. Well, we couldn't even find green berries on the bushes along our route.
Bushes were empty.
Later, on our trip back from Boulder Meadows, we met Daniel and Grace, who had parked and walked to the roadside to check out the berry situation.
They hadn't found pay dirt either, but Daniel, who's a member of the Kootenai Tribe, has his berry spots and didn't seem too worried about finding a good supply.
He told Bill he had been picking berries since he was a little boy. He also recalled the time he brought back a couple of buckets of berries and his grandmother asked to see his tongue.
It was pink.
Daniel did not eat berries while picking.
I can identify with that because I like sugar with my huckleberries, but I have known others to enjoy the berries fresh off the bush.
Anywho, we brought back three valuable white buckets with no purple contents.
As usual, the return to Boulder Meadows added one more lovely memory to my Boulder Meadows collection.
A truly beautiful segment of this earth.
Thanks to the Gold n' Grouse 4-H Club for introducing me to these gorgeous meadows so long ago.
And, deep gratitude to the medical professionals who helped me navigate through the past several months of pain.
It was great to be out walking the trails again.
Enjoy the photos.
No comments:
Post a Comment