Sw Washington Field Work 2016

[SWWASAS]

Field work yesterday afternoon.    Still trying to find where my BF clan has moved to.    Looked South and East before with no luck so decided to go North.      Nice warm day, flushed a couple of deer, lots of deer and elk tracks, but no indication of BF.   Followed an old logging road that has probably not been used in over 20 years in follows along the side of a large year round creek.    Most places it would be called a river.    The old logging road is down to a one lane trail and someone had been in there with some large tired two wheel ATV like my Bad Dog.      Also found some bow hunters equipment that had been dropped and lost.   No BF sign at all.  

 

I heard one whoop but nothing else.    Most likely an owl.      I don't like being close to a fast running stream.    The water noise really drowns out what is going on around you and the rocks clacking together put out all kinds of low infrasound like thuds.   I made an effort to spend a lot of time looking up into the trees.    I think part of the reason we don't see stuff in trees is most wear hats in the field.     To look up with a hat brim in the way you really have to tilt your head back.   I took the hat off as I was in the shade anyway and it was a warm day.   The mosquitos were out in force.    Pleasant day in the woods.  

Edited February 8, 2016 by SWWASASQUATCHPROJECT

[BigTreeWalker]

Thanks for sharing that Randy. I agree about the stream noise. When I place my campsites I try to stay some distance away from them. Plus as you noted with the mosquitoes it can be very damp next to them.

Your right about wide brimmed hats. I always take mine off when trying to check out the trees.

[SWWASAS]

The other thing I notice is that a hat,   particularly a wide brimmed hat,   cuts down peripheral vision.      I want peripheral vision when I am in the field.   

[BC witness]

Randy, if you want head protection without the bother of a brim, try a toque, as in my avatar to the left, or in American, a watch cap. Keeps the sun and skeeters off without visual blockage.

 

Sounds like you had a good day out, in spite of no sign of Sasquatch. I was out today (Family Day in BC), but I'll report that in another thread.

 

Cheers.

Edited February 9, 2016 by BC witness

[Gotta Know]

Makes me wonder what happened for the bow hunters to drop and abandon their (possibly expensive?) gear...

My experience is that bow hunters are a lot like fly fishers and back packers; decidedly "pack it out" types. Sure, exceptions to every rule. Interesting they left gear behind!

[BigTreeWalker]

Things get forgotten or dropped at times especially when you take a lunch break. I forgot my elk bugle once. At least I remembered where I left it. But had to walk back a half mile to retrieve it.

[Gotta Know]

Good point, BigTreeWalker. A buddy of mine (no, NOT me!!) did exactly that while hunting javelina in AZ. Only on his lunch break he left a loaded/holstered .357 and could not find it when he went back 20 min later. Looked for hours. Thought he was in the same spot but He just couldn't find it. Talk about an early-senior moment! We've never let him live that down...

GK

[BigTreeWalker]

I've found a few interesting things in the woods but never a loaded firearm.

[SWWASAS]

Well speaking of lost guns I have to tell a story on me.    I normally am in the field with my holstered automatic.   Now I keep checking to see if I have it and there is a reason why.    I went into one area, off trail and was doing a lot of scrambling over logs and down wood.   Heavy stuff that has you climbing over and under stuff every few feet.    I felt like I was being watched for a long time.    Hard going.  I had enough when the going got too hard and I was not finding anything, so headed back to my truck,  got in and still had a lot of logging road to drive out before I got down to a river to check along the bank for footprints.     So I kept the gun on instead of taking it off like I normally do when I drive.      When I got to the river got out and the gun was not in my holster.    I freaked out, decided it must have fallen out when I was scrambling over and under all the down wood.   I thought it unlikely I would find it again because I was not on a trail.    I was not worried about anyone finding it because of where I thought I must have lost it.   I briefly wondered what a BF would do with a found gun as I drove back to the other location.        I got back there and there near where I had parked.  was the gun laying on the ground.      OK maybe it fell out of the holster when I got in the truck.     But I cannot understand why I did not see it when I backed out to leave because I saw it when I pulled in again.   It was right in the open but not where I remembered parking the truck.    It was not even dirty like it had fallen out of the holster.    I had a crazy feeling someone had brought it out and put it there for me to find when I came back.      Probably wrong but I still cannot shake that feeling.    Maybe Gotta Know's buddy lost the gun where a BF found it.     Not there is a scary thought, armed BF.             

Edited February 9, 2016 by SWWASASQUATCHPROJECT

[Gotta Know]

Dang, Randy. I had the exact same thought about my buddy's gun being "found" before his return.

In both cases I think I prefer the simplest explanation (and most plausible) of human error. But your tale has a bit of that "creepy" vibe to it, I must say.

[LeafTalker]

 I got back there and there near where I had parked.  was the gun laying on the ground.      OK maybe it fell out of the holster when I got in the truck.     But I cannot understand why I did not see it when I backed out to leave because I saw it when I pulled in again.   It was right in the open but not where I remembered parking the truck.    It was not even dirty like it had fallen out of the holster.    I had a crazy feeling someone had brought it out and put it there for me to find when I came back.      Probably wrong but I still cannot shake that feeling.    Maybe Gotta Know's buddy lost the gun where a BF found it.     Not there is a scary thought, armed BF.             

What a great story, Randy. And that feeling is not crazy at all. That's what they DO. They are not looking to mess you up, if you're not looking to mess them up. They help you when help is needed. 

 

You have good friends in the wild! What a sweet gift for any human being to have!

[SWWASAS]

Just back from some air search today.     Needed to fly the airplane to keep the engine running well, and update my landing currency so decided to go into Skamania County and check out some areas I was wandering about.     The wind was supposed to be strong from the East which would have prohibited that, but I found that the wind was not bad at all.   If there is more than 10 knots of wind the turbulence over the mountains can get really nasty.      I wanted to check out some places I have not been able to get to on the ground.     It is amazing how different a place you know like the back of your hand on the ground looks from the air.    It is hard sometimes even to find a place you want to look at.      You have to go from what you recognize,   follow a road from that,   and find the place you are looking for.    Trails are for the most part not visible from the air if there is any tree coverage.          The airplane sort of flattens out the terrain so to speak, so the hill you really do not want to climb on foot, you can just pop over and find out what is on the back side.   I did a lot of that today and was disappointed in some cases that what I thought was continuous woods had clear cuts on the back side.     Washington has a lot of logging going on right now.  More now that I have ever seen before.   Anyway I was hoping to find a family of BF laying out on a warm rock basking on a SW facing slope.   No such luck.       There were a lot of vehicles out in the woods.    Most parked at locked gates.     Sure makes me wonder what those people are doing out there. 

 

Thinking of what I saw today and my loss of contact with BF two years ago,  I think they have to have moved East where there is less logging.     I wish I had documented the forest cover when I first started field work.     I bet there is 30% less standing forest in that area.    

Edited February 9, 2016 by SWWASASQUATCHPROJECT

[SWWASAS]

Ground field work yesterday afternoon between rain storms.    Went to the East Fork of the Lewis River.     Fairly close for me but I have never had a hint of BF activity there.       Part of the problem for me is that the canyon the river runs through has very steep sides,    with no human access out except for a couple of logging roads,   Wes and Woodies encounter location being one of them.   There are no human trails and access to the back country has to be to the North because the river is raging full right now to the South.    I normally examine river banks but the river was so full there were none yesterday to examine.     I was just going to park and walk the road along the river just in case a BF came down for water.      Then I noticed the embankment on the North Side of the road looked like it had been worked by man.    Never noticed that before,  so I went back into the brush and sure enough were the big rocks and ditches blocking off either an old logging road or in this case I think it was a fire break that had been bulldozed to the North.     Although the feature was overgrown with underbrush, indicating it had not been made or used in a very long time, there was sign that it had been used as a trail.   I was overjoyed because it paralleled a creek and allow access to the back country to the North.   To me it was like finding the trail to Shangri-La.    I must have driven past there a dozen times and had no idea it was there.      The creek is year round and I have looked at it before but going up the creek is not feasible.     Too much water, down logs, etc.    But here I was on a nice trail with a nice grade heading North with the creek down the ridge below me.    I kept stopping and looking down on the creek hoping to see something.         

 

The trail is a veritable elk highway.     I have never seen so many elk tracks and skat in one place.    Anyone local that hunts who wants the location PM me and I  will give you the location.     I saw no sign of human footprints but that is not saying  much because the ground was so wet.    There was not a hint of gravel or rock on what was dozed out before so I think it must have been a firebreak rather than a road.   Even very old roads normally have rock on them in this area because it they don't logging trucks would get stuck in the winter.     About a quarter mile in the trail started winding through leafless plants with thorns.     Not sure what they are but the plants were about 7 feet tall and had thorns all the way up.    But the trail had been used by at least elk and I continued wanting to see how far it went.   I am guessing the elk use the trail to come out of the high country and go down to the river for water.     The creek may have access but it is more difficult to get down there than taking the trail to the river.    

 

Then things got weird.    I love field work because there is hardly a trip out than something strange does not happen.      I come around the corner and there is a big tarp covering something up along the trail.    I am a half mile from the road at this point.   I look around, worried about a pot grow operation and decide if it is one, they are probably not there in the winter.     I gingerly pull the tarp back with my hiking pole and uncover a camping stove and a kayak.   Why in the world is a kayak 1/2 mile from the river?    There are a couple of bags of things that appear to be pans and that sort of thing and two plastic water jugs.  I recover the stuff with the tarp like It was when I found it.      I decided to continue North and explore the trail.    I hear a couple of thuds,  and bail off the trail, hoping the thuds are a BF coming down the trail.    I hide off the trail and get my video camera ready.    Nothing happens, no more thuds.    The hillside above had lots of erosion and a rock could have just rolled down.   So I continue North.    Round another corner and a big garbage back is right in the middle of the trail.     A pillow is sort of hanging out and underneath that is a sleeping bag.   Pillow was sticking out enough that it had to get wet in the rain.     Whoever it is that stashes this stuff must be pretty certain no one else knows about the trail.    

 

One section of the trail is flat and very wet.   I am wading through water or mud.     I start picking up some footprints that do not look like elk but cannot figure out what they are.     Smaller than mine so figure some are  just overstrike by other elk making an elongated print.    So many elk prints everywhere.    Really wet and things are not very defined.   The trail gets less used, the plants with thorns more thick, and I felt some drops of rain so decided to call it a day.     On the way out found an interesting print.    Small at 8.5 inches but does not look like elk overstrike because the front is square looking with a hint of toes or claws.      Will post a picture.    Might be bear because of the shape.   

 

Trip out uneventful.    My camera tags pictures with GPS coordinates so I know where I was.     The USGS map shows a road in the area but not where my GPS coordinates are.   I think the USGS map is wrong.    Probably the road was plotted before GPS and is not accurate.     Anyway  have any ideas why a kayak would be stashed there?    Cannot see a Pot grower needing a kayak. 

 

 

Picture of the kayak

 

 

 

Pillow and Sleeping Bag

 

 

 

Footprint

 

 

 

 

 

 

[BigTreeWalker]

Interesting collection of items you found. I would surmise that they were all together and the bag and pillow carried or dragged up to where you found. I'm like you though, it seems like an odd collection of stuff to be up there, especially the kayak. Unless someone stole it from a camp closer to the river and stashed it up there for later retrieval. Still odd. Those thorny bushes you mentioned, if that's what I see in the edges of your photos are salmon berry bushes.

Was the track on a slight incline? Just wondering because it looks like something slipped enough to rip the grass out of it. Since it looks pretty grassy around it.

I might mention too that sometimes items on USGS maps are approximate locations. Sometimes it says that sometimes it doesn't. There is a trail on the east side of Mt St Helens that the USGS map says goes through a certain area. It misses the actual location by quite a ways. Going by the map it would lead you over a cliff, around a marsh and back up the cliff again to the top. It does go around the marsh but it stays on the ridge.

[daveedoe]

Just above Sunset Falls on the south side of the river there is a virtual forest of devil's club under the canopy. Just wondering if those thorny plants could have been devil's club. Salmon berry for sure in the pictures I don't see any devils club. 

 

That is an odd place for a kayak. The water jugs make me think maybe there was a grow operation near by. Maybe the kayak is used as a sled to haul supplies.  Good report, thanks.