A short hike in the South Cascades today revealed an array of wildflowers in bloom.

The 2-mile trek up to the scenic and historic High Rock Lookout yielded unmatched views of the South Cascades range, from an in-your-face view of Mount Rainier, to shimmering-on-the-horizon Mount Hood. The high, rugged Goat Rocks still maintain a heavy mantle of snow, while the jagged teeth of the Tatoosh Range is nearly snow-free. Most of the trails in the central South Cascade – such as those that meander through the Dark Divide region, and rolling through Indian Heaven Wilderness, the William O. Douglas Wilderness and the routes around Mount St. Helens –  are open and generally snowfree. The Forest Service trail crews, though, note that there are plenty of downed trees blocking roads and trails throughout the region and the shortage of funds means many won’t be logged out for several weeks.

That said, the High Rock Trail was logged out today but a trail worker out the Cowlitz Ranger District. So nothing will prevent you from enjoying the on-going bloom of wildflowers on this route. What’s blooming this weekend? Here’s what I can remember:

• Beargrass
• Trillium
• Glacier Lilies
• Avalanche Lilies
• Paintbrush
• Lupine
• Wild Strawberries
• Penstemon
• Phlox
• Tiger lily
• Golden Daily

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Local News | Wolverine caught on camera on Mount Adams | Seattle Times Newspaper.

It was like a week-long flashback. Once again, I joined my brother Jim for some fishing adventures, and once again, he caught two or three fish for every one I netted. But this wasn’t the early-80s, and I was no longer in high school.

Rather than Jim and I seeking pan fish and small-mouth bass around the Lyons Ferry area of the Snake River, we were deep in the Northern Idaho mountains in search of cutthroat trout. Joining us were our spouses and our parents – out for their first tent-camping adventure in a couple decades (they long ago traded their tents for RVs, but this trip wasn’t suitable for long camping trailers).

Donna and I journeyed east to my hometown to meet up with the folks – along with their aging Sheltie, Flicka –  and then the next day we continued east into Idaho, picking up Jim and Sue – along with Duke the retriever and Jetta the lapdog – just before crossing the Idaho border at Lewiston.  Several hours later we were high up the North Fork Clearwater Valley, setting up camp near the mouth of Kelly Creek (hardly a creek as it’s flow was at least equal to the main branch of the North Fork above the junction).

After setting up camp, Jim, Donna and I rigged our rods and headed up Kelly Creek to test the waters. Even with the water level still high with spring run-off (water was lapping in the brush on the banks) the fishing was fine, if a bit slow. We found fish every day (though only Jim caught fish on the first day of full sun –and then only  in the last hole he fished after pounding the rivers all day). The fish averaged around 14-15 inches. The smallest cutthroat (one of mine) was about 9 inches and Donna had one 10-inch bull trout (caught on a dry fly – a #12 caddis). We were able to match a couple small hatches, but mostly we enticed the cutthroats with stimulators and attractors. Big, high-floating dries seemed to pull the sluggish feeders out of the depths but one fly served me better than any other – a #12 or #14 Purple Haze from the Yakima River Fly Shop. These attractors pulled scores of fish out when even perfectly matched hatches failed to draw finicky feeders out of their holes.

On day 1, we watched one thick bodied cut, about 16 inches, slowing working a deep hole just a short cast from a gravel bar. It was feeding on a small hatch of pale mayflies, which we matched perfectly. It came up and looked at Jim’s smooth presentation several time, but never took. Finally, I tried my Purple Haze and the slab-sided cut came out of the water like a starving orca, slamming the fly and flashing back into the depths. I didn’t have my camera for that fish, but it was just the first of many for the week.

While there were only a few anglers working the river, Donna and I were able to find perfect solitude on Day 3, as well as fine fishing, by hiking up the Kelly Creek Trail as it heads upstream from Moose Creek. The first 1 to 1.5 miles of trail stays well above the river, but beyond that, there are plenty of access points to fish-rich holes along the river.

We had a bit of rain the first night, fortunately well after we retired to our tents, but the next day was rainy and damp from shortly after dawn until late afternoon. The sun finally came out on Day 3 and, other than a short lightning storm around midnight, we had fine weather the rest of the stay.  After spent the last 15-20 years camping in well-outfitting trailers and pickup campers, Mom and Dad were troopers, putting up with rain, wet firewood (making campfire building a challenge) and whiny anglers who had to work hard for the fish they caught. It was a pleasure for Jim and I – as well as for Sue and Donna – to spend this time in the woods with the folks.  Dad found, cut and split stacks of firewood to keep the damp campfire burning during the week, and Mom kept the campers cheery and well feed.

None of us kept track of the total number of fish we caught, but we all acknowledged that Jim easily had twice as many trout as anyone else. Just like he did 30 years ago when he first introduced me to fishing.

While some hikers favor simple, clean wristwatches that keep reliable time, others seek out the most advanced technology to wear on their wrists.

We’ve previously addressed the first group (see May 21 review of the Wenger Raid Commando) and now we’re tackling the techies. An array of digital tools can be packed into wristwatches today, and after thorough testing, we’ve found a few products worth considering.

We found the Axio by Highgear to be the best choice of altimeter watches. The Axio, and its smaller sibling, the Axio Mini (designed to comfortably fit women’s wrists), features a Swiss-made altimeter (effective from 2,300 feet to 29,520 feet), a chronograph, dual altitude alarms, a hydration alarm and, of course, all the basic timepiece functionality. Whether we were snowshoeing up to Camp Muir or running up and down the hills of the Swakkane Canyon in the Columbia Basin, the Axio kept accurate track of our altitude changes. In fact, the altimeter functions proved to be the most accurate of all the units we tested, but also the least expensive. Finally, the Axio line features a stylish design that looks good in the office and performs well in the field. What more can you ask for, especially at a price of $125? More information: www.highgear.com.

For explorers who want to add a digital compass to the arsenal of features, andwho prefer to have all their travel data available on one screen, Timex offers the new Expedition WS4. This beefy wristwatch offers more data at a glance than any other watch on the market, making the WS4 a useful tool for high-altitude adventures (as you’d expect from a product designed in part by Conrad Anker). The WS4 puts an array of data on the 1.5-inch wide screen so users don’t have to toggle through menus to get all the information they need. The WS4 sports an altimeter, barometer, digital compass and chronometer. It performed well on multiple ski and snowshoe excursions around Mount Rainier and Mount Baker. Multiple alarms keep you on time and can keep track of how long you are above a set altitude (important for those who venture into the death zone). $200. See www.timex.com.

–By Dan A. Nelson, Special to The Seattle Times

After years of being suppressed by the Bush administration, an unbiased report on impacts of global climate change on the United States has finally been released. And the news is NOT good!

Globally and nationally, we are experiencing an increase in heavy downpours, hotter summers and shorter winters than even 30 years ago. The report by the U.S. Global Change Research Program concludes that the largest temperature rise has observed in the Midwest and northern Great Plains – the mercury has climbed more than 7ºF there. These changes are negatively affecting wildlife, human health, agriculture, coastal areas, transportation and water supplies. Worse, the changes are accelerating. Virtually every sector of the American economy, and certainly every geographic region of the nation, will be impacted.

The report, prepared by 13 federal agencies and several major universities and research centers as part of a 1990 law that requires the White House to produce regular status updates on climate change in the United States, was ready more than 2 years ago, but was suppressed by the Bush administration. An much-redacted and abbreviated draft was released a year ago after several environmental groups successfully sued the government in federal district court. The Obama administration released the full, un-edited report yesterday.

Additional details from the report, as well as the full 196-page document, can be found at the Global Climate Change Research Program website here.

Obama launches ocean protection plan – Yahoo! News.

The manufacturer’s claims left me skeptical. Shirts and tights that not only supported achy joints but relieved fatigue and strengthened muscles? So I enlisted one of my regular gear testers, Chris Bloomquist of Winthrop, to join me in field testing the Opedix Posture Shirt and Running Tights.

Chris has been skiing hard and fast most of his 50-plus years, and that, combined with his career as a general contractor, has left him with knees that ache and grind.

I, meanwhile, live with rheumatoid arthritis, an autoimmune disorder that attacks joints and connective tissue, leaving them inflamed and achy. Most of my RA flare-ups occur in my shoulders, elbow, knees and hands.

Throughout the winter and earlier spring, we wear-tested the Opedix baselayers. Chris hiked and mountain-biked through the Methow Valley, while I skied at Crystal Mountain, snowshoed on Rainier, hiked the Olympic Coast, and biked the Orting Valley.

Through days of testing, we both can report that the apparel does work. Chris said his chronically troublesome knee felt better after a day on the trails than it has in years. He focused on the Opedix Running Tights, though the company offers a heavier version for skiers.

The tights feature a patented “Knee Support System” that utilizes a proprietary non-stretch fabric wrapped in bands around the knee, keeping the joint properly aligned without restricting the movement of the knee cap. It acts like a brace, without the bulk or limits on movement.

For my part, I found the Posture Shirt more useful for my aches and pains. With my shoulders so stiff at times that I can’t raise my arms over my head, I was a hard tester to please.

The shirt takes some getting used to since it does need to be very snug — I felt a bit like I was wearing a sausage casing! But the banding and support structures built into the shirt did their job.

The Posture Shirt helped keep my shoulders back, and by compressing my deltoids and lats, the shirt relieved muscle pains and aches.

I found that I could carry a heavy pack all day and feel better at the end of the trail than I have in years. In fact, I found wearing the shirt beneficial when working on long writing projects, too, since it improves posture and prevents slouching. No more hunching over my keyboard, so no more stiff lower back!

Whether the products will work for everyone is hard to say, but our tests supported the manufacturer’s claims to a large degree.

Folks who suffer stiff joints or aching backs and shoulders might consider the Opedix line. Available in men’s and women’s sizes, the standard short-sleeved Posture Shirt runs $99.95, while the Running Tights sell for $190.

More information at www.opedix.com.

–By Dan A. Nelson, Special to The Seattle Times

Wildlife advocates expected the Obama Administration to stand on the side of wildlife protections.

Those hopes failed when new Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar upheld Bush administration plans to delist wolves from the Endangered Species Act, thereby allowing blood-red states like Idaho and Montana to paint targets on the wild wolves.

In an effort to protect the endangered wolf populations from being hunted back into oblivion, the National Resources Defence Council (NRDC) and Defenders of Wildlife have hired lawyers for the wolves. Lawsuits have been filed in federal court to reverse the decision of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to delist the wolves. Last year, when Bush and Co. removed the Northern Rockies wolves from the Endangered Species list and turned management of the threatened populations over to the states, those states immediately opened hunting seasons. More than 100 wolves were killed in less than 100 days. A federal judge then agreed with environmentalist who sued to reverse the delisting, and the wolves were relisted while additional information was gathered. After Salazar took the helm of the Department of Interior, he infuriorated wildlife advocates and delighted ranchers by rubberstamping Bush policies. This time, Idaho plans to get rid of wolves as quickly as possible. The state game department has announced plans to eradicate at least 26 packs in the state. NRDC experts maintain that such actions would reverse the enormous progress to date on wolf recovery in the region.

So, a lawsuit was filed to block those plans. The suit was filed by Earthjustice on behalf of NRDC, Defenders of Wildlife, Sierra Club, Center for Biological Diversity, The Humane Society of the United States, Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance, Friends of the Clearwater, Alliance for the Wild Rockies, Oregon Wild, Cascadia Wildlands Project, Western Watersheds Project, Wildlands Project, and Hell’s Canyon Preservation Council. In short, this is a suit endorsed and supported by a broad coalition of interests, representing millions of U.S. citizens.

“This situation is a mess. The government not only managed to find a solution that is illegal, but it also fails to meet the needs of wolves or people in the region,” said Andrew Wetzler, Director of NRDC’s Wildlife Conservation Project. “Let’s find a real, long-term solution to this problem that takes into account the needs on both sides. That requires serious recovery goals based on the latest science. It’s a common sense approach and it will prevent the fate of wolves from bouncing around the courts once and for all.”

Bottom line: The battle goes on, and until politics are tempered by science, wolves won’t be safe in our country.

During the twlight of his term, President Clinton established new protections for roadless sections of the nation’s national forests and wild lands. The Bush Administration overturned that rule, endangering some of the nation’s best wild country.

Now, Obama has blocked Bush’s road building plans. Tom Vilsack, the new Secretary of Agriculture – home of the U.S. Forest Service – established a new one-year extension of the Clinton-era Roadless Rule. During the coming year, the Forest Service will re-examine the policy, with an eye toward making it permanent.

More details here

“Federal defendants have spent the better part of the last decade treading water and avoiding their obligations under the Endangered Species Act.”

Those words, written by U.S. District Judge James Redden  in a letter issued May 18, 2009, were addressed to various factions fighting over the recover plans for the Pacific Salmon, listed as endangered under the ESA. Redden went on to suggest that if the states, tribes, federal agencies, private business, commercial and recreational fishermen, and other stakeholders can’t agree to recover plan soon, the courts may need to step in and take drastic action – including ordering the removal of dams from area rivers (especially four contentious fish-killed dams on the lower Snake River).

Redden’s letter focused on the specific policies (or lack thereof) within the  2008 Federal Columbia River Power System Biological Opinion issued by the Bush Administration as a half-assed answer to the issue of the ESA listing of salmon. The Redden letter expounds on the problems with this multi-jurisdictional approach to problem solving. “Only recently have they begun to commit the kind of financial and political capital necessary to save these threatened and endangered species, some of which are on the brink of extinction. We simply cannot afford to waste another decade.”

One problem is there is little consensus of what should be done. Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire praises the Bush policy. She told the EPA just this spring that the Bush policy would ensure the survival of 13 species of salmon while preserving dams and business opportunities. Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski, though, said just this week that that policy is weak, fraught with policy problems, and lacks a scientific foundation.

Redden praised the ongoing efforts to cooperate and find collaborative solutions to a very difficult problem. But he also noted that in the end, if progress isn’t made – and soon – his court may have the final say on what actions are taken to ensure the legal requirements  of the ESA listing are met.  What are some of those requirements?  Redden says, “Federal agencies must put together a contingency plan to study specific alternative hydro actions, such as (augmenting river) flow and/or reservoir draw downs as well as what it will take to breach the lower Snake River dams if all other measures fail.”

Washington, Oregon, Idaho, the US Environmental Protection Agency, the US Fish and Wildlife Service, a host of tribal councils, and the Bonneville Power Administration, and others must work together to make hard decisions on this crucial problem. Otherwise, the courts will!