Draba is sad that the new autumn snow is melting - no more snowballs for a few weeks.
He looks sad, but it’s only because the early fall sun is quickly melting the new snow that fell on our mountaintops yesterday. He got to chase and eat several snowballs and I told him these will be the first of many. He was happy to hear that there are still several autumn hikes in the near future.
The peaks of Snowbasin outlined by mountain maples.
I was pleasantly surprised when the storm clouds departed this morning after spreading a rich frosting of mountaintop snow. The mountains were awash with the Crayola colors of my youth. Atomic Tangerine, Burnt Orange, Mahogany, and Neon Carrot, have been joined by Mango Tango, Maize, Raw Sienna, Blue Gray and Asparagus. The sky was a perfect Blizzard Blue (although I have just discovered this color was recently retired by Crayola).
The colors are more soothing and less dramatic than last week. The maples remain red, the oaks are a wide range of orange and bronze, the aspens are golden in one pod and green in another, and the grasses have a metallic hue.
The weather forecast is encouraging with sunny or partly cloudy skies for the next few days and temperatures in the 50’s. Make sure to visit your favorite trail this week.
Check out www.utahfallcolors for some more great photos.
Mountain maples frame Snowbasin
Mike and Draba stroll along the Green Pond trail, surrounded by mountain maples that are showing the first signs of fall color.
The warmth of summer is fading away, quickly replaced by the crisp, cool air of fall. The days are growing shorter but there’s still lots of time for great outdoor recreation. The best part of living along Utah’s Wasatch Back is the variety of recreation available year-round. This weekend cycling and hiking were our sports of choice. Of course Draba prefers hiking to biking!
Biking with friends in the Ogden Valley.
Spots of mountain maple red dot the landscape below the peaks of Snowbasin
We ususally get monsoon rains in August but this year they came in July, and August was very dry. Now it’s September and as we close in on autumn the monsoons have arrived - at least for a few days. The storm offered up some great clouds, a rainbow here and there (check out www.utahfallcolors.com for a great rainbos photo on the Leaf Peeper blog), and much needed rain.
Autumn in northern Utah and the Wasatch Back can be amazing. You have to stay alert because the changing colors can be long lasting or gone in a few days. The mountain maples are the first to go and they are starting their annual change right now. Stay tuned for more autumn news.
This video helps me remember how important it is to always take my cloth bags into the store when I go shopping. Hopefully it will help you to remember as well. Click on the link to watch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSD21zp89zM
It’s 90 plus degrees in Mountain Green and I’ve just finished mowing the lawn. My friend cuts the grass but she’s originally from the Midwest so maybe that’s why she cuts instead of mows. I justify the weekly pain of mowing by including it in my weekly exercise log. After all, it takes about 45 minutes if I power through it, and I can get my heart rate up (especially on the hills) so I figure it qualifies. But it makes me think, why do I need so much lawn? Instead of mowing I could be hiking, or biking, or watching golf on TV!
Lawn, grass, turf, sod, whatever you want to call it is a part of our lives. It can keep our landscape cool, but it uses lots of water; it’s great to play on but how often do we use it that way; in order to keep it gorgeous it needs chemicals to kill the weeds and give it that lovely green glow; in a world with changing climate is it the best choice for our landscapes?
According to the website eartheasy, reducing lawn size reduces water consumption, saves time and energy on lawn maintenance, decreases yard waste to be composted or taken to landfills, reduces herbicides, pesticides and synthetic fertilizers, reduces air and noise pollution caused by mowers, and enhances biodiversity when other plant varieties are introduced to the area.
I started reducing our lawn size a few years ago, adding a perennial and herb garden on the south side of the house, rounding out corners and adding shrubs on the north; and in the plan for next year is a raised bed vegetable garden.
My friends in Huntsville built their home nearly 20 years ago and were ahead of the curve. Knowing how scarce and expensive the water was in their neighborhood they landscaped their entire front yard with shrubs, wildflowers and perennials. It took a few years, but now they enjoy a sea of color all summer long. It’s not maintenance free (nothing is) but uses very little water. The back of the home includes a pond, vegetable and herb gardens, and a small piece of drought-tolerant grass.
When replacing lawn you may want to consider adding ground covers, deciduous shrubs, xeriscape (drought-tolerant landscaping), and mulch. Make sure you create a yard plan first and don’t start digging without knowing what is underneath or above. Find a nursery near you to select plants that are hearty in our mountain climate and be patient as you wait for the results.
On a side note: I recently stopped at a fast food sandwich shop. Knowing this shop always slides wrapped sandwiches into a plastic bag I carried in my own reusable bag. When my sandwich was ready I told the clerk that I didn’t need a plastic bag for my double wrapped sandwich, he gave me one anyway. I said, “No, I have my own bag thank you very much.” He said I needed the plastic bag for sanitary reasons – HUH? I told him to hand it to me without the bag and I’d be responsible for my safety.
As I waited to pay I looked around the room. Ninety percent of the customers were eating their sandwich at a table. Each one of them carried their sandwich less than 15 feet from counter to table in individual plastic bags, ate their fare, and then tossed the bag into the trash. Does this really make sense when it has been proven how bad plastic bags are for our environment?
Hiking through a sea of wildflowers at their peak is a lot like being the first person to get fresh powder turns on a blue sky day with 3 feet of feathers at your feet! It’s somewhat rare.That’s what we found Sunday on the Cuttler Basin trail to Ben Lomond Peak. The trail is somewhat difficult at first with few switchbacks to break up the steep slope, lots of vertical, and rocks strewn here and there just to make it interesting, but it was well worth the effort once we hit the open meadows. The hillsides were awash with brillant yellow, green, red, purple, pink, white, orange…….it was like mother nature had injected the mountain with steroids. It’s not every year you get so many flowers peaking at the same time with such vibrant colors.
This same trail will offer up brilliant hues once again as summer creeps away and fall settles in. I’ll be back to check it out so stay tuned.
Less than 20 percent of single use plastic water bottles make it to a recycle center. Over 38 billion a year end up in landfills where they resist degrading. These statistics alone are startling, but there’s more. According to the Pacific Institute, producing bottles for American consumption in 2006 required an equivalent of more than 17 million barrels of oil, produced 2.5 million tons of carbon dioxide, and used three liters of water for each one liter bottle. More energy was required to transport bottles to their final destination.
Single use bottles are convenient and certainly have their place in our world, especially during emergency situations. But if you frequently use bottled water consider other options for your daily water needs.
Tap Water is Good
Did you know that a surprising percentage of bottled water comes from regular tap water? Generally the tap water in our area is very tasty and well regulated. If you don’t like the taste, invest in a filter that attaches to your faucet.
Refrigerator Water
Using water directly from your fridge dispenser has several benefits. First, the water is cool, eliminating the need to run a faucet to get cold water. Second, many models come with filters so water drawn from this source is very tasty. Third, using water from the dispenser eliminates the need for opening the fridge to get cool water from a pitcher. The downside is the space doesn’t allow large bottles or pans to be filled from the dispenser.
Reuseable Bottles
I’ve been using a reuseable plastic water bottle for a couple of years now. When the BPA reports came out, I replaced the bottle I was using with a BPA free type. It’s easy to fill, clean, carry, and holds up to lots of abuse. A better choice might be stainless steel. They are a little more expensive than plastic, but using stainless eliminates any worries about chemical contamination. Some of the brands I have investigated include Camelbak, Klean Kanteen and SIGG. All use either medical or food grade stainless steel and have lots of size, shape, and color selections. Prices range from $15-$30.
Recycle
If you do use plastic bottles, make sure to always recycle. PET (polyethylene terephthalate) plastics are increasingly used in primary packaging by retailers and branded manufacturers for bottles and trays. Polyester fleece clothing and polyester filling for duvets, coats etc are frequently made from recycled PET bottles and polyester fiber is the largest single market for recycled PET bottles worldwide
Most of the time no one asks, “Paper or plastic”? They just drop your purchases into a plastic bag and send you on your way. Once home you either stash them in a cupboard or drawer, or toss them in the trash. Judging by the side of the road lots of folks casually throw them out the window.
Did you know?
· 380 billion plastic bags are used each year in the US according the EPA and most end up as litter – filling up landfills and littering the environment
· Approximately 100,000 animals die each year from eating plastic they mistake for food. Sadly, these bags remain intact and may be eaten by other animals, killing again.
· It takes over 1000 years for a plastic bag to degrade – most bags are non-biodegradable
· Petroleum is required to produce plastic bags – lots of it
The Whole Foods Market chain (all 270 stores) has stopped using plastic bags; San Francisco banned plastic bags last year unless they are bio-degradable; Modbury in Devon (a small town in the United Kingdom) became the first town in Europe to go “plastic shipping bag-free”.
An informal poll of friends, family, neighbors, and skiers/boarders on the chairlift, yielded a few interesting facts about the use (or non-use) of reusable bags. It appears that Generation X’ers (born between 1965 and 1980) are doing the best job. Are they more aware of what they are inheriting and want to do something about it? They garnered an 8 on a scale of 1-10. One Gen X’er has been using cloth for 10 years, helping to keep his parents on track.
The bulk of respondents were baby boomers. Most of them have bags at home or in the car but forget to use them. They get a 2 on the 1-10 scale and that’s being generous. I say it’s time to put a stop to this behavior and start taking responsibility for this harmful problem.
Here are a few tips:
· Buy some bags from your local market and faithfully keep them in your car (or better yet find bags around your home that need to be put to work – they don’t have to be fancy, just sturdy).
· When you get in the car put the bags on your front seat, and make sure you have enough to handle all the items you plan on purchasing.
· If you forget to bring them into the store stop what you are doing and go back to the car and get them! Remember, it takes 30 days to establish a new habit so you might have to do this more than once, but it will be worth it. Trust me, you will feel much better about yourself.
· Designate one of your bags for produce and stop using the store plastic. Your peppers won’t be offended by sharing a re-usable bag with onions or carrots.
· When you check out hand your bags to the clerk. Some bags are better than others for loading groceries so help the clerk out with the bagging. Bonus: some markets give you a credit for each re-usable bag!
· Encourage all your friends and family to make the switch. It’s an incentive for you. It would be embarrassing to be seen with plastic after converting others to a re-usable.
· Find a small bag you can put in your purse or pocket for smaller shopping trips. You can get wonderful nylon bags at sporting good stores that are perfect for this job.
· And last, return the bags to your car as soon as you unload them.
Once you make the switch you’ll be amazed how much you like the change. Reusable bags are sturdier, easier to carry, hold more, and don’t roll around in the back of your vehicle. Try it, and remember one person can make a difference.
After an endless winter of terrific powder turns I was excited to pull the bike off the trainer and take a tour of the Morgan Valley. The snowcapped mountains with a hint of green on the valley floor, mixed with the first scents of spring blooms really awaken the senses. Spinning along the rural roads reminded me of the importance of good bicycle safety and how more and more we all have to “share the road”. Early spring riding presents its share of challenges since winter takes a big toll on our roads. Chuck holes, sand and gravel, along with general litter make it difficult at times to ride on or near the road shoulder.
Last year two of my friends were forced off the road. One escaped unharmed, the other was nearly run over and ended up in the emergency room. Luckily her injuries were minor and her bike repairable. Residents enjoy the scenic roadways of our rural communities and they are also a draw for visitors from throughout the Wasatch. Cyclists, runners, and motor bikes share the roads with a myriad of vehicles throughout the warm weather months. It’s critical that each user respect each other in order to keep everyone safe and injury free.
Here are a few very important considerations:
Cyclists: Obey traffic laws. Always ride with traffic, remember that stop means STOP (even in a pace line), and although two abreast is legal where lane width allows, single file is safer and much more courteous to vehicles trying to pass. Ride as close to the road shoulder as possible. Use hand signals when turning right, left or changing lanes; never pass on the right; and always wear a helmet and bright colored clothing.
Walkers and Run facing traffic (left side of the road) and wear bright colored reflective
Runners: clothing. Always yield the right-of-way to vehicles at unmarked intersections. Use sidewalks and trails where they are available.
Motorcycles: Avoid accelerating when a motorist is passing, use caution near driveways; be watchful of road hazards; ride in single file in the center of your lane.
Cars and trucks: The law requires a minimum of three feet when passing a cyclist. If you are pulling a trailer or have mirrors that extend from your vehicle make sure you consider this when passing. If you are driving a diesel truck try and avoid quick accelerations when passing a pedestrian or cyclist as the escaping exhaust creates a health and safety hazard. Honking as a warning will startle a rider, reducing speed is a better option.
Something that shouldn’t share the road – LITTER! Deposit all trash in proper receptacles – no
exceptions.