Today consort and I rented a side-by-side four-wheel-drive ATV and took a drive to the top of Doe Mountain. One of our new friends here at the campgrounds volunteered to go along as a guide to the 150+ miles of trails on the mountain. The entire day was a blast! We mostly just rode the trails, but did get out a few times to admire the scenery. I baked chocolate chip cookies last night and made sandwiches this morning to pack for a lunch. There's not much of a story to tell, but there are a few pictures to commemorate the day. Enjoy!
It took us around an hour and a half to make it to the top of the mountain where there is a fire lookout tower. We climbed the 80 steps to the top which seemed like nothing. I mean, seriously, nothing. There were actual stairs, not to mention handrails! The views were exquisite.
Fistulina hepatica, also known as beefsteak mushrooms. They are edible, though we didn't gather any to try in recipes.
I checked two more items off my bucket list: Standing on top of a mountain and walking the ridgeline of the mountain. Okay, okay. I didn't actually walk the ridgeline, I rode the trail of the ridgeline in an ATV. In my world, it still counts.
In my last post, I admonished readers to learn to identify stinging nettles and to avoid them. I have not yet learned to identify them and was stung multiple times while taking the beefsteak mushrooms picture.
The rhododendrons were blooming throughout the forest, thick copses of mature bushes. As we came around a hairpin curve, we were treated to the sight of a mountain wall covered in rhododendrons and ferns reaching up as high as the eye could see. I have mentioned the rhododendrons in multiple posts lately. They dominate the forest scenery here and are some of the most abundant parts of nature we've encountered.
And into the mountains I go, to lose my mind and find my soul.
~John Muir, "Father of the National Parks"
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