Taken from Walker Creek toward the Portneuf Mountains, SE of Pocatello-
Photo while Snowshoeing Today
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Dr. Ralph Maughan is professor emeritus of political science at Idaho State University. He was a Western Watersheds Project Board Member off and on for many years, and was also its President for several years. For a long time he produced Ralph Maughan’s Wolf Report. He was a founder of the Greater Yellowstone Coalition. He and Jackie Johnson Maughan wrote three editions of “Hiking Idaho.” He also wrote “Beyond the Tetons” and “Backpacking Wyoming’s Teton and Washakie Wilderness.” He created and is the administrator of The Wildlife News.
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Ralph – my husband and I just got home from cross country skiing in the Northfork area of the Shoshone National forest, which looks a lot like your picture in Walker Creek – not a lot of snow on the sidehills, but enough up high to ski. I will not identify where we were today because I do not know who reads this blog. However, we followed large wolf tracks up the trail all day – fresh tracks and probably from early this morning. First, just a couple of wolves, then we came onto a huge rendezvous area where there were 6-8 nesting spots where wolves spent several hours – they curled up and melted the snow which left their imprints in ice. There were even a couple of spots where it looked like two wolves had laid together. One must have had a small injury – there was a little blood along the trail. Lots of wolf sign – urinating on bushes, etc. It was an incredible sight – we figured there must have been around eight wolves coming together to head up the trail, some coming from the north and some from the south and then the snow all torn up where they converged. We could see tracks down to the river and back up the hills – all over the place. We never did see them or hear them, but they had been there and left us with an incredible sense of wonder – and wishing we could see or hear them. It gave me a lot of hope that there are wolves running around out there and nobody bothering them. It was a great day! I hope yours was as well.
Virginia,
I had a good time, but I would much rather be in the North Fork area of the Shoshone. I hope I will eventually see some wolf tracks here in SE Idaho, but chances are slim.
Thanks for the encouraging news.
Just a few deer tracks for me today.
Ralph, try Kelly Toponce to Inman, with a little luck you may get a surprise. No lion tracks in Walker creek?
Si’vet,
Not today. I know the reputation and kept turning around.
Pretty shot, Ralph. Looks like fun.
Beautiful photo, Ralph. I always enjoy these glimpses into places where we’ve never been. Thanks! ^..^
Enjoy it. All it ever does here in WA is rain 🙂
Ralph,
Thanks for posting the photo. I always enjoy seeing your photos. Please continue to post more!
Nice shot Ralph, great colors
grdnrmt,
Thank you! I should post photos more often.
I do have a gallery on Panoramio, and most of them were selected to be on the photo layer of Google Earth.
http://www.panoramio.com/user/395804
Was there enough Snow???
gline,
There is about 6 to 10 inches where I was. I followed a snowed-in dirt road.
I know you might wonder because of the tall shrubs and dry Great Basin wild rye.
And we don’t have much snow here (western mt)- it has been between 35 and 43 the last few days. Nice mountains. Idaho is very pretty.
gline,
Idaho has a lot of diversity and it has the thickest mountains of any Western state.
That’s one reason I gave up money and moved back here when I got my Ph. D. I knew that despite backwards politicians, and lots of poor, ignorant people who never got a chance in life, the rugged terrain would repel land destroying projects.
I think Id politicians, and MT politicians, for that matter,will change eventually, as more progressive, compassionate people move in.
I did a presentation just recently on the Sawtooth. The Sawtooth wilderness and RA. very beautiful place. I want to go see this summer…
gline,
You should check out the Sawtooths. They are beautiful, but they don’t have much wildlife density because they are of sterile granite. The lakes are beautiful, but tend to be full of too prolific rainbow and brookies.
Thanks Ralph! I will check out your gallery! Saw some of your images the other day on Google Earth as I was checking out the North Fork of the Flathead in BC.
grdnrmt,
I went up to B.C. in 2008 to check out all the industrial activity B.C. wants to put into the area — it’s an international crime!
Ralph,
I am very concerned about the area.
Check out the following links:
http://www.flathead.ca
http://www.wild.org
http://www.ilcp.com (search for Flathead RAVE) Look at some of the RAVE photos showing the coal mining already taking place!
Maybe link to some of them from this blog? Like the Buffalo Field Campaign, etc?
Your blog is appreciated Ralph. Thank you!
Thanks for the links. I have put up a lot of news about it on this forum, but they are never very well read. I can’t figure out why because of all the wildlife and adjacent to Glacier National Park.
Wow, can’t figure that out! A full complement of wildlife, densest concentration of grizzly in the interior, pristine water and fishery, etc.
Thanks, Ralph I will!