the Perks of Being a Wildflower

Around six p.m. the dark rain clouds that had been hanging over the city all afternoon finally rolled away and the evening turned crisp & clear. I decided to drive north to Snow Canyon to walk the trails through petrified dunes of Navajo sandstone and hardened lava rock hoping to spot some spring flowers in bloom. I had visited a section of Snow Canyon in February and heard some locals talking up the current display of wildflowers while I was hiking in Zion the day prior so I thought I would check it out.The canyon is located on the city limits above the bedroom community of Saint George just north of the apex of northern Arizona, southern Utah & Las Vegas, Nevada and runs south of the spine of the Pine Valley Mountain Wilderness.  The late afternoon sun was glowing against my face as I wove my way through the city passing one well-landscaped retirement community after the next until I saw the pull off for Snow Canyon. From the get-go the scenery was absolutely breathtaking and as I continued up the main park drive the canyon walls continued to grow until they were towering over my head. I pulled off to check out some climbing walls and was feeling pretty itchy to send a route but an obvious lack of gear forced me back into the car and on to the next trail head. I consulted the map and discovered a trail labeled "Hidden Pinyon Nature Trail" which sounded like exactly what I had come looking for.

Snow Canyon

The trail begins at the main park road and meanders through a grove of red sand and pinyon trees until it butts up against beautiful red rock and starts weaving through cracks until finally spitting you out in a wash on the other side of the ridge. My hiking pace was slowed as the trail was lined with flora of all shapes & sizes and I stopped to photograph everything I saw. Something about spring wildflowers makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside, especially after a long Montana winter, and after seeing nothing but white for almost 5 months the vibrant pigmentation of desert flowers re-energized my soul and brought feelings of tranquility and peace. There is something so unique about viewing flowers in the desert where it seems they should not be. Their colors pop against the red rocks & sand and it is humbling to know that even in the dry, arid conditions of southwestern Utah these precious life forms can tackle anything that comes their way. Against all odds they find sources of water and nutrients and seem to grow and thrive in this desolate climate.

Many of the flowers I saw where cactus blossoms that drastically counteracted the sharp & spindly needles on the rest of the plant. In fact, the cactus flowers are some of my favorites because the contrast of color, texture and aesthetics is so vast yet it all stems from the same parent plant. The dull greens & browns of the cactus play an important role in contrasting the vibrancy of color displayed in the blossoms while the harshness of the needles makes the silky flowers seem like clouds effortlessly floating above. From Purple Torch to Prickly Pear, Mojave King Cup & Harriman's Yucca, the cactus flowers were in full bloom and I felt blessed to have arrived just in time to soak in the beauty of these special lifeforms.

Hackberry Beard-Tongue

There were also many non-cactus flowers that were blooming pretty & bright alongside the sandy trail. Globemallow, Blue Dicks, Western Wallflower, Desert Sunflower, Hackberry Beard-Tongue, Desert Paintbrush, and Spectacle Pod are among the flowers that I photographed and accurately identified, however there were a slew of others that I could not locate online. There is also some discrepancy in wildflower classification because of the variety of names associated with each individual flower. For every plant listed there is a scientific name and one or more common names used by locals and naturalists alike. In addition to that, I photographed flowers at many different stages of growth but the ones that were new blooms were much harder to identify as most of the pictures online are of full-blossom blooms. Here is an example of the classification system used to identify one of the most astonishing flowers I saw last week, the Hackberry Beard-Tongue from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Site:

Kingdom	Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Superdivision	Spermatophyta – Seed plants
Division	Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
Class	Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
Subclass	Asteridae
Order	Scrophulariales
Family	Scrophulariaceae – Figwort family
Genus	Penstemon Schmidel – Beardtongue
Species	Penstemon subulatus M.E. Jones – Hackberry Beardtongue

Knowing the names and classifications of lifeforms in your natural surrounding is a very important tool for those working in an outdoor professional setting. Finding, photographing & identifying these flowers was an engaging and exciting process and one that I look forward to continuing with all manner of plants, animals & rocks in the American southwest this season. **Don't forget to click on any of the photographs you see to enlarge them for beautiful quality & detail!

Desert Sunflower

Unidentified

Purple Torch Cactus

 

Blue Dicks

 

Mojave King Cup- the shining star of the group!

Harriman's Yucca

 

Spectacle Pod

 

Western Wallflower

 

Cholla Cactus

Globemallow

	~Mary Lane Poe~ Murfreesboro, TN 4.24.13

Mountain Girl Tackles the Desert

Zion National Park

I woke up this morning to a quiet dawn in the Watchman Campground of Zion National Park. There was a lingering breeze in the air and I was one of the first people awake in the nearly full campground so I walked around, snapped some photos, and soaked in the beauty of the landscape that was so incomparably different from where I woke up yesterday. The drive from Bozeman took me about 12 hours plus another hour of pit stops and much needed stretch breaks for my aching legs. I honestly could not believe that I had made the entire journey in just one day but the weather in Bozeman had been so unpleasant that I had been very eager to hit that warm desert climate. The first three hours of driving were overburdened with snow, snow and more snow that drastically limited visibility and forced me to drive 40-50 mph on Interstate 15. As soon as I popped out into Idaho the roads became clear and I entered the vast valleys paralleling the Teton and Wind River Ranges of Wyoming from Idaho Falls to Pocatello and down into north central Utah. 

Patches of sun and old-school radio playlists made frequent appearances which helped push me through the 150-mile sprawl of greater Salt Lake City but as I re-entered the vast mountain and valley region of central Utah, I lost any semblance of radio and was bombarded with patches of rain and sleet that masked the sun. It was not until I started coming off the Colorado Plateau near Cedar City that I finally escaped the winter system tearing across the entire northern Rockies. With dark clouds behind me, I was welcomed by a blindingly bright late afternoon sun casting an enchanting glow over all of Cedar City, illuminating a backdrop of red-rock laced Ponderosa forests and mesa tops. I tore off of Interstate 15 for the first time since Dillon, MT, some 600 miles north, and headed south on highway 17 through the green valleys of Toquerville and past the fancy homes of LaVerkin to the junction with Highway 9 towards Zion.  I arrived at the Watchman Campground around 8 p.m. with just enough time to grab a nice run around the Visitor complex and take in some of the worlds largest petrified sand dunes before the moon started to rise out of the western sky. The park was alive with color and the smell of spring was blowing through the breeze which was a welcomed change from the dry, brown park I visited back in February. Cottonwood & Aspen trees, lush electric-green grasses and a gushing Virgin River all welcomed me underneath the massive Watchman as I headed back to the campsite to set up my tent where I did a little journaling and some stretching before the last of the sun finally fell silent to the crescent moon and a night sky full of radiating stars.

The Watchman

 

 

Angels Landing Trail

 I was glad that my body was used to waking up so early because I could see a rain system moving towards us from the west and after talking with a Park volunteer I knew that rain was a certainty in the forecast today. I dug around my car and located my trusty rain pants & rain jacket, some smart layers, fruit, granola bars, some pita chips, my camera, a headlamp and tossed everything in my backpack before heading over to the Visitor Center to catch the shuttle to Angels Landing. I had been dreaming about hiking up Angels Landing for the past week and was determined to continue through with the hike despite the weather. I consulted the rangers first just to make sure everything was safe, which is was, they just advised me to proceed with caution as always and warned that it might be cold. But even with the threat of rain the temperature  felt great after coming from Montana and I was one of the few people walking around without a parka.  The trail head for Angels Landing starts at "The Grotto" shuttle stop where you can also access the trails to the Emerald Pools or walk the path along the picturesque Virgin River. I crossed a bridge spanning the river and veered right to take the path to Angels Landing. The trail meanders along the banks passing by ancient cottonwoods, alive and green, then begins to curve and starts to hug the canyon wall before beginning a long series of switchbacks cut into the rock.  The trail is a mixed bag of red pavement, red cement, red rock, red dirt, mud and sand and began to shimmer as more and more rain started to fall. I was surprised how dry I was staying but also at how many parties of hikers I passed going up the hill, never stopping except to take momentary glances at the scenery around me, mostly looking at the gound below me where I was captivated by the variety of spring wildflowers blooming along the path including Globemallow and my favorite: Indian Paintbrush. I rounded the last corner that faces out to Zion Canyon and turned into the "Cooler" canyon that leads you around that base of Angels Landing to Walters Wiggles. This is one of my favorite parts of the Angels Landing trail, though under-rated by most, because I love the contrast of being exposed on the initial switchbacks then being cradled by the rock through the narrow canyon winding along the base of beautiful red-rock just waiting to be climbed. After about a half mile or so the trail starts to curve back up until you reach the famous Walters Wiggles, a series of small switchbacks of stone that take you to the base of the Angels Landing climb. Once at the overlook, many people were continuing up the spine to the top, but given the current weather conditions I decided instead to hike another mile or so along the West Rim Trail that connects with Angels Landing and takes you, eventually, all the way the the northern section of the park at Kolob Canyons. Heading up the West Rim Trail took me away from the surprising amount of traffic on the main section of trail and initially provided me with a buffer from the wind. As I climbed higher along the rim the rain turned to thick white flakes of snow. I stopped to stare at a most intriguing Indian Paintbrush that was miraculously growing out of the side of a wall of red rock and as my eyes began to focus in the heavy snow I could see that there wasn't just one paintbrush, but several dozen popping out of the rock over the next twenty feet or so. Their bright salmon colored tips stood out bright against the red rock and both gleamed in the white snow- this was a special moment. 

It was along this trail that I found a perfectly sized cavate with enough room for me to sprawl out in and take a nice break. I shed my outer layers and hung them off of natural hooks in the rock in hopes that they could dry out a little then dug out my long johns from inside my nice, dry backpack and put them on so I was toasty and warm. I munched on an apple and some pita chips, downed a ton of water, snapped a few pics, then stared out into the tranquil world in front of me watching the fluffy snowflakes drop against a sea of red and green. I was very happy to be in this special place, and even more excited about working here this season. The work will be very tough but the fact that my office is this unique and diverse landscape with endless opportunities for exploration really added to the excitement of the day. I ran the entire trail back down to the shuttle passing all the same parties as before. My new Oboz Trail Runners did a fantastic job on the wet rock and I must note that I did not slip even once! The shuttles were more busy now and I noted that the time was noon- wow, was that all? I felt like I had just come back to reality from a snow-globe dreamworld, but instead of being sad that I was leaving this place, I was just excited for all that is to come this summer!

~Mary Lane Poe~
Saint George, Utah 4.15.13

***Click on any of the pictures for a slideshow of them all, for more in-depth detail***

Day In the Life: Pastry Chef

      The Co-op buildings through the years, 
            Crossroads Store on top, current Main store
on the bottom

Many of you know that since I moved to Bozeman I began working at the Bozeman Community Food Cooperative. Bozeman has one of the most renowned co-ops in the country and has seen a tremendous amount of growth and success since it first opened its doors in 1979 as a mom & pop-type cooperative called the Crossroads Food Center. Over the years they have changed locations and now have a main store in the heart of Bozeman, a Co-op Downtown branch, an Administrative building, and the Central Kitchen where all of the delicious Co-op food is prepared. The Central Kitchen (or CK) is where I began work in December as a Bread Baker and have since transitioned into working in both the Pastry & Bread Departments. Pastry allows for fun and creative projects while Bread is more of a science. Today at work I snapped some pics of the "magic" behind all of the goodies that you see in the stores, from soft & savory Artisan breads to
decadent desserts, we bake it all with style at the Co-op.

Today I was working a Pastry shift which started at 5:30 a.m. which was actually a nice change from working at 3:30 a.m. in the Bread room yesterday morning! I usually just have time to toast a slice of bread to eat on the walk over and with the help of the kitchens' fluorescent lighting and some hot tea I generally perk up by the time I hit the bench. The "bench" is where we make all of our goodies. We have two "Bench" shifts that work together to complete the list for the day which is comprised of Breakfast items (muffins, scones, croissants) that are delivered at 6:30, items that need to be frosted or finished off and sent on the 9 a.m. truck (cookies, cakes, parfaits, sweet breads), and then items that we need to prep for the next shift.

Scooping Oatmeal Raisin cookie dough

Today we made so many delicious treats, like Chocolate Crinkle Cookies, Glazed Lemon Bread, Cowgirl Cookies, Cream Cheese Frosted Sugar Cookies, Chocolate Zucchini Walnut Bread, Chocolate Cake, Banana Bars, Tart Shells, Cherry Hand Pies, Parfaits, German Chocolate Cake and more- wow! The pictures below feature the following: balls of our scrumptious oatmeal raisin cookie dough, an array of yummies including Glazed Lemon Bread, Chocolate Crinkle Cookies, and Cowgirl Cookies which are made with chocolate chips, oats, coconut & maple syrup, and lastly our decadent Chocolate Pudding Parfaits that we make with fresh-made, sweet whipped cream and layer with our chocolate cake and chocolate pudding- yum!

I wanted to showcase the variety of mixers that we have at the Co-op that are far from the trusty old-school handheld mixers that most of us grew up with. We have 4 different mixers currently in use between the Bakery Department as a whole so I am consistently working with these machines. The first picture is my absolute favorite mixer: my hand. I really like being able to feel the consistency of the batter and see it coming together. The machines have so many attachments and are loud and noisy, so for recipes that use oil instead of butter or shortening, I always go for the old-fashioned hand mixer to get the job done. Below are pictured the four standard mixers. Most of you will be familiar with the first one pictured, the classic silver Kitchen Aid, and from there we move into our 2nd, 3rd, and 4th largest industrial kitchen mixers. We do large patches of cookies and sweet breads in #2, #3 is mostly used for small batches of bread and to mix and our bigas and starters (details of these to come in "Day In the Life: Bread Baker") and also our extra-large batches of cookie & pie dough, and #4 is reserved for large batches of bread like baguettes or ciabatta.

For our blog post finale, I decided to walk over to the store and take some pics of our pretty pastries on the shelf. I always feel like a mom watching her kid play at a soccer match when I go and see the desserts I baked wrapped in shiny plastic being picked up by a customer. It is important for the bakers to go and check out the finished product, it allows you to see how things handle the trip over from the CK and compare pastries and bread from week to week. I can go in and see how someone made their Tarts a little differently than I did and next time I make Tarts I might tweak my style a little bit if I see something I like. I am finally to the point where I have tried just about every item (non-chocolate of course) and have hit my pastry quota for the year. Now that things are warming up I can move on to sorbet and frozen yogurt- yum!!!

~Mary Lane~
Bozeman, MT 4.8.13

La Primavera Esta Aqui!

Spring is here in Montana! 

Juniper Berries

While the vast farmlands of the Gallatin Valley and the foothills of the Bridger Mountains remain dull and brown, Bozeman and the surrounding area are boasting some early signs of spring. Bozeman Creek is swollen from the rapidly depleting snow melt and the low lying elevations that were covered in snow have turned muddy while the sunny spots are nice and dry. I noticed while hiking at the "College M" trail yesterday that the Juniper trees have big indigo berries that are slowly ripening in the warm Rocky Mountain sun and emitting a wonderfully sweet smell. I picked a couple berries off their branches and crushed them in between two rocks so that the potent essential oils could be released for me to take a whiff of and then left them on the ground for some small critter to scavenge. Along the trail were also patches of green, little tiny shoots being brought to life by the afternoon sun and sustained by the moisture in the soil from the melting snow. I believe Bridger Bowl and Big Sky officially close this week and the trail heads had dozens and dozens of cars lined along the roads. Pretty soon the mountain bikers will be out scouring the best trails and backpackers and summer hikers will start to get their first taste of the new season.

 
In downtown along the cute numbered streets, tiny little flowers have just started to bloom in the past couple of days. The houses around the Dog Park on Story Avenue always boast a colorful display- I cannot wait for all of the tulips. For now we have some smaller flowers, mostly purple & white, and I sure wish I knew the names of some of them!