I won't go into a lot of detail(well, OK...I will...), since I was just exploring here 2.5 weeks ago and gave everyone a bible to read about that day. But I returned with Dan in tow for another visit, with hopes of locating roaming, awesome beasties in the Bighorn Sheep class again - ya know, he had to play with the new camera lens and all.

Heck, we didn't even have to hike...gliding across the icy roads in the Yakima River Canyon, deep in thought about which side canyon slot we would explore off of the Umtanum Creek Canyon should we not find them varmits in the first 2-3 miles in...I decided to start looking for some elk or deer by the river. Not three seconds after my FIRST look across the river, I saw something...before I could really say I saw something, the huge full curl of horns from the large Bighorn Sheep ram became clear, and we stopped as far off the road as possible, both jumped out, ran across ice and snow to the back of his truck to start hauling out photography equiptment that was packed for hiking. Within mer seconds, we were both firing off images of the beautiful animal. Soon, we realized we weren't looking at just the one, but over the next 20 minutes we realized along the train track, on the slope, and mostly in the thick brush along the river, we had on our hands a herd of 21!! At this time, I realized I wasn't even wearing a coat, and I was kneeling down in the snow and ice and was numb as it was in the 20s outside. More film, a coat, and we spent a good 30 minutes here. It was cold out, but the heat from the purring motordrives on our cameras rapidly firing off images kept the hands warm :-)

Oh, we did then go hike up Umtanum Canyon for about 4 hours too. No animals there this time, but massively more detailed exploration of the beaver activity, dozens of dams, and we found an active den site with a basketball size opening in the ice on the creek where the wonders of nature go in and out. We hiked in about 6-8"" of snow up in the canyon, and roamed all over the place tracing the lives of numerous animal species...no need to try to follow any trail out here.

When we left the area, some Bighorns were still visible in the same area of the Yakima Canyon, but high up the slopes grazing in the high-up sunshine.

Hiking in the desert in snow – what a great day it was! I was looking for unique desert photo images, solitude, and a chance at seeing signs of the abundant winter wildlife in the L.T.Murray Wildlife Refuge, and I was right on track for all accounts. After stopping a few times along the Yakima River in the Yakima River Canyon for some exploring, I arrived at the parking area by the suspension bridge crossing over the river. It was 29 degrees and very overcast, and I hiked off without wearing my normal hiking hat for the first time since about March! No, a wool stocking cap was in order. The canyon was filled with rich unique views that quickly filled four rolls of slides. The various species of sage were dramatic close objects in a desert of snow, with the canyon walls and slopes rising behind every view. There was hardly an area in the snow that wasn’t tracked over by deer, elk, coyote, and game birds in only the three days since the snow fell. The creek is the only water source for miles around, and it’s easy to see the freeway paths of animals that come down from the canyon rim to get water. Amazing stories that must unfold daily here during the hard days of winter! Massive beaver activity is a real treat a mile up the canyon, where eager workers have created a ladder effect of pools in the creek with an amazing network of 4-6 dams in the creek. Signs of their tree falling are virtually everywhere in the alder, cottonwood, and willows along the creek! Some had been clearly worked on in the past 1-2 days! The paths they left in the snow were fun to follow. After another ½ mile or so, the path leads to needing to cross the creek, and after I found a way across my prints in the snow were the first by humans since the snow from this point on. It was shortly thereafter that I was aroused from my dreamy state of nature exploration by thundering crash sounds in the willows ahead of me. Suddenly, to my disbelief, a lifetime treat of a spectacular nature show unfolded for the next 50 minutes: nine stunningly beautiful Bighorn Sheep came quickly out, and then slowly worked their way up the slopes and rocky areas out of the canyon away from me! Four huge rams, five ewes, and once I was kneeling down behind a large sage plant, they weren’t as threatened by my presence. The one large ram took 20 minutes to work his way to just 200’ up from my vantagepoint. Initially they were only about 80’ away from me! Rather than hike much further up the canyon, I took the time to enjoy this lifetime event, and then did head up the canyon another ½ mile following the fresh tracks in the now 4” of snow of the lone ram that left the group and went up the canyon. Once I saw that ½ mile up he had headed down to the creek below I headed back. I then spotted him backtracking on the other side of the canyon to regroup with the rest of the herd!

The trip back out was spent wandering to my hearts content off the normal “trail”, discovering rich diversity in plant life to photograph in such a setting. Wild roses were thick in places, with their rose hips making a striking red contrast to the white/brown/yellow setting around them. I even found a lone little 3’ tall Ponderosa Pine tree a good 3 miles up from the Yakima River trailhead! It is hard to imaging hiking this canyon in any other type of condition than with the snow, as it was such a great day. I’m sure the wildflowers are grand as well, but for now roaming free without any concerns over ticks and rattlesnakes was a pleasure! This will be an annual late fall/early winter trek for me for certain.

The drier east side provided a weather-window for visiting Umtanum Canyon. Located just out of Ellensburg, this hike offers a unique desert experience. There are no crowds and plenty of opportunities for camping and exploring. Beginning on the uphill side of the drainage, the trail is well-defined for about a mile and a half. It then becomes somewhat chaotic immediately after passing a photogenic waterfall. Thorny brush, rocky areas, and multiple stream crossings and re-crossings punctuate the trip from here. However, so do quiet ponderosa pine groves, relaxing meadows, and colorful aspens and maples. We observed a buck with a full-on rack on one side of the canyon. Industrius beavers have provided several mini-detours along the way. My friend pointed out a hiding frog. I located a vigilant orange-clad hunter.

This time of year seems an ideal time to visit. Just be sure to wear some bright orange. Carhartts (or the like) and leather gloves make for an easier time dealing with the desert brush.

The four of us looked forward to a weekend of getting away from Seattle on busy Memorial Day weekend... We found Umtanum Canyon to be an easy hike through a wonderfully wildlife-filled and relatively dry trail system nestled between towering cliffs and rolling ridgetop scrub meadows. Our senses were enlightened with the multitudes of songbirds, raptors and ravens, as well as the pungent perfumes of various sages and Rugosa roses. Dozens of other wildflower and tree species held our wonder as we hiked and photographed along the way towards our choice of several campsites. Many folks we met there reported Rattlesnakes, but we only saw three or four non-poisonous smaller snakes during our three-day camp. Those hikers who went beyond the first trail washout were treated to a less-disturbed and more densely-foliaged campsite and reported sightings of Bighorn Sheep.

Highlights included: Ravens feeding their young in a cliffside nest, Spring Blue butterflies 'puddling' by the dozens along the muddy stream banks, the conversational calls of the Yellow-bellied Chat bird, a locally rare Lewis's Woodpecker and quiet star-filled night skies.

Alerts: Ticks are commonly encountered. Several unsupervised children from a neighboring campsite were repeatedly allowed to go crashing loudly through the fragile streams and scrub with disturbing consequences. We also saw foolishly discarded toilet paper and evidence of unmanaged ""dog impact"" on trail surfaces. This is a very fragile ecosystem that is also home to Rattlesnakes, so it would be doubly wise to leave Fido at home! ... Hunting also adds to the impact on this area, so please be extra considerate in its use.

Our weather was partly cloudy with cool evenings and brief showers on 5/28. An altogether wonderful experience.

Because of the wet side’s low elevation snowpack, we chose the dry side’s Umtanum Creek Trail (#20 in 55 Hikes in Central Washington) over the 4th of July weekend and we were pleased with our choice. The trail follows Umtanum Creek, which drains into the Yakima River, up a canyon with steep walls of reddish brown basalt that contrast beautifully with the lush green of the cottonwoods and aspens. Air temperature at the trailhead was about 70 degrees and as we progressed up-canyon, cooled noticeably and quickly, aided by the overcast and occasional showers.

A few short minutes up the trail, my daughter stopped when she heard rattlers on both sides of us. I suffer from the common middle age affliction of minor high frequency hearing loss and didn’t hear them at all. The rattlers’ warning apparently falls within that particular frequency range, so boomers listen up: when in rattler country, hike with someone that doesn’t suffer from the same malady. It would be interesting to hear of others who’ve had a similar experience and what measures they took to compensate for the disability.

As we moved further up the trail, we made diligent use of our trekking poles but saw or heard no further evidence of snakes, probably due to the temperature drop, and much to our relief because the vegetation was dense and knee high in places, often obscuring our view of the ground. Soon, the unexpected beauty around us took our minds off the danger lurking in the grass and we began to appreciate our surroundings. The canyon bottom is not unlike a long oasis, framed by the complex structure and colorings of the canyon’s steep sides. Numerous, colorful birds and their music accentuated the spring like atmosphere.

At several points along the trail we were faced with a choice of which fork in the trail to take and we opted for the fork that showed evidence of more traffic which, in several instances, proved how many hikers had taken the wrong fork also. When we later reviewed Spring and Manning’s guide, we realized that if we would have kept it handy we could have avoided most of the wrong forks. Prior to the trip we had attempted to purchase a large-scale topo of the area but couldn’t find one at REI or Metsker’s.

At about three miles up the trail, we found a delightful campsite accessed by an easy ford across the creek and the following morning we were rewarded with a stunning view of the canyon walls in the early morning light; absolutely beautiful and a confirmation that we had, with the help of Mr. Spring and Mr. Manning, chosen a very enjoyable hike and one I highly recommend to those lacking familiarity with the beauty to be found in the dry side of our state.