Hiking in the Lakes Basin

The higher elevations in the Lakes Basin are mostly free of snow and currently in full bloom! I hiked in the Lakes Basin five times in the past two weeks, re-visiting areas that had previously been snow covered, as well as areas I hadn't been to this year.  It was glorious!  I love the dramatic giant boulders, sculpted peaks, cascading hemlock forests, and rock covered slopes of the higher elevations. 

 

Hiking off-trail and exploring new areas is also delightful!  I just love taking off up a rocky slope to see what's growing and living there!  I never know what I might find!

 We visit one off-trail area every year, to see the blooming Sierra Primrose flowers. These flowers are endemic to California, found only in the Klamath and Sierra mountain ranges.  The plant is a "subshrub", or a dwarf shrub that is only woody at its base.  Shrubs can be deciduous or evergreen. It grows at 7,000'-12,000' in elevation, usually on damp rocky slopes.  I've only come across it in a few places in the Lakes Basin. 

This year there was still a large, hard-packed field of snow lingering on the ledge where the primroses grow!  More snow than we've ever seen there before! Luckily there were a few small patches of Sierra Primrose flowers in bloom at the recently melted edge of the snow! I also wondered if it is an evergreen shrub, as I could see green leaves under the hard-packed snow. I'll have to come back back again in a couple of weeks to see how the bloom has progressed! This is one of my absolute favorite areas in the Lakes Basin!

un-named lake - 7/30/23

Helgramite Lake Area

I also re-visited the area around Helgramite Lake, that was snow-covered into July!  All the snow is gone now, and the lakes have finally warmed up!

Meadow near Helgramite Lake

Mountain Bluebird (juvenile) - Yellow-rumped Warbler

Sialia currocoides - Setophaga coronata

Near Helgramite Lake is a lovely wet meadow, around 7,000' in elevation, that I love to explore. When I visited it two weeks ago, it was still very wet, and only a few plants were in bloom. There were, however, a good variety of songbirds in the area.

Green Rein/Bog Orchid - Acrid Buttercup - Primrose Monkeyflower

Platanthera sparsiflora - Ranunculus acris - Erythranthe primuloides

I had never seen the Bog Orchid in this meadow before, but there was a nice, small, group of them on the southern end of the wet area.  The Acrid Buttercups weren't carpeting the wet meadow, they were in scattered small groups along the edge.  The Primrose Monkeyflower however, carpeted the wet edges of the meadow.

Alpine Shooting Star - Bog Laurel - Little Elephant's Head

Primula tetandra - Kalmia polifolia- Pedicularis attolens

The Shooting Stars were bordering one area, and almost done blooming.  The Bog Laurel was gorgeously blooming in a few shady areas, and the Little Elephant's Heads were just starting to bloom in the wet meadow.

Chipmunk (species unknown) - Tamias sp.

I was hoping to see a Yellow-bellied Marmot or two, as I usually do in this area, but none were in sight.  I did see several chipmunks scurrying around, eating plants and seeds, and climbing trees.  The species is hard to determine in chipmunks as they look so similar.

Clark's Nutcracker (adults) - Nucifraga columbiana

I was also lucky to see and hear a pair of Clark's Nutcracker up near Helgramite Lake on the same day. We only occasionally see them at the higher elevations in the Lakes Basin. What a treat it was to watch and listen to these raucous members of the Corvid family! The following information is from the website allaboutbirds.org at the Cornell Lab.

"High in the mountains of the West, gray-and-black Clark’s Nutcrackers swoop among wizened pine trees, flashing white in the tail and wing. They use their dagger-like bills to rip into pine cones and pull out large seeds, which they stash in a pouch under their tongue and then carry away to bury for the winter. Each birds buries tens of thousands of seeds each summer and remembers the locations of most of them. Seeds they don’t retrieve play a crucial role in growing new pine forests.

The Clark's Nutcracker feeds its nestlings pine seeds from its many winter stores (caches). Because it feeds the young on stored seeds, the nutcracker can breed as early as January or February, despite the harsh winter weather in its mountain home."

Green-tailed Towhee- Pipilo chlorurus

I saw several Green-tailed Towhees in the area. The "green" is a dull mustard-yellow-green, but the crest of their head is a lovely rusty red.

Green-tailed Towhees migrate up from Mexico to breed in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California, as well as most of the western U.S. They prefer dense, scrubby habitat with a few trees, ranging from 4,000' to 10,000' in elevation. Small insects and berries are their main foods. I always see several of these lovely birds up in the Lakes Basin during the summer.

Olive-sided Flycatcher - Contopus cooperi

I kept hearing a repeated three-note bird call in the forest, and finally spotted an Olive-sided Flycatcher emitting the call!  It also had a HUGE Bumblebee in its beak!  It flew from perch to perch, keeping me in its sight, and the Bumblebee in its beak!  There must have been a nest with nestlings in it nearby, but I didn't see one.  I was more familiar with its other call that sounds like it's saying, "Quick THREE Beers" or "What PEEVES you?"  We prefer to think it's saying "I LOVE you!"

When its nestlings have fledged, this little flycatcher will fly all the way down to Bolivia to spend the winter!

Haskell Peak 5/9/2013 - Haskell Peak Cairn (inset) 8/6/23

Haskell Peak

Last Sunday I hiked up to Haskell Peak, at 8,107', with several friends!  It's a steep, two mile, uphill climb, with a gain of 1,000+' in elevation, but the view is worth it!  Unfortunately, it was hazy and not that great for "vista" photos, but it was still lovely to be up there! I hadn't been up to the peak in ten years, and the rock cairn had changed shape since then!

Brewer's Angelica - Scarlet Gilia - Western Eupatorium

Angelica brewerii - Ipomopsis aggregata - Ageratina occidentalis

All the meadows we encountered on the hike up to the peak were filled to overflowing with flowers!!!  Up near the peak itself were quite a few Brewer's Angelicas, Scarlet Gilias, and a few Western Eupatoriums.  So lovely!

Un-named spring-fed pond

On the way up to the peak, we looked for and found a lovely, small, spring-fed pond that a friend of mine had told me about.  It had lots and lots of tadpoles and other critters living in it, so we stayed, explored the pond, and had our lunch there!

Common Garter Snake - Sierra Chorus Frog - Tadpole unknow sp.

Thamnophis sirtalis ssp. fitchi - Pseudacris sierra - unknown sp.

This Valley Garter Snake is not poisonous, but can bite! They tend to live near wet areas where they eat fish, toads, frogs, tadpoles, salamanders, birds, small mammals, earthworms, slugs and leeches. 

There were a zillion tadpoles and lots of tiny frogs in the pond. Pacific Tree Frogs breed from January to May. The female lays an egg mass containing 10-70 eggs. It takes about 3-4 weeks for the eggs to hatch. The colder the water is, the longer it takes for the eggs to hatch. This is the embryonic stage of a frog. Once they hatch, they will remain tadpoles for approximately 3 months before they are fully formed adults!!

We also saw some salamander larvae, but I couldn't get a photo of them!

Lost Lake - 8/2/23

Lost Lake

My friends and I hiked up to Lost Lake, around 7,000' in elevation, about a week ago.  It is a smallish pond, that totally dries out every year.  This year there was lots of water and lots of critters in the pond! We spent a delightful hour watching all the aquatic invertebrates, including tadpoles, damselfly nymphs, fairy shrimp, and Southern long-toed Salamander larvae!

Spiny-tailed Fairy Shrimp - tadpoles sp.? - Damselfly nymphs sp.?

Southern long-toed Salamander larva

 Streptocephalus sealii - sp? - sp? - Ambystoma macrodactylum sigillatum

I wrote all about these aquatic invertebrates in my blog "Ponds and Lakes", August 24, 2019.  Check it out for tons of information on these critters and more!

Applegate's Paintbrush - Hoary Asters - Leopard Lilies

Castilleja applegatei - Dieteria canescens - Lilium pardalinum

The meadows were incredible on the way to Lost Lake, just a tangle of wildflowers!!!  It is an unbelievable wildflower year!

Sooty Grouse (female and juvenile) - Dendragapus fuliginosus

To our total surprised we flushed out at least 5 Sooty Grouse while we were hiking along the trail, probably an adult with juveniles!  They were too quick for me to get photos.  The photos above were taking two years ago in the Lakes Basin. 

These birds are large, with a length of 17-22", a wingspan of 26", and a weight of 2.3 lbs. I loved the intricate feather pattern, that definitely provided camouflage. They are listed as "uncommon" in our area, although they live here year round. In the winter adults and juveniles feed exclusively on conifer needles. Right now they're eating the leaves and flowers of herbs; leaves, flowers, and berries of shrubs; conifer needles; and invertebrates. What a delight it was to see them!  WOW!!!

Ok, this week I promise to spend some time on the North Yuba River, 

and I'll let you know what's going on!

Check back next week for the latest natural history news in my area!

Your questions and comments are greatly appreciated. Please feel free to email me at northyubanaturalist@gmail.com. Thanks!