We were waiting patiently for the first good rains to arrive, because the mushrooms follow quickly after. A recent burn was our chosen site to go hunting for the elusive morel.
The burn was a fascinating place to explore.
I was not expecting to find any morels. From what I had read, they were so well camouflaged as to be impossible to distinguish from their surroundings. There was also a lot of debris remaining after the burn.
I found islands of green grass that bunnies would drool over.
Pink and yellow flowers carpeted parts of the hillslope.
The brain tree.
The happy ending to this story is that shortly after I saw the brain tree, we found a vein of morels sprouting along the cliff edge. We came home with as many bags as we could carry! Delicious success.
Afterwards I went camping with friends down in the mountains. I have not had a free weekend in a while, and it was refreshing to camp in the alpine again.
After struggling through alders, we made it to a flat ridge top where we camped. It was the summer solstice, which meant that we had light ALL night!
Our tents are perched up on the hill.
This is Rainbow Ridge, and supposedly it is climbable.
On a summit attempt of the ridge, the steepness of the scree field was dizzying!
The pointy rocks guarding the ridge top were a daunting obstacle.
We found an old army helmet next to a snow bank. What is that doing up here?!
The lupines were in full bloom all across the tundra, as well as many other wildflowers.
What a perfect day for a hike!
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