Some great and not so great thoughts. . . .

A view from the Elkhorn Crest Trail

Jasper, during our lunch break

Shooting Star (Dodecatheon hendersonii)

I decided to download some images from our recent trip to Baker City and Beyond. That's partly because I don't want to think about what's happening in Boise right now.

More on that later.

Anyway, vistas like this were abundant, and the views close-up were even more wonderful. And yes, that is snow on those mountains. . .patches of it everywhere in mid-July. I can't tell you exactly why that was so heartening to see, but it was. This hike, last Tuesday, was mostly with just the three of us. The three other parties we ran across were observant of distancing and mask rules, and here's the funny thing about humans. When you're out in a lonely place like this, a few humans are delightful to interact with (briefly), exchange small delights (one couple had to hide from a mountain goat and her baby), and move on. But when there are droves of humans, they seem to forget all manners and respect. As the Navajos say (according to Tony Hillerman), "They act like they have no family".

More on that later.

Anyway, here is our lovely Jasper (who is inexplicably camera shy), as well as a couple of images of the Shooting Star wildflowers that were blanketing areas of the trail. Unfortunately, I thought I had gotten an image of the "blanket" (hundreds of flowers), but we were in a pretty big hurry to get out of that particular place, since the abundant resident mosquitoes found us fair game whenever we stopped. Fortunately we were able to hike above mosquito territory, and after beautiful views of a couple of lakes were on to the mountain vistas.

Flowering in Spring

This is all in sharp contrast to my local hike with Jasper this morning. When I arrived at an 8th Street foothills hike at 7:10am, the place was full of cars. I reasoned that many folks take bike rides together, and most travel singly in their vehicles because of pandemic rules. I donned my mask around my neck (ready for quick action as needed), and took off with my backpack and Jasper. It was so depressing that so many of the folks I met on the trail had no provision for masking themselves. I'd say 80% were not even carrying masks, in spite of the order, and most seemed oblivious. It hurt my heart that we seem to care so little for the health of others. Ada County is in the midst of a huge spike in numbers.  And Boise, Sweet Boise, is suffering the horrible fate that success and discovery brings. We are being overwhelmed with that most successful parasite, Human Beings. With numbers bring disdain, and I'm afraid that ultimately, even if the pandemic ends, we will have become crowded and lacking in care and compassion.

So. I will stay ever closer to home. And I will be grateful that I have such a place to which I can retreat.