It has been a reluctant transition to spring in the mountains of the upper Columbia Basin. Those who have been here all winter have been tearing their hair out. I have merely been staring at the unmelted snow with astonishment, since I returned several weeks ago. In my garden, a statue of Kuan Yin has […]
Upper Columbia River Region
Full Flowering and the Columbia River Treaty
The last time my life was as busy as it has been this spring was the year my second son came into the world. That sunny, damp day in mid-March 26 years ago set off a whirl of caregiving for family that only began to abate in 2002, when my first book emerged in the […]
An Eagle’s Eye
Last week, I travelled south of the international boundary, to Kettle Falls, Washington. Standing on a bluff overlooking the Columbia River, I watched the reservoir pool around a land mass exposed by low water. The indigenous word for this place is ksunkw, “island.” Sinixt and Skoyelpi fishermen, their families and the Salmon Chief once spent […]
Boundary Dam
This dam is just below the international boundary between Canada and the U.S., in a tucked-away corner. Pacific Northwest dams are often in tucked-away corners…..though they share water’s power with millions of people living in cities like Vancouver and Seattle.
Spokane River Shell
I found this shell in a sand bank on the Spokane River. It is this sort of noticing that opens up water’s mystery for me.
Liking Lichens
Sometimes, on a drippy, early spring day, there is little else to notice in the woods than lichens. This was from one walk in a fairly dry, rocky woods at the edge of Slocan Lake. I collected a piece of each one that I could find on the short walk.