Time for a Climb
May 22, 2019 by New Hampshire Garden Solutions
John Muir once said “The mountains are calling and I must go.” To be honest I never paid much attention to that statement until the mountains started calling me. And as anyone who has climbed them knows, they do call; they kind of get under your skin and won’t stop calling until you answer them, so last Saturday I drove north to Stoddard to climb Pitcher Mountain. Pitcher Mountain gets its name from the Pitcher family, who settled this land in the 1700s. As mountains go it’s a relatively easy climb, even for someone who uses inhalers as I do. The last time I climbed here was in January. On this day the weather was considerably better and the spring greens and singing birds reminded me what a wonderful thing this life is.
Pitcher Mountain is known for its blueberry bushes; thousand of them grow here and people come from all over to pick them. On this day the buds hadn’t even opened yet, showing what a difference elevation makes. Down in Keene they’re in full bloom.
Hobblebushes (Viburnum lantanoides) grew beside the trail and how very beautiful they were. Though like blueberries they’re also in full bloom in Keene, up here the fertile center flowers hadn’t shown yet. Only the much larger infertile outer flowers had opened.
One of the reasons I wanted to come here was to become more familiar with my new camera. Anyone who knows their way around a camera should be able to use just about any camera handed to them, but they all have their little quirks that take time to learn and iron out. This one doesn’t have image stabilization but the lenses do and that’s something I’ve never encountered. On this day the sun was bright and the contrast high, and that’s a challenge for any camera but I thought this one performed reasonably well as this shot of a wild sarsaparilla plant (Aralia nudicaulis) and its shadow shows. The light green oval leaves belong to Canada mayflower, which will be blooming soon.
My first stop along the trail is always the meadow, where if you look behind you, you can often find a good view of Mount Monadnock over in Jaffrey. It was fairly good on this day, I thought.
The meadow is also where you get your first inkling of how high up you are. The views seem to go on forever.
The meadow is large and sometimes you can find it filled with beautiful Scottish highland cattle. I’ve often thought that they must have the best views of anybody who comes here.
The trail is in a U shape and you take 2 left turns to reach the summit. After the meadow the trail, which is actually a road used by the forest rangers, gets very rocky. There are also lots of exposed roots so if you come here you would do well to wear good hiking boots with plenty of ankle support.
I was stunned to see spring beauties blooming (Claytonia virginica) up here because I’ve climbed this mountain more times than I can remember and I’ve never seen them before. My timing was off, that’s all, and I might have missed them by a day or a week. There was a nice little colony of them in this spot just below the summit. Tucked in snug they were protected from the worst of the wind.
Violets and strawberries grew along the trail and even down the center of it, where many had been stepped on.
The fire tower, manned on occasion, loomed at the summit. This is the second tower on this spot; the first burned in one of the largest forest fires this region has ever seen. That’s why I call it a monument to irony.
The old fire warden’s cabin still stood solidly but there was something different about it.
The difference was a gaping black hole where the last time I was here a board covered the window. It looked like vandals had been here but with so many people climbing this mountain I can’t imagine them getting away with it.
I don’t condone vandalism but realistically bears have been known to break into cabins countless times in this area so it’s anyone’s guess as to how this happened. I wasn’t about to pass up what was probably an only chance to see inside a ranger’s cabin though, so I turned on the flash and took a couple of photos. It looked like it had been furnished in the 1940s, and that was no surprise. I’m assuming there was no running water here because there is a privy in the back, but there was electricity.
If when you reach the tower you turn almost 180 degrees you’ll see another decent view of Mount Monadnock. You can also see the meadow in this view. On this day it was so gusty up here I could hardly stand still. I wanted to crouch on the ground so the wind couldn’t catch me.
But in a way the wind was welcome because it blew away all the black flies that had plagued me all the way up the trail. For those unfamiliar with them black flies are very small biting insects that appear for a few weeks in spring, hatching out of clean running water unlike the mosquito, which hatches out of still, stagnant water. Black flies feed on the blood of mammals for nourishment and they usually come in swarms. Bug spray helps keep them away.
What I call the birdbaths are natural depressions in the stone. With all the rain we’ve had I doubt they’ve been dry a day in the past two months. I once sat and watched a dark eyed junco take a bath here, and I was able to get a few shots of it splashing around. The blue of the sky deepens as it is reflected in these pools and it makes a simple puddle as beautiful as any jewel.
There are lots of lichens growing on the rocks of the summit and one of my favorites is the scattered rock posy (Rhizoplaca subdiscrepans.) They can be quite small and difficult to see without magnification, but it’s worth looking for them because they almost always have their bright orange apothecia showing. They like to grow on stone, especially granite, in full sun. They don’t seem to change their color when they dry out like many other lichens do.
I always tell myself that I’m going to come up here with a compass and a topographical map so I can name all of the surrounding mountains but I never do. I don’t suppose it’s that important anyway. I’d rather just sit and look around, especially when I have the whole mountain to myself as I did on this day. I expected it to be crowded up here but there wasn’t a soul in sight. I wondered if the flies kept people away.
It’s hard to tell from these photos but there is still snow on the ski slopes over there in Vermont.
I stayed on the summit for awhile trying different things with the new camera until my legs felt less rubbery and then I hit the trail again. I don’t know why going down always seems harder than going up, but my legs usually let me know that they aren’t thrilled by it.
The meadow is just to the left of the trail in that previous shot and as I looked out into it I thought a highland cattle calf had somehow gotten loose and was in the meadow eating grass but then wait a minute; that wasn’t a calf. As soon as it looked at me and sniffed the air with its snout I knew it was a black bear. And it was another big one. Though it might look far away in this photo it could have reached me in seconds. Black bears can move incredibly fast; 50 feet per second in fact, so running from one is pointless.
I’ll be the first to say that this is one of the worst photos I’ve ever shown on this blog but you can clearly see the roundish ears and long tan snout of a bear. You don’t have much time to fiddle around with a camera when a bear is staring at you like this and I didn’t have the zoom lens with me anyway, so I just took a couple of quick shots. I just went through this with another bear in Westmoreland and that one didn’t scare any more than this one did. It stood and stared and sniffed, just like this one. And just like that time once again I was the only human around, carrying no bear spray and with only one way out. Luckily this one turned into the forest while I wondered what I was going do if it started toward me, so I hoofed it back down the mountain somewhat faster than I usually do, slipping on loose stones and tripping over roots the whole way. It’s hard to walk downhill when you’re looking back over your shoulder I’ve discovered, and I don’t recommend it.
Nature, even in the act of satisfying anticipation, often provides a surprise. Alfred North Whitehead
Thanks for coming by.
Posted in Nature, Scenery / Landscapes | Tagged Black Bear, Blueberries, Canon EOS Rebel T6, Early Spring Plants, fire tower, Hobblebush, Lichens, Mountain Climbing in NH, Native Plants, Nature, New Hampshire, NH, Pitcher Mountain, Ranger Cabin, Scattered Rock Posy Lichen, Spring, Spring Beauties, Stoddard New Hampshire, Violets, Wild Sarsaparilla | 40 Comments
Ben Kilham, the bear expert in Lyme, NH, gave me savvy advice years ago when I used to occasionally come between mamas and cubs while working in the White Mountain National Forest. He says “Don’t smell scared.” How? Talk slowly in a low voice – babble whatever you want – the low, slow voice will calm YOU down. Talking lets the bear know what and where you are. If a bear charges at you, it’s almost always a bluff. Stand your ground, and it will veer off just before reaching you. This never happened to me, but a friend says a bear charged her when she was hiking in the Smokies. She was too petrified to move, and, indeed, it did veer off. After about my third encounter with mamas and cubs, I attached a small Swiss sheep bell to my pack to give the bears and napping moose plenty of warning that I was coming, and I never had any more close encounters of an unwanted kind.
By the way, I think the spring beauties you are seeing may be Claytonia caroliniana. Claytonia virginica is not known to occur in the wild in NH and is rare in MA and VT. It would have very narrow leaves with blade scarcely distinguishable from the petiole. If that is indeed what you have found, the NH Natural Heritage Bureau would be excited to learn about it. It is possible that southern species are creeping northward into your corner of the state. That’s one species I would love to meet sometime!
Thanks for all your beautiful and thoughtful posts. I’ve sent a link to many of my friends.
On Wed, May 22, 2019 at 4:14 AM New Hampshire Garden Solutions wrote:
> New Hampshire Garden Solutions posted: ” John Muir once said “The > mountains are calling and I must go.” To be honest I never paid much > attention to that statement until the mountains started calling me. And as > anyone who has climbed them knows, they do call; they kind of get under > your skin an” >
Thanks very much Alice. I’ll try to remember that if I meet up with another bear, but I’m hoping I won’t! I do have bear spray but forgot the bell I used to attach to my monopod. I’ll have to find it and use it again.
Thanks for the spring beauty information. After looking both up I think you might be right. I’ve been showing them here for so long I can’t remember my original thoughts on the scientific name or where I found it, but I’ll do my best to remember to correct it next spring. The last thing I want to do here is mislead people.
Wow, two bears this spring, they must be doing well there in New Hampshire! If that one sticks around, the human blueberry pickers may be left with few berries for them to pick, as bears love blueberries.
You’ve mentioned your new camera several times now, and in this post you added that the camera itself doesn’t have image stabilization but the lenses do. Can I assume that you’ve purchased a Canon DSLR? And, you’re quite correct that every camera has to be learned, even if you’re an experienced photographer. You’re doing well with yours!
Thanks Jerry! Yes, we seem to have plenty of bears thsi year and fish and game isn’t saying a word about them. I thought the same thing about the blueberries!
Yes, I bought a Canon EOS Rebel T6. It was an impulse buy because it was $300.00 off. I’m not at all thrilled with it but it will have to do because I can’t afford anything else right now. Normally if I had the money to truly shop around it probably would have been my last choice.
I’ve seen some stunning images shot with a Rebel T6, I think that once you’re used to it, you’ll be much happier with it. You don’t shoot many bird or action photos, so actually, the T6 isn’t a bad choice for you at all.
Thanks Jerry, I hope you’re right!
Yikes another bear! Such beautiful sights from Pitcher Mountain, and fun taking a peek inside the cabin.
Thanks Chris! Yes, our bears abound this year.
I hope I don’t get accused of tearing the shutters off that window to get a look in that cabin!
I’d gladly trade black flies for a windy day anytime. I remember a trip to northern Michigan where they just about drove us crazy.
I know what you mean. Bug spray seems to be the only defence.
Don’t leave home without what? Bear spray. 🙂
That’s for sure!
What’s the best way to prevent yourself being attacked by a bear?
The easy answer would be “stay out of the woods,” but since I’ve had bears walking down the middle of my road and partying in my back yard, that wouldn’t be accurate. You could stay indoors but bears break into houses and cabins more than anyone would guess, so that isn’t it either.
In the end there really isn’t a way to completely prevent it, but 99.9 percent of the bears out there won’t bother you, as these two I met have shown.
It’s that one bear that wants a human that you have to watch for, but I doubt you’d know it was that kind of bear until it was too late. I suppose it’s all about luck or fate.
This is all true and good advice BUT… the answer I was looking for is
Put it on paws.
It’s OK to groan at this point if you wish. 😀
Nope, I laughed!
Mission accomplished then! 😀
You sure have been having good luck with bears this year! And I haven’t even found one yet despite being in several good areas..
I’m surprised they haven’t found you. They sure are finding me!
Scary bears! I’m so glad I don’t have bears to worry about here! The views are fabulous, the Scattered Rock Posy lichen and the Spring Beauties very pretty and the peek into the warden’s cabin interesting. I also find going downhill more painful to my legs and feet than climbing up. Climbing up has me gasping for breath but my legs are fine!
Thank you Clare, I’m glad you don’t too! We seem to be having a population explosion or something going on here.
We’d be a mountain climbing pair with a lot to talk about!
Interesting as always. That wild sarsaparilla is lovely in the wild, but a pain when it inhabits one’s garden bed.
Thank you Cynthia. Yes, that’s a plant I did battle with for many years!
How well I remember the thumping heartbeat and looking-over-the-shoulder hasty retreat following a close bear sighting!
I’m sure that’s a memory you’d rather forget Lee. I know I would!
If only they weren’t so unpredictable.
Yep, I’d say “Third time’s the charm” when it comes to bear encounters, so I hope you get the spray in hand soon!
I hope you’re wrong about that Cathy!
I do have bear spray but I’ve never heard of a bear sighting there, and with all the people (and dogs) usually climbing I didn’t think a bear would come anywhere near it. Obviously I was mistaken!
The bear wanted to make sure those blueberries would be ready later this summer!
Maybe! It could eat its fill day after day up there.
That kind of encounter makes you feel, ahem, alert. Beautiful views. Reminds me a bit of England and Scotland.
Thanks Laurie. Yes, it woke me right up!
I wonder if that’s why the Scottish Highland cattle are there. Maybe they feel right at home.
Could be!
A good spot for picking blueberries in the monadnock region is mentioned in this post.
>
It’s very popular.
Beautiful scenery!
On Wed, May 22, 2019, 4:14 AM New Hampshire Garden Solutions wrote:
> New Hampshire Garden Solutions posted: ” John Muir once said “The > mountains are calling and I must go.” To be honest I never paid much > attention to that statement until the mountains started calling me. And as > anyone who has climbed them knows, they do call; they kind of get under > your skin an” >
Thank you Ron!
Jeez, the bear encounter is becoming a theme here. So is the “carrying no bear spray”. OK, I’ll stop wagging my finger at you and just say thanks for the peek inside the warden’s cabin.
Thanks Dave. I seem to be becoming a bear magnet, but If you’ve ever hiked for awhile with a can of bear spry in your pocket you’ll know why I don’t do it. I might have to change that though.
Sorry your walk down was spoiled by the presence of that bear, very scary! Loved all those views that you took on the way up though.
Thank you Susan. Seeing bears on the trail certainly snaps you out of any daydreaming that might be going on.