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Sunday, August 10, 2003
Parked on forest road 202 at the first right hand branch above the Marie Creek lot.
9:01 am Started down road past gate, soon came to a Y where the right hand branch was a defunct road completely buried under a restored slope. There was grass and very little brush
on the new slope. (pic)
Birds seen: Large woodpecker with white patch. Yellow and black bird.
10:02 Tansy (pic)
10:06 Spike with collar and washer. (pic)
Saw another collar a few yards on.
The former road comes within a few yards of the creek, probably Searchlight Creek.
Here's a pic of a survey marker.
10:32 Reached the end of the resloped former road and was about to poke my head
through the wall of brush to see if there was any possibility of further penetration when I heard a large animal crunching and cracking branches just inside the brush. I froze. The crackling and crunching continued. I demanded in an authoritative voice: "Qui est la?".
The noise not only continued but did not seem to be retreating at all. Closer if anything.
I attempted a casual backward step, but the terrain was too rough and rocky, so I
had to turn around. I skidaddled, tossing frequent backward glances over my shoulder.
Only after I'd gone several yards did I belatedly think of the bear spray which I got out
and removed the safety clip.
10:53 A small garter snake crosses about two feet in front of me and disappears into
a small dark hole in the rocky ground.
11:25 back at road, not 202 but the unnamed road branch.
The hike down the former road with the reconstructed slope took about an hour and
an half out and an hour back.
11:33 sat on log to eat apple.
Continued east on branch road.
11:41 Red berry plant (pic).
11:49 Another Y. I took the left branch.
11:55 Took pic of burnt logs.
12:05 PM Two deer come bounding out of a dark ravine. One, a yearling runs up the road
toward me about ten yards before it realizes I am standing there. It stops and looks at
me before scrambling up the bank. It's nose was wet and shiny.
12:07 Road skirts a large valley. I see a road across on the other side and wonder if it
is the same road and does it lead to the rock cliff overlooking the Marie Creek meadow.
I push on around a couple of bends and take a couple of pics of the other side of the valley (pic),
but make no determination. The air is hot. I'm tired and getting hungry and turn around.
I pick some clusters of elderberries.
1:00 PM Back at car.
Here are some tiny bells, don't know name.
Here's some yarrow
Some hawkweed.
And another unknown to me.
John 11:41 PM
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