Another ten days, another set of sites. After quitting Fallon and finishing up Kingston area of the Toiyabe Range, us bird technicians have migrated to the environs of Great Basin National Park. My first transect in the area was a little outside the park, on BLM land near Sacramento Pass. Not especially new or different, rolling hills of staunch pinyon pine and juniper. Few birds calling, but mostly in black-throated gray warblers, dark-eyed juncos, and juniper titmice. Nearby town of Baker has provided some welcome breaks, with food, drink, and gas to be had. I drove through to get to my next site in Snake Creek, bought myself a hot shower for $5.00, which seems rather steep compared to Kershaw-Ryan SP.
Snake Creek has definitely been my favorite place so far. Within a somewhat isolated area of Great Basin NP, a dirt road winds along the creek with some basic campsites and a few trailheads. A couple of stream crossings, a little steep at the end, bothersome flies at camp, but all well worth the beauty and challenge of transect. It's everything you'd imagine for a mountain creek, a quick cool snowmelt running through pale trunks of aspens, pillars of pines, spruce and fir. Intermittant deer meadows, shadowy forests. Besides favorites of cheeky calls of ruby-crowned kinglets and otherworldly hermit thrush songs, the place is bursting with robins, juncos, chipping sparrows, western tanagers, turkeys, flickers, Cassin's finches, and mountain chickadees.
Aspens and conifers along the trail following Snake Creek
Re-entering the meadow above the Johnson Lake trailhead.
My last site of the run was the as yet unfinished Lehman Creek. It's a lot like Snake Creek, but oddly not quite as diverse and comes with some stipulations, notably a long walk to the first point and an annoyingly steep trail. Still, very beautiful and quiet, away from the tourist traffic (although many aren't active at the crack of dawn).
So now I'm on my days off in Baker. Although the lack of wifi is lamented, a trip to not-so-close Ely's library and McDonald's provide some contact. Not a jot of phone service though, curse it be the name T-Mobile. Was able to eat actual fruit and vegetables, have some cooked food I didn't make myself, and otherwise enjoy a comfy night's sleep though.
The other day I did some further exploration of the national park, doing more in the line of typical tourist stuff. Had to see the semi-famous Lehman Caves, an ethereal system of stalactites, stalagmites, columns, cave popcorn, cave bacon, shields, and other strange formations. They had some rules in place to prevent the spread of the dreaded bat menace, white-nose syndrome, the disease that has killed millions of hibernating bats. Since I haven't been in a cave for a long time, it wasn't an issue. Definitely need to do some more caving though, it's a rare treat.
Miscellaneous stalagmites and stalactites in Lehman Caves
Rare, mysterious shield formations in the Grand Palace room
After lunch at the visitor center, I drove up the scenic drive, then hiked up to see the bristlecone grove in the shelter of Wheeler Peak. Even though I was racing the promised storms, the trail itself was very pleasant. Not too steep or easy, provided enough exercise to satisfy my vacationing self. Sometimes a little rain or hail, but not enough to turn back. The grove itself is quite remarkable. Living on the edge, withstanding hard winds, polishing ice and sand, and little nutritional reward, the bristlecone has the greatest longevity of all known living things. Thousands of years are possible in its lifetime, and even dead they remain standing for hundreds more. Amazingly, the pines living in the harshest conditions are the oldest, growing very slowly. They definitely give you some perspective. Anyway, the adventure continues!
Little snowmelt stream running across Bristlecone Trail
Bristlecone pine, tenacious and wind-sculpted even after death
New growth on a struggling bristlecone
No comments:
Post a Comment