Valerie and I marked Day 50 of Governor Inslee’s “Stay Home, Stay Healthy” order by staying hunkered down and hanging in there. Here are a few of my recent street-side posts, my humble attempt to bring a little light to the world:
- What a long, strange trip it’s been- The Grateful Dead
- I’m picking up good vibrations- The Beach Boys
- Mowing the lawn—when did this become fun?
- Send more donuts.
- Day 50: Do we win a prize? Do we get a parade?
On the up side of town, Tahoma’s first Zoom presentation drew nearly 300 people! The National Parks Conservation Association hosted the talk as the third in a series, providing all of the technical and background support. A special feature was a welcoming by Donny Stevenson, Tribal Council Vice-Chair of the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe. Donny spoke about the Native American connection to and respect for Taqó·bid, “The Mother Who Gives All.” We had a lively Q & A session following the talk, and the feedback was overwhelmingly positive. If you missed it, stay tuned and check the Events page, as other talks are coming up.
Speaking of us humans remaining hunkered down, what about some of Mount Rainier’s wildlife—what are they doing these days? Well, mountain goats move to lower elevations when the snow flies, scratching out a meager diet on lichens and any available plants all winter long. Elk and deer also head to the lowlands, easily seen all around the mountain in fields and farmlands (even gardens and backyards!) Other animals, like hoary marmot and black bear, sleep through most or all of the winter in varying degrees of hibernation. It won’t be long before all are active again.
Some years ago on a May field trip to the mountain with a group of Evergreen students, we spent the morning scouting for wildlife, hoping especially to glimpse a recently awakened bear. Stevens Canyon Road had just reopened for the season, so we stationed ourselves at the hairpin turn just below the Snow Lake Trail parking lot. We’d heard that the sweeping panoramic view of Stevens Canyon would increase our chances.
Our first encounter, a visiting 
group of gray jays (known to many as “camp robbers”), were eager to see what we’d brought for lunch. I didn’t have to remind the eco-conscious students to “Don’t feed the wildlife!” Our careful scanning with scopes and binoculars soon paid off, when someone called out excitedly, “I’ve got one, a bear, pretty sure!” We trained our glasses on the spot across the valley and sure enough, below the road and just down from the Stevens Creek crossing, an adult black bear lumbered through the brush.
Hoping for a closer (but still safe) look, we climbed into the van, motored down into the valley and found a pullout a safe distance from where we’d spotted the bear. We searched the valley below us and easily relocated it, digging around in a rotten log looking for its next meal. We held our collective breaths, following it through our binoculars, when suddenly it stopped grubbing. It squatted, and in full view of all of us, relieved itself in a most graphic and voluminous way. We were speechless, until someone quipped, “Well, I guess that settles it—the bear actually does shit in the woods!”
Hopefully, it won’t be too long before all of us are able to hit the trail once again and explore our favorite places. And may you, too, someday have a live encounter with the answer to this blog’s question! In the meantime, stay busy (study field guides and maps, plan your next trip, draw and photograph nature, chase cabbage white butterflies in your yard), and stay safe (keep on keeping apart from each other, and let’s all go wash our hands!)