Crystal Ball Cave with Kids

 In early August we met up with some friends who were planning on moving out of the area soon. They hadn't ever been in Crystal Ball Cave, a cave I really enjoy (and have blogged about). So we set up a tour for a Saturday afternoon and headed to Gandy, Utah to meet Jerald Bates. Jerald is one of the site stewards for the cave, helping the Fillmore office of the BLM manage the cave. He agreed to lead us on a tour, and we hiked up to the cave entrance. Even our dog Henry hiked up, but he had to wait outside.

Just inside we were awestruck by the amount of spar covering the ceiling and walls and even floor in places. It is partially translucent, and Desert Boy was awed by it. Walking into Crystal Ball Cave feels like walking into a geode. It is so crystal-filled and beautiful.

I was trying out a new cave light, a Manley20. I was really happy with the neutral light and broad, even lighting it provided.

I wasn't the only one taking photos! Deanna has been really supportive as I've delved into selling some of my photos over the past year and a half. She's also been encouraging me to try more manual settings and experimenting with some cave photography.

At one time Crystal Ball Cave was wired with electrical lights, but those have since been taken out. All visitors now have to bring their own lights and good footwear for the rough trail.

An iconic stop on the tour is the old ladder, which they put up to explore a dome. The dome didn't go far, but the ladder stayed and makes a great talking piece. The cave isn't super large, but large enough to be quite interesting.

Superimposed on the spar are some other speleothems such as stalactites and stalagmites.

Did I mention I had fun taking photos in the cave? Oh my goodness, I think I took over 300. Fortunately I won't post that many!

I think Jerald had a good time sharing his expertise--and his jokes--with the kids.

He allowed the kids to crawl a bit and they liked it so much they decided to keep crawling, even when the passage was plenty high.

More kid exploring while parents enjoyed the beautiful cave from a more sedentary position.

The cave has a number of domes, so in the middle of the cave you have to walk stooped over, but then you reach a dome and can suddenly stand up and look up and can't always see the top of the dome.

The spar continues throughout the cave, although it's character changes quite a bit. The colors vary, as well as the amount of erosion.

Near the end, we paused to learn more about the amazing paleontology in the cave. (If you'd like to learn more, check out Timothy Heaton's in-depth paper.) Bones in the cave have included those from Smilodon cat, a new species of skunk (now extinct), two species of horses (much smaller than the kind that came from the Old World), and camelops. It sure was a different world around Crystal Ball Cave at one time.

Here's a closeup of a horse hoof, along with some other assorted bones.

Then it was time for a goofy photo of all the kid cavers. Hopefully we can all go caving again at the July 2016 NSS Convention in Ely.

Leaving the cave didn't mean the fun ended, though. We had great views of the westernmost arm of Lake Bonneville. It's hard to imagine a lake filling most of the valley when today it is so dry.

We were ready for some more water, so we headed to the southern part of Spring Mountain to Gandy Warm Springs (the Utah Geological Survey has a nice write-up about it).

The water was running quick and clear and at about 81 degrees. In the late afternoon light it was gorgeous.

The wetness allows ferns to grow. It is such a special spot!

And of course every trip that involves water is a great one!

p.s. If you ever go here, sit with your back in this little waterfall and you'll get a free back massage!

p.p.s. For more about the cave and warm springs, check out my book!

Looking for Lichens up Mount Washington

 I had the opportunity a couple weeks ago to travel with Dr. Brad Kropp from Utah State University to look for lichens up Mount Washington. He's doing a lichen inventory for Great Basin National Park.

What are lichens? They are pioneering organisms that are a mix of fungi and algae. I always learned it as "Freddy Fungi took a Lichen (Likin') to Alice Algae." Lichens can grow in soil, on rocks, and in trees, and last year some researchers found about 50 different kinds at the top of Wheeler Peak. This year Dr. Kropp is looking all over the park. One of the target areas was the limestone substrate of Mount Washington.

The weather forecast was for 70% chance of thunderstorms, so we didn't think we'd get much time on top of the mountain. During the morning the clouds sped over us.


I learned some basics about lichens. They come in many sizes and shapes. Some only grow a millimeter or two a year, so they can be hundreds or even thousands of years old.


Color, shape, and location are clues to what species of lichen it is. Many, though, have to be examined under a microscope.


In the photo below are endolithic lichens. Endolithic means "in the rock." Most of the lichen is in the rock, and just a little is showing. How cool is that?


Dr. Kropp scraped off lichens to take back to the lab to examine. He noticed that there were a lot fewer species on Mt. Washington than on Wheeler Peak.


Speaking of the two mountains, in the foreground is the white limestone of Mt. Washington, and in the background is the Prospect Mountain quartzite of Wheeler Peak. Also in the foreground is Holmgren's buckwheat (Eriogonum holmgreni), a plant endemic to the Snake Range. It's not found on Wheeler Peak, but is found from Pyramid Peak south. The clouds sped past, but no thunderstorms emerged.

It was a fascinating day looking at lichens, and I realized how much I had overlooked them in the past. Most likely over a hundred species live in the park, and it's only over the last year that they've been given much attention.


Over the next months Dr. Kropp will identify the different lichens and then make a guide to them.

 If you'd like to learn more about lichens, here are two interesting websites:  Rocky Mountain NP page and Yosemite NP page .

Rainbows

 We haven't had our normal monsoons that we usually have in July and August, where the clouds build through the day into tremendous thunderheads and then display their mighty power for a few hours. Nevertheless, we have had occasional rainshowers that have resulted in some beautiful rainbows. Here's a sampling of some.

If you're out searching for that pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, good luck!

Our First Family Backpack

My husband and I agreed that the kids were ready to go for their first backpacking trip. We selected a short trail, about 5.5 miles round trip, up South Fork Baker and back the Timber Creek trail in Great Basin National Park. The trail gained about 1,700 feet elevation, but it was short, so easy, right? Well, we knew we had some work cut out for us, especially when we laid out all the gear we would need for a night out. We really had to carry that much stuff for just one night??

The weather forecast wasn't so favorable, with rain expected, but my husband and I decided to go anyway. I might not be able to take the night sky photos I was hoping to, but we could deal with a little rain.

We started out with a pre-trip photo at the trailhead. A few smiles, anyway!


We chose this hike because it has a lot of habitat diversity and spends a lot of time along water. We sure appreciate that in this dry country! The water means bridges, which are pretty exciting to us, even if they are only ten feet long.


We progressed up to a huge meadow. Desert Girl started with her backpack, but she didn't carry it the whole way.


We knew a large part of the backpacking trip would be just enjoying the trail, so I tried to do just that and not rush to our destination. I found the trail really beautiful and relaxing, especially as it wove through the aspen groves.


We took some time to smell the flowers. There were flowers all over, and one of the games we played on the trail was to spot flowers of different colors.


One thing that was new to the kids was filtering water. Before we left the stream, we refilled our water bottles. They were so surprised that you could use a little gizmo to make your water potable. It was also really close to this spot that I saw a marmot--a marmot in an out-of-the-way spot where marmots haven't been seen before. It's cool how they are spreading.


We kept hiking and got to the big meadow where we wanted to spend the night. It was time to go off trail and find our camping spot. This was also something entirely new for the kids, they were used to camping in established camping sites. We told them the criteria: flat, relatively smooth, and not out in the middle of the meadow or under the largest trees (thunderstorms were expected that night).

We found a spot and the kids abandoned us to go play on the huge granite boulders. They were delighted to make forts and slides and all sorts of other things. My husband and I put up the tent (a four-person backpacking one that I had purchased from Sierra Trading Post last fall with the idea of a family backpacking trip and weighing 6.7 pounds). It was only about 5 pm, but we were hungry so we decided to eat. We had brought convenience food, Tasty Bites, which weigh a bit more than backpacking food but we had them at home and they were easy to prepare.

Here's what Desert Boy thought about dinner:

Then it was pajama time and more play time.

It was so nice to be away from electronics!

It started raining, so we went in the tent and read. Then it stopped so we went out for an adventure hike.

As the sun set, the clouds turned gorgeous colors. We could hear a poorwill and saw nighthawks. Otherwise, we were all alone in our meadow. It felt wonderful.

The next morning I woke up (the tent stayed dry despite rain throughout the night) and wandered around taking photos. When I came back, everyone else was up and dressed warmly. We ate breakfast and played a bit, then decided it was time to go. There weren't any clouds in the sky, but more storms were forecast for the afternoon.

The wildflowers were exquisite. Here is some sedum with Pyramid Peak in the background.

The hike down Timber Creek was very steep but scenic. We quickly warmed up and started shedding layers. My husband was very glad for the hiking poles to help his knees.

We made it back with just one skinned knee. It was a really nice trip, and we think we'll try backpacking again soon!

A few tips for backpacking kids: pick an easy trail with little mileage; take lots of breaks; leave all the electronics behind; have lots of snacks; don't pack too much; but do pack enough to stay warm; be ready to explore!

The yellow-bellied marmot that greeted us on the Baker Creek Road.