Mineral Point
We had a little sunshine the other day and seized upon this and went out to Mineral Point. There is not much snow yet this winter so the drive out was easy and the trail virtually free of any snow.
Mineral Point is on the shore of lake Pend Oreille and the trail runs through Ponderosa pine and Douglas fir forest. The trail crosses a few ravines along the shore and which house groves of Western Red Cedar. One has a quiet almost cathedral feel. While absorbing the deep wonder and silence I noticed a tree I had not noticed before assuming they all were Cedars. These, however, had scaly bark with a deep red color underneath. My mind thought first of Madrone but finally landed on Yew. Indeed they were Pacific Yew.
The Pacific yew grows all along the Pacific coast from Southern Alaska to Northern California up the western slopes of the Cascades. They also have a range that runs inland from Canada down the Idaho Panhandle and parts of Montana. A pleasant find.
Molly loves this trail and forest and her joy was evident as she ran and scrambled along the rail and hillsides.
I leave you with a few images from the day.
