Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Fall is here and winters right around the corner.


This beautiful little girl hung around the yard most of the day eating apples and carrots. Judging from her size I'd say she was born this spring.


About a half block from the house is a dirt road going straight up the mountain into Washington forest lands. Donna and Riley took about a mile hike up the road with the dogs last week and later we were informed by our neighbors that she should have had bear spray with her. Guess we dodged a bullet this time.


Up near the top I told Donna we must be at least 5000 feet or so in elevation. Both phone apps told a different story...3500' 


We were blocked about a 1/2 mile from the top by this gate. You can hike the rest of the way but I'll wait until I have bear spray and a 9mm before I do it. A look on Google Earth shows me there is a tower and some buildings on top...it's called Paradise Peak.


Here is the Google photo of Paradise Peak with our loop at the top of the photo.. I find it odd that just 30 miles west is another Paradise Peak, in Ferry County. I realize place names are duplicated across America but rarely in the same state.


A couple of days earlier we headed over to the Sherman Creek Orchard for fresh apples...and I mean right off the tree fresh!


Donna I got some very good advice from a lady shopper who had been buying here for years. She pointed out the best ones for applesauce, pies and for eating. The orchard also has pear trees.


Some of the apples were as big as cantaloupe, this was a granny smith.


Donna was thrilled that the owner gave us about ten pounds of blemished pears for our friends, the dear. While the hard freezes we have already had do not effect the apples, they do ruin pears.


A stop at this heritage site on state hi-way 20 was a tribute to the CCC workers in the 1930's



The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) were filled with young unemployed men from across the nation. They faced back breaking work, low wages (of which a percentage had to go back home to family) and long hours just to put food into many, who had none. When you go to a national park and see beautifully constructed picnic table made of pavers like this, you can bet these young men did it.


Sighting of a wolf on Sherman Pass...ha ha. There were three of these metal structures in the rocks looking down upon us.


Sherman Pass is the highest pass in Washington that is open all winter. If the pass near you is 5580 feet high...you're screwed!


Republic is a little town some 40 miles west of us. From here we will head north to intersect hwy 395, then state 602 (Boulder Creek Rd) and head home. I was interested in hunting and hunting rules... my main question was whether I could sit on my porch and shot? Heck ya said Stan, I got two a couple years ago that way...as long as you are not in the city limits. The rule is you can not hunt or shoot a gun in any city.


It was kind of funny when we were leaving Republic to see this two or three point buck laying in front of a home...within the city limits! Who knew a deer could READ?


On the way home we had seen a number of campgrounds and lookouts closed by the federal shutdown. Only Washington State campgrounds remained open and I heard a lot of hunters who got kicked out of the federal campgrounds on Oct 1st were hot under the collar.


We thought we were funny crashing a closed site until I heard some folks who had done the very same got $125 tickets given to them for going into a closed federal site...dodged another bullet I guess. We did see two moose on the way home and that really topped the day off for us.
Till next time....

No comments: