Cooper Mountain: Nature Park Hike [Photo Adventure]

Today I thought I would share my photo adventure of a recent short hike I went on.

It was a cooler day, with slight chance of rain, and I had a strong urge to get outside and enjoy Summer before it was gone. With so many events and businesses closed during the COVID outbreak, it tends to make me go a bit stir crazy to experience more of the world that has been withheld from me.

This is Cooper Mountain Nature Nature Park, Oregon in August 2020.

Any interesting plants and trees that I have personal knowledge about, I will share what I know from experience.

Plenty of Oregon Grape was in fruit today. Oregon Grape has prickly leaves like a holy tree, and it not related to Grape plants. The native fruit helps to feed bird populations.

These are Ponderosa Pines, by my best guess. Known for having among the longest needles of all pines, and the ability to grow very tall and straight. They do well on arid mountaintops like this where there is less water. Wildfires easily ignite in these dead grassy lands, which is essential to germinate the seeds to make new pine forests.

The white flowers opening everywhere, I could not clearly identify. I have a hunch it might be Queen Anne's Lace, a relative of wild carrot. However, it looks a lot like Yarrow too, but lacking the fern-like fronds at the base. Many wildflowers only form blossoms when the land becomes completely deprived of rain, during a heat wave. They will bolt and form flowers only after the leaves dry out.

The hillsides between the trees only get sunlight from one direction, which causes the grass to bend over the top searching for the sun. It gives the appearance that it is being blown over in the wind.

Vines around the trees turning berry red. Poison Oak?

One of the main reasons I went out on the hike this day was because I wanted to learn what sort of flowers naturally bloom during this time of year. In the suburbs, the average HOA would complain that weeds like this need to be removed. In the forest, a mature plant like this provides a valuable resource for pollen and nectar to insects and birds, and it's a lovely sight.

Many types of rare lichen and moss cling to the dead parts of old and diseased trees. Lichen and moss enrich the soil layers by holding in moisture for micro organisms to break down the woody material.

Pearly white flowers growing between the fern.

The forest was full of wildlife. Plenty of hiding spots for animals, like this old termite stump. A couple of seconds earlier, and I might have snapped a shot of the Stellar's Jay nesting here. Red ground squirrels were also frequently spotted nearby, and notoriously skiddish and unable to hold still, making them hard to photograph.

The curved branches and lichen hanging off the trees resembles the caribou antlers with their soft fur and snow.

Not often can I stand in frame far away enough to capture an entire tree. Usually a house or car in the way, so this was a unique location to photograph large trees. White Oak, like this one are especially known for being so large, one can usually only look up at them from underneath the wide canopy, and in a forest of other trees usually masking our view of the top.

Tall dead trees like this one are important landscape features. They provide the only safe location for eagles to build nests. Living trees do not offer enough space on top for large eagles to stretch out their wings wide enough to let them fly. Flocks of birds will also enjoy perching on its limbs, where they can safely avoid ground predators. Owls can watch for mice in the fields while sitting still on the limbs.

The peeling red bark of the Madrone tree blends in with the red leaf vines.

If I was a bear, this is the trail that would catch my attention instantly. A sweet scent caught my nose. Definitely berries. The kind of sweet scent when berries are starting to ferment in the heat after they start to fall off the vine.

Which led me to the blackberries. Protected by razor sharp thorns on all sides. It was worth it to receive a couple jabs in exchange for a juicy mouthful of fruit. Deep, sweet, and rich in flavor. Reminded me of Concord Grape Juice. These were extra juicy, and had few seeds. Mountain berries always taste 10x better than anything even the best farmers can grow.

Grand Fir, the same variety I grow as a bonsai at home, I spotted here on the trail. The straight upright nature of the trunk, and the deep sunken floor gives me a better idea of the type of natural habitat it grows in, and its growth pattern. They are easily identifiable by the flat needles that grow on both sides of the branch.

More Oregon Grape

Thistle

An orange fungus or moss growing on the ornamental trees near the parking lot. All of the trees of this variety here seemed to be similarly afflicted.

All in all, it was a great adventure for a cool, sunny day. I didn't need an umbrella after all.

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