Jump Creek Canyon

My house was a disaster.  My lawn beyond out of control.  There were a pile of bills to pay and a To-Do list a mile long.  It was obvious I had an overwhelming amount of things to accomplish so I did the ONLY rational thing I could do in this sort of situation.  I tossed the To-Do list aside and I WENT HIKING!  Yeah Me!

It had been years since I had been to Jump Creek Canyon so I was particularly excited to see it with fresh eyes (and my very cool camera).  There are a few things I remember very clearly about my prior trip to Jump Creek.  One is the overwhelming  presence POISON OAK and the other the frustrating maze of roads--none of which are marked--leading to the canyon!  Fortunately this trip I had my newly purchased ATLAST for assistance!  Actually, I still took a few of my famous detours before getting it right but I did find it this time with relative ease, comparatively!    

     

This is the ONLY sign for Jump Creek . . . but there were COUNTLESS signs posted blaring NO TRESPASSING and KEEP OUT!  I was particularly fond of these NO NO NO TIRES!  Grouchy old ranchers anyway!

Somehow I managed to avoid being shot by the overprotective ranching community and was simply STUNNED to find the parking area COMPLETELY DESERTED!

That meant I could take goofy pictures in the parking lot!

By the way, I should tell you, in an effort of improve the quality of my "Lovely Self-Portraits" I purchased this supremely delightful tripod--the GorillaPod.  I'm ridiculously excited about it so you should to see a few more self-portraits in upcoming posts!

photos taken in Jump Creek Canyon:

  

  

  

   

     

     

JUST LOOK AT ALL THAT POISON OAK!

While hiking around, it seemed that whenever I reached for a handhold, there was a MASSIVE patch of poison oak staring back at me!  I would have loved to do some more exploring of the creek (appropriately named POISON CREEK) but I was too paranoid about getting the itchies!  In fact, on the drive home, I was convinced I had gotten into the poison oak!  EVERYTHING itched!  Alas, it was just my imagination hard at work again!  However, I have decided an anti-itch ointment might be a good addition to my Adventure Kit, just in case I manage to get the itchies for real next time!  :o) 

I was SO thrilled with these cows!  Almost, in fact, as much as they were with me!  I guess they've never seen a woman with imaginary poison oak attempting to peel her skin off before!

feeding time out on the range

And I simply LOVE this picture.  If you look closely, you can see that all three mommas are nursing babies!  I just thought it was cute!

On my way home from Jump Creek I was determined to find the elusive Map Rock.  A few years ago I made several futile attempts to find Map Rock but this time, I got it right!  Although I had been on the right road all those years ago (get this, it is named Map Rock Road) I didn't drive FAR enough down that road (nearly 90 miles, I believe).  Well, not really but I do have to admit I was previously a bit impatient and gave up miles too soon!  However, I thought the rock was simply amazing and well worth finding!  I loved running my hands over the deep, but older than old, carvings while imagining what the artist meant to convey as she painstakingly chipped away at the massive boulder.  Local history claims that ancient Native Americans used this giant boulder to map the Snake River.  Personally, I'm not convinced!  It looks more like it tells the story of an ancient alien abduction to me!  Either way, I was thrilled to have read one of the oldest stories ever written, even if I didn't really understand a word of it!  Then again, the mark of a truly spectacular storyteller, is their ability to invoke the readers imagination.  Map Rock certainly stirs the imagination (and raises some serious questions about the existence of aliens)! 

photos taken at Map Rock:

     

  

After stopping to admire the alien depictions, I began to hike up the hillside behind the rock.  Although the terrain was steep and rocky, there was a delightful absence of poison oak!  My mind began to wander a bit and as I came along side this strange looking rock . . . 

a beautiful mommy duck . . .

who had been COMPLETELY hidden from view . . .

flew out from UNDER a protective overhang on the rock . . .

     

JUST AS I WALKED BY.

She had been meticulously guarding her NEST and had courageously waited until the VERY last minute before abandoning her post and by doing so . . . 

~favorite photo of this trip~ 

BLOOD!

SCARED ME SO BADLY, I FELL!

So, as I fully anticipated, a wild (but pitifully harmless) animal drew my first Adventure Blood!  I do have to admit I expected my first blood to have been drawn by a ferocious attack lizard or even one of the giant, woman-eating snakes I have been routinely encountering.  Never would I have guessed that a DUCK WOULD SHOVE ME DOWN A HILL!  Then again, she probably could never have accomplished the feat had I not been on the look-out for spaceships . . . 

ahh, yes.  i know you have been waiting for these!

~lovely self portraits~

doesn't look like my gorillapod improved them any. oh well!

~FAVORITE PARTS OF THIS ADVENTURE~

• you know i HAVE to say, THE ATTACK DUCK!
• the BIG OL' SCRATCH i got from falling.
• the IMAGINARY ITCHIES i caught at the falls.
• my CAMELBACK! i forgot to tell you about it but this was its inaugural trip.  i love, love, love it!  thank you, abby's parents, for the terrific gift!  i love you and still can't believe you paid me to have fun with your daughter!  thank you again though!