Crater Lake is among the most scenic spots in Oregon, the views from every square inch of it were spectacular. Besides the waterfall where we found numerous butterfly puddle parties, we made an effort to see the Phantom Ship, and then hiked a trail along the Pinnacles - volcanic vents where the release of hot gases hardened the igneous rock, after which the surrounding softer minerals eroded much more quickly, leaving only the vents.
"The Phantom Ship"
"The Pinnacles"
Also at the Pinnacles Overlook, Maureen and I both thought we glimpsed a Pine Grosbeak, but it was gone in a flash, and we were both left wondering, "wait, was that…?" But when we eventually list Pine Grosbeak, we want to make damn sure, and this certainly wasn't the sighting for that.
The next day, July 4, we decided the hike the Watchman Trail, a 0.8 mile trail to an old fire lookout. We expected birds, but instead got great looks at some much desired mammals. On the drive to the trail, Maureen spied a Yellow-bellied Marmot quite far off, sunning on a boulder. Neat, but hopefully we could do better. The hillside along the trail was strewn with rocks of all sizes, piled up in places, and creating perfect marmot habitat. We'd barely left the parking lot when we noticed the huge ground squirrel directly below us, only 20 feet down. From the looks of it, he was sharpening his teeth by scraping them against the rocks.
Yellow-bellied Marmot
Sharpening those chompers
Of course, this wasn't only perfect habitat for marmots. The top of our mammal wishlist up to that point had been the diminutive and adorable Pika. We were so determined to see one that we had a field trip booked for the following week just to get us out to a prime spot in the Columbia River gorge. You can imagine our delight, then, when we were able to find our lifer Pika all on our own, collecting wildflowers for turning into hay for the winter.
Pika with its bouquet of wildflowers
At the top of the hill, at the lookout, we had a Rock Wren pose against the deep blue of the lake. On the hike back down the Clark's Nutcrackers started getting boisterous. Our campsite brochure specifically warned against feeding Nutcrackers, so I had high hopes that they'd gang up on us at some point (thus living up to their "camp robber" reputation), and give us good looks. Unfortunately, they were better heard than seen at camp. But we did manage to see one up close at a random parking lot around the lake that morning. Yes, the Nutcracker in the photo is eating people food, and no, it didn't come from us.
Rock Wren
Clark's Nutcracker
After noon, we stopped at the Castle Crest Wildflower Garden, hoping to see huge numbers of butterflies, like we had a day earlier. Even though gardens here had an entire half-mile loop bordered on either side with wildflowers, it wasn't nearly as active as the falls had been. Even so, we got our lifer Clodius Parnassian right off the bat. A beautiful black and white moth called a Sierra Pericopid also made a new Lep for the trip.
Clodius Parnassian
Western White
Fritillary sp.
Sierra Pericopid
A couple of Gray Jays who must be used to getting fed stopped just above the trail, expectantly, and I'm afraid we rather disappointed them. With so many thousands of flowers in bloom, the Rufous Hummingbirds needed no handouts, and paid no attention to us as they lapped up nectar beside the trail.
Gray Jay
Rufous Hummingbird
Black Petaltail
For all the time we spend outdoors, we've never seen a bear in the wild. Every campsite had it's own bear locker, and signs stressed that there ARE bears in the campground. Well, it seems we missed out on a prime opportunity, but a curious Black-tailed Deer did pass through our site while we ate lunch that afternoon. Crater Lake: come for the birds, stay for the mammals.
For July 4th weekend this summer, we took advantage of the long weekend to do some camping at Crater Lake with my cousin and his wife. Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the U.S., and the site was the first of several National Parks established under T.R.'s tenure as President. Any fears that the scenery wouldn't live up to all the hype were quickly blown to smithereens, much as Mount Mazama itself -- the volcano whose massive eruption left the caldera where the lake sits. The water was an indescribably deep crystalline blue, placed amid a vast and sprawling rocky landscape.
We had our hopes set on some close encounters with high elevation birds, and maybe a few different mammals than we see in Salem (like the fleeting glimpse of Snowshoe Hare at our campground). Our first hike of the trip was up to Plaikni Falls. It wasn't particularly birdy aside from a handful of Townsend's Solitaires, Brown Creepers, and Mountain Chickadees. As we neared the falls, though, the path crowded with more and more butterflies. Patches gravel and mud had soaked with spray, which drew isolated groups of assorted fritillaries and blues. It was a bonafide puddle party -- the kind we'd read about, but had never seen quite like this.
Plaikni Falls
I'm no Vladimir Nabokov, but its clear that were a variety of blues in our midst (the Lolita author was a noted lepidopterist, who specialized in blues). One photo below has (as far I can tell) at least four species: Boisduval's, Anna's, and Acmon/Lupine Blue, and at least one representative of the "Buckwheat" Blues in the Dotted-blue and/or Square-spotted Blue complexes. You can imagine how incredible a sight it was, notwithstanding this neophyte Lep-lover's frustration in trying to come to terms with some of the most difficult ID challenges around.
Euphilotes sp.
The fritillaries gave excellent looks, but I still can't say whether they're Zerene or Hydaspe. Ah, well…Speyeria sp. it is. The most tame butterfly of all was a beautiful Lorquin's Admiral (fortunately, there's no mistaking that one), which landed on my cousin, before getting passed around and posing for close-ups.
Speyeria sp.
Lorquin's Admiral
Closer to the falls were more puddles, and even greater diversity. Painted Lady, Hoary Comma, Hoffmann's Checkerspot, and immense swarms of more blues than I've seen in one place. I've been meaning to step-up my butterfly game, but Plaikni Falls caught me off-guard. I have my work cut out for me trying to key these mystery Leps, but at least we know where to go once I have a better handle on things. Crater Lake provided plenty more "wow" moments over the weekend, but I'll save the others for a future post.
