Trailside chipmunk. 

I encountered these geese, about 5 of them, about 2,000 feet above all the lakes in the Tetons. I'm not sure what about those little puddles attracted them, but they were very quiet in their approach to the water holes.  

I was also glad to run into a few buffalo. I've often seen them before, but learned this time of year they like to wander on the other side of the hill along Mormon Row. Except this one, that was wandering, alone, in the park. I have to admit I've never seen a lone buffalo, and I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not, so I kept some distance. 

This is an adult elk, just having a rest streamside. 

Here is a Pheasant (I believe), playing camouflage. Actually, it was walking right on the trail, and I literally had to shoo it off of the path to get it into what looked like a more natural setting for its kind!

Coming Soon.......Wyoming Update

I've enjoyed another fantastic Wyoming trip recently.......the worst day in the mountains still beats the best day (yet) in the office, so the come-down is pretty hard this evening, especially since I've been up since 4 and taken 3 flights and driven 2 hours to get home. Still beats driving there and back, though. So, I've got almost 400 photos to pour through - I won't post all of them, but have decided on some initial categorization: Mountain Scenery, Animals, Other Scenery, and Drive-By Shootings. The latter category I do with a small digital handheld camera, and just like the name suggests, shoot photos while driving. I've become addicted to this activity since first acquiring that camera.

Some initial stats:

• Miles driven: 132 (you don't have to go far in Jackson to get away from it all).
• Frustrating crowds encountered: 1 (in airport)
• New Friends made: 6
• Interesting International Travelers encountered, all from places I've been able to visit: 4
• Authors met when unknowingly buying their book: 1
• New books bought: 8
• Personal Mishaps: 1 (thought I tore my knee but it turns out I have a tendonitis problem, which resulted in my buying some new Leki trekking poles (pronounced CANES)
• Music most listened to while hiking (occasionally): John Denver
• Campout nights: 4
• Hotel nights: 4 (when I arrived it stormed a bit; and one before my dawn departure, for the sake of a shower)
• Trout illegally caught and eaten: 2
• Salads made from plants pulled fresh from the earth (with guidance from a new book): 3
• Animals spotted: mink, chimpmunks, squirrels, buffalo, wolf, marmots, birds, elk, coyote, moose, bear scat and lion prints.
• Miles trekked: averaged 10 per day (bad weather not a non-hiking factor)
• Total elevation gain trekked: 14,000 feet (cumulative). What goes up must come down - hence the knee problem.
• Cold days: 2
• States visited: Michigan (DTW airport); Minnesota (a first! layover at Minneapolis), Montana (layover in Billings) Idaho (had breakfast there on day one and hiked into Alaska Basin on last day)
  
• Burning hot days that roasted my skin despite spf 45: 3 (and it didn't even hit 80)
• Extreme activity attempted: 1 (paragliding - jumping off of Cody Bowl in a tandem hookup with a professional jumper). Total unassisted flight time: just under 30 minutes.
• Number of times mistaken for a local (asked for directions, trail information, recommendations): 4
• New Ideas: A few; not as many on this trip; very zen, very quiet-minded hiking. A new goal though: if it doesn't get me into the mountains, don't do it (or question thoroughly)
• Number of times I thought about work: 0.

This weekend I did a little gardening work outside. One addition - well, two, actually - are the Red Velvet Trailing Verbena along the front steps. Each of the buds is a clump of tons of small flowers. They're not really fragrant but they add such a visual punch to the front of the house. I'm starting to plan some work for the back yard now, considering some undulating landscaping along the path of the sidewalk so I don't have to continue mowing around the landscape lights. And so it doesn't look so much like a runway. But, today, my neighbor, Julia, helped spread some mulch and water some plants. Most days I can find her lazing on the front porch swing. In the "out of the mouths of babes" category, she told me today that if I "ever find a husband and make babies", she would love to babysit for me when I go to work. She's looking forward to July when my neice Casey and nephew Kyle visit, both of whom are slightly younger. Is it just me, or is her comfort level on that swing as though she owns the place!?!?

I opted for a few cheapie indoor plants to dress up the bathroom, since I'm hesitant to hang anything on the walls and hose up the wallpaper job. These little guys are all supposed to be low-medium light happy, so I'll have to see which does best before creating a real border. This is the brightness of the bathroom with no lights on and the blinds closed, so if I open them a bit for when I'm at work, I'm hoping that would provide ample light. 

I planted a few Pentas along the back deck and moved some of the daffodils here from the front yard. Of course after I packed everything in and watered it, I took a break and went inside to learn that there is a frost warning for tonight. These plants may not make it, but I hope they will - they've got little star shaped clusteres of flowers and I've got them well covered with mulch, with help from Julia. 

These are growing along the east side of the house. At first it looked just like a nice green ground cover, which was fine. But then it started growing stalks with flat clumps of tiny white flowers. It's quite pretty even though it looks like a weed. I'm not sure what it is. I first thought it was Baby's Breath but that looks more clumpy and woody. These look dangly and weedy. But pretty. I'll have to keep an eye on them. 

This bush is called a Weigela Java Red. I thought it looked kind of azalea like - unbelievably, azaleas grow here - but the flowers are not azalea like. I've seen them in nurseries around town. Apparently mine's quite mature, the base stems are incredibly thick!  

This is a peony bud. I am not sure when these bloom - this bush has been loaded with buds for over a month, although this is the largest I've seen them bud in a while, so I'm hoping that it will blossom soon to add a little color to the otherwise green back yard. I read that these are some of the hardiest perrenials, and can live 80 or more years. This bush was so dead looking after winter, I almost dug it up. I know now to just trim it back. 

This is a new addition to the sun room, a fushia plant. I love its downward hanging blooms. Supposedly they will bloom "all season", whatever that means, so I'll have to see if I can refrain from killing this houseplant. Kathman doesn't seem to like its blooms so much, so maybe they'll have a chance to grow longer. 

I've discovered that catnip is in the mint family. I picked some mint for a recipe yesterday and Kathman went nuts for it. So, I rubbed some on his scratching toy, and he started drooling like crazy. So, I started dragging the toy and he clung on for two lengths of the house. I think he liked the rug massage - he was so high that night! 

Here's a shot of one of the last lilly of the valley plants in bloom. There is another type of plant growing tall in front of it that I'm not sure of, but since everything in that bed is so well landscaped, I don't doubt it will bloom into something soon.