Exploring Nature by Sheila Newenham
I’m on a local four-mile round-trip trail in the Idaho Panhandle National Forest. The elevation gain is about 1500 feet, making it a fairly steep trail for this former flatlander. The route is mainly switchbacked with one last long steady climb. Necessary stops to eat … Continue readingChilco Mountain Hike
I’m at the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes (CSKT) Bison Range, formerly the National Bison Range in Montana. In 2020, the US government returned the 18,766-acre range and its bison, located on the Flathead Indian Reservation, to the local tribes. It is now called the … Continue readingNational Bison Range
I wore my hiking shoes today instead of my hiking sandals after yesterday’s snake encounter. Although, I’m not sure they’ll be much help with the bears and mountain lions today. An Old Railroad Trail The Cowiche Canyon trail follows Cowiche Creek along an old … Continue readingCowiche Creek Canyon Trail
The Canyon Basalt columns rise from the Tieton river valley providing protected roosts and nest sites for ravens and golden eagles. Climbers are also drawn to the sheer rise, crawling like ants up the walls. Lichens decorate the gray and brown rocks in yellow … Continue readingBirds and Snakes on the Tieton River Trail
Winter and spring all in one walk. Round Lake State Park in North Idaho is a 200-acre preserve surrounding a 58-acre lake with hiking trails, multi-use trails, and a campground. It was chilly when I started out on the 1.8-mile Trapper’s trail roughly circling the … Continue readingRound Lake State Park, Idaho
It’s a happy, warm, sunny day in Seward, Alaska. August days like this are a special treat in this rainy Pacific coast town. The Trail The Lost Lake Trail in Seward traverses seven miles over 1200 feet of elevation gain to its namesake alpine lake. … Continue readingLost Lake Trail in Seward, Alaska
Reportedly, one of the “Top 25 hikes in America,” Sitton’s Gulch Trail in northwest Georgia follows its namesake creek three miles to a stunning waterfall. I don’t know what I expected, but it wasn’t this. The trail is covered in fallen leaves predominantly brown and … Continue readingSitton’s Gulch Trail
Up a “minimally maintained” one-lane forest road (hand saw and ax recommended) is the Howe Lake Trail. This rustic road follows the fish creek ravine, overlooking an enormous beaver lodge in a wetland teeming with birds and notably absent of moose. As the road curves, … Continue readingFire and Flowers on the Howe Lake Trail
It’s a classic Glacier National Park hike. Mid-day in July or August you’ll find people circling the parking lot for an hour or more looking for a place to park as traffic backs up on the narrow, winding, two-lane Going to the Sun Road as … Continue readingHidden Lake Trail at Logan Pass
There are just a handful of other cars here when we arrive in the early morning. Its 45 degrees and spitting rain. A couple is gearing up for a bike ride on the Going to the Sun Road, which is still closed from here to … Continue readingAvalanche Creek Trail in the Rain