NASC cobras fieldtrip!

[thez_yo]

Usually Ozzy auctions off a VFT fieldtrip in the TF NASC benefit auction, so this year I wanted to auction off a West coast trip to see Darlingtonia! Est won the auction and we made good on it this past weekend right after the 4th July holiday. Usually I've gone either end of May or closer to Aug/Sept, so this was my first time seeing the site this time of year in the middle of Summer. So, let's get on with the picture show!

I actually got the site wrong - it's just D.rotundifolia for sundews, that one Ping, and the Cobras.

Sorry about the clicking noise in my camera... oh well, I'm more of a photographer anyway.

The auction winner!

So I pretty much just took lots of pictures of all the nice plants and a few critters so... in no particular order...

some of them were a little munched

When they point up like this, that means the Darlingtonia flower is pollinated and making seeds

there's a lizard hiding in there...

That covers site 1 that we visited - I'll keep posting the next couple of sites up over the next couple of days. So, to be continued!

 

[adnedarn]

Very cool! Thanks for taking the time to take videos and photos to share so we can live it through you. =)

 

[thez_yo]

Ooops, forgot a few pics from site 1 - still figuring out imgur Can't forget the Dews for Warren!!

Just look at that nice NASC band photo-op

seeds already dispersed

Site 2! You know that famous wooden covered bridge? If you didn't before, now you will!

so the usual orchids I'm used to seeing are done, but Est and Taylor found these instead-

nice!!

it's aaalmost berries time of the year!

CA poppy

Gotta take pics of froggers-

Awww babies!

Here's the bridge!

in the roadside ditch there's all sorts of things to find

higher up on the cliff,

and hiding up there...

...to be continued (because I'm hitting up on the pics count limit)!

 

[thez_yo]

And a bit more of just generic flowers sprinkled in too at Site 2:

still working on making berries

One of my faves, columbines!

Onto site 3 - the best CP site I know of so far!

Gotta take vids of the froggers too

...to be continued....

 

[thez_yo]

Suddenly I heard a strange rustling... snakes?? bees?? nope...

Some other buggy

I think there's a snake in here... Est found it

Oh just look at that nice NASC band photo-op

I kept trying to do the panorama thing-

Naturally occuring pompom! I like the other flowers too

Did I accidentally post this photo for Site 2? It belongs in site 3-

So unlike site 2 where the cobras hang out on their own and the pings are in different spots, at this one both of them grow in the same areas. Still the same sort of geology... or is it geomorphology? Wet rocks on a mountain slide.

n'awwww babies!!

...I kept seeing pink on the mountainsides on the roads to/from the sites so I finally pulled over to see what it was -

So on my way 'home' I swung by a ping site - it's a bit of a sort of big parking lot on the side of the road, with a very unstable cliff side with lots of water coming out of it. It sounds very waterfall-y, and there's Pings there but they're WAY high up - I'm not sure you can even make them out in this pic:

There are two waterfalls there and the plants are equally inaccessible, but maybe that's a good thing for poaching-concerns.

Anyway, to be continued! We had more adventuring to do Sunday

 

[thez_yo]

Sunday's site 1: the botanical trail

Just flowers and cobras here, and no pings or dews as far as I know.

Apparently, this is poison oak

Hopefully I remember what it looks like hahaha...

Got some holes munched out of them in this site

I didn't take too many pictures because it's just an overwhelming pile of cobras - the platforms are great for just standing and staring in awe!

The next site - a bit of a hike to see some deep-in-the-forest cobras and a nice break at the Smith River--
Our party enjoying the small population of Darlingtonia that crops up out of seemingly nowhere

Behind them- back into the forest the plants disappear!

Bird's nest umm... mushroom? I think that's what Taylor called it

I've heard this called reindeer moss before - the stuff on the ground.

Saw a nice stumpy-tailed lizard too

Frogger!

And then we went to go enjoy the river

What a nice stream feeding the river...

this is where it empties

For anyone who wants to just loop the sound of that nice mountain stream:

They've got some nicely coloured rocks around here too - Est was taking a closer look at them and IDing the compositions. I'm not that familiar with geology but I can definitely appreciate the stones

While enjoying that stream

Just look at that nice clean clear mountain water! The air was pretty great too - if only we could all have somewhere this pristine to live.

I don't think I quite have the hang of making nice panoramas down, but at least it's getting a little better

Ok, last outdoor site - we went to a trail head that's right by the main bridge in the area because there's a little loop of a short hike - I think it's 2mi. Warren and I had a heck of a time finding the trail head last time so this time getting there was a little bit easier. It was definitely drier in this location than the last time I came here and hopefully that's just seasonal instead of a trend. It's pretty heavily shaded so I was hoping for some mushrooms too.

They're hiding well here -

Finally, the only fungus of the site! But 2 for the whole trip in dry conditions isn't bad

Successful trip, I think I wore them out To another successful NASC fieldtrip!

So, as a sequel to the trip, the next day I didn't have to be to the airport until late, and I decided to go try to swing by D'amato's shop (click here to go to that)

Thanks for reading the field report!!

 

[Not a Number]

The sites look to be in good health. The number of seedlings and yearlings are a good indicator.

Thanks for sharing.

 

[BigBella]

Once again, such paltry documentation. Couldn't you just take couple of snapshots -- would it be too much trouble?

 

[Est]

I was just looking over the pictures again today and realized that I need to post mine! Taylor and I had a fantastic time. I'd definitely recommend that anyone who gets a chance to make it, go take a look. Thanks again, Z!

 

[skane]

That trip looks absolutely awesome. We are headed up to the Plumas National park next weekend to hopefully check out some of those bad boys.

 

[NewspaperFort]

Ah! Darling! who is that red flower?