The Place
Eastern Washington was new territory for us. We arrived near midnight, so the surrounding mountains at first were only dim shadows against the starry sky, and the trees were visible mostly as points at the top of impossibly tall and straight trunks, with a shapeless mass between the top and the bare trunks.
In the daylight, the trees revealed slight variations on a green needled foliage theme. I was told there were firs, hemlocks, Bull pines, Pondarosa Pines, and Tamarack trees among the evergreens. Only a few broad-leaved trees were present--white-barked aspens and birch. I also saw one or two willows. Many broad-leaved trees thrived in home landscapes, even though they apparently aren't native to the area.
In cleared areas, we saw a lot of wheat, most of it uncut, and some of it still a bit green. Hay lay in thick windrows or in rectangular blocks where it had already been baled. South of Spokane, in the Palouse (a farmland region) where Bob and Kathy took us for a drive, and where Kathy's father used to farm, the sky and wheat were reminiscent of Kansas, except that the fields were much too wrinkled. I saw a combine laboring up one hill at a precarious angle, and my stomach tightened in sympathy for the driver of the combine.
Huckleberries, a local specialty, were past on the Prettyman property, but I'm told it was a good crop. This week they hope to head for higher elevations for more picking. The huckleberries weren't ready there earlier when they checked. Apparently they don't grow at all at lower elevations.
I saw Magpies and gray squirrels--neither of which are common here. Deer and wild turkeys are quite common, often posing a gardening challenge. Moose and bear also roam the woods, and coyotes are noisy at night.
The weather in Washington was "to die-for" pleasant. Bright dry warm still days in the 80's, and nights in the fifties or lower did wonders for restoring my heat/wind/drought-weary self. This kind of weather comes at a price for gardeners. Tomatoes weren't nearly ripe yet.
August is typically the driest month in Washington, and the trees along the gravel roads were covered by a layer of chalky dust. It was hard to think of it as being dry though because of all the green in the woods, and the bountiful crops in the fields.
Beautiful as the place was, the people we met were the most memorable feature of our trip. Telling about that will have to wait for another post.
In the daylight, the trees revealed slight variations on a green needled foliage theme. I was told there were firs, hemlocks, Bull pines, Pondarosa Pines, and Tamarack trees among the evergreens. Only a few broad-leaved trees were present--white-barked aspens and birch. I also saw one or two willows. Many broad-leaved trees thrived in home landscapes, even though they apparently aren't native to the area.
In cleared areas, we saw a lot of wheat, most of it uncut, and some of it still a bit green. Hay lay in thick windrows or in rectangular blocks where it had already been baled. South of Spokane, in the Palouse (a farmland region) where Bob and Kathy took us for a drive, and where Kathy's father used to farm, the sky and wheat were reminiscent of Kansas, except that the fields were much too wrinkled. I saw a combine laboring up one hill at a precarious angle, and my stomach tightened in sympathy for the driver of the combine.
Huckleberries, a local specialty, were past on the Prettyman property, but I'm told it was a good crop. This week they hope to head for higher elevations for more picking. The huckleberries weren't ready there earlier when they checked. Apparently they don't grow at all at lower elevations.
I saw Magpies and gray squirrels--neither of which are common here. Deer and wild turkeys are quite common, often posing a gardening challenge. Moose and bear also roam the woods, and coyotes are noisy at night.
The weather in Washington was "to die-for" pleasant. Bright dry warm still days in the 80's, and nights in the fifties or lower did wonders for restoring my heat/wind/drought-weary self. This kind of weather comes at a price for gardeners. Tomatoes weren't nearly ripe yet.
August is typically the driest month in Washington, and the trees along the gravel roads were covered by a layer of chalky dust. It was hard to think of it as being dry though because of all the green in the woods, and the bountiful crops in the fields.
Beautiful as the place was, the people we met were the most memorable feature of our trip. Telling about that will have to wait for another post.
posted by Mrs. I at
8:25 PM
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