Went up Valle Canyon today to check Clothespin tree for Dorothy. She wants to figure out if it's a limber pine or white pine and needs fresh needles and cones to do that. No luck today. The tree looks like it has absolutely not a single cone on it. The lowest branch is about 24' from the ground and the branch hangs down about 18' from the ground.
Right at the beginning of the Valle Canyon trail are loads of tall forget-me-nots. There is something so endearing about that tiny flower - the blue petals are made so much more intense of a blue by the yellow center.
About 1/2 to 1 mile from the VCNP boundary fence, in a wide section of the canyon, I spotted a brownish-blondish bear on the other side of the stream from me. It looked larger than a cub but was not a huge bear. It had probably heard/seen/smelt me before I spotted it. It was peacefully poised above the stream like it was ready to run uphill. In a medium strength voice, I whooped twice at it and opened my golf-sized umbrella. It did scramble to the next ledge above the stream when I walked past across from where it was. On the way back down, I said "Hey, bear!" a lot!
I wanted so much to go up the VCNP fenceline to Pajarito Mountain (anything to avoid encountering the bear again!) but I didn't bring lunch or enough water, plus, a car shuttle at Pajarito Mountain Ski Area would have been nice. Maybe the WI extracurricular group would want to do that in July or August.
I probably started around 10:30-10:45am and was done and on the road by 1:09pm. The VCNP boundary fence was lonely without the WI hikers! The weather was perfect!
I went to the library afterwards and while I was in the used bookstore, I felt something crawling under my pants. A black beetle had lodged itself in my underwear. The black beetles are everywhere this summer. I took it outside and released it. The tick I found crawling on my leg at home got less humane treatment - burial by flush.
Doing three loads of laundry this afternoon.
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