CARTER MOUNTAIN WILDLIFE PRESERVE

Activity: Day Hike

6 miles, 500’ elevation gain, >3 hour duration, rated Easy

Date: 7-11-22

I explored 4 miles of this hike with family friend Margaret. We trekked through a valley of sage brush dotted rolling hills, some with rugged rock outcroppings and the occasional conifer.  Even though it was July it has been a cooler and wetter season, so the hills were much more green than usual for this time of year. Meadows of desert flowers put forth their tender shoots, glorious blossoms of wild flowers such as Mariposa Lilies, a couple varieties of Daisies, and Lupin colorfully adorned our journey.  The birds sang, butterflies danced from pedal to pedal, the bees were busy buzzing, as a gentle breeze teased the tussles of wild grasses. 

Carter Mountain Wildlife Unit is just south of Tonasket, Washington. It is made up of more than 2,240 acres. The preserve supports wildlife such as golden eagle, black bear, mule deer, cougar, and bobcat.  We discovered what we believe to be bear scat on the path so stay aware. 

Summer has finally arrived.  The sun beating down, the rather hot temperatures along with the lack of any shade was a bit of a challenge for Margaret visiting from Anacortes, where it remains cool pretty much all of the time. So we cut the hike back a bit. When hiking in Summer be sure to wear light colors, a hat, and bring plenty of water. We were prepared In this way, so other than being a little red in the face Margaret soldiered on, and enjoyed her East of the Cascades nature hike through the scrub brush and lilies. 

Thanks for accompanying Margaret and I into the Carter Mountain Wildlife Preserve.  We hope that you will continue on with us ‘Pursuing Balance Through Adventure’ which you can easily do by performing some easy tasks: COMMENT, LIKE, FOLLOW and SHARE. Like the Wildflowers that surrounded us on our hike, Nature reminds us no matter how crazy our lives might get, life still finds a way. Wildflowers get trampled, scorched by heat and drought in the Summer, and frost and cold in the Winter, but find a way to Spring back. If you go out and smell the wildflowers, and experience the Adventure of Nature then life will Balance. The menu above is a treasure chest of ideas for your next adventure. The menu is categorized by area and activity, each is a separate website and thus need to be FOLLOWED independently. SHOP APPAREL is the PBTA spot for great adventure wear. Check it out!

Happy Trails–

Roger Jenkins 

Pursuing Balance Through Adventure