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<\/a>Smoke from the Weston Pass fire seen from the Sanderling driveway<\/p><\/div>\n
I came home on Tuesday, cut the firewood on Wednesday, the 4th of July. Thursday evening I was back at The Lot for a 2nd time. Friday was my ATV trip day; I had decided to return to the North Fork of the Swan River (located east of Breckenridge). I was on this route once before and enjoyed the scenery. My guide book included a side spur and indicated this was a good photo spot (not really accurate, as it turned out) and I wanted to explore the photo option.<\/p>\n
The North Fork trail traverses a lot of mining history and gets well above timberline. However, the trail is rough with LOTS of rocks and one steep section that is a real challenge. Over the years the trail has degraded from constant use and was more difficult to travel than I had remembered. The results were worth it, though, as I enjoyed capturing the following photos:<\/p>\n
<\/a>Mountain goat – Wise Mountain<\/p><\/div>\n
<\/a>Mountain goat kid<\/p><\/div>\n
<\/a>Small herd of mountain goats<\/p><\/div>\n
Not far from this herd of goats was the top of the trail:<\/p>\n
<\/a>High point – North Fork of the Swan River trail<\/p><\/div>\n
Along the trail I encountered many wild flowers, including blue columbine, and several small streams.<\/p>\n
<\/a>Mountain stream<\/p><\/div>\n
<\/a>Wildflowers along trail<\/p><\/div>\n
<\/a>Columbine and paintbrush near Wild Irish Mine<\/p><\/div>\n
Signs of previous mining activity abound in the area; I found this vintage wash plant near an old mine shaft.<\/p>\n
<\/a>Remains of old ore wash plant<\/p><\/div>\n
Of the mine itself, only this sturdily-built 1-holer has survived:<\/p>\n
<\/a>1-holer at old mine site<\/p><\/div>\n
<\/a>Inside of outhouse<\/p><\/div>\n
After the trip it was back to The Lot for dinner and a good night’s rest.<\/p>\n
Saturday brought the only disappointment of the week. I had loaded up the utility trailer with ‘burn pit’ wood; this stuff is too rotten to salvage and too big for the chipper and included some stumps. However, for some disappointing reason the burn pit was closed! I had to leave the loaded trailer at The Lot and will try the burn pit when I next go up for a visit.<\/p>\n