Enga mellom fjella

The hills are alive...

...with lupine.

ME:

Green or yellow or purple or indigo would be a more appropriate color for today.

Yes, it was cold. Colder now. Possible flakes in the air by morning... yeah, that cold.

But, today I went for a walk with Travis in the North Hills. He moved here from
Pennsylvania a while back so he doesn't know Missoula too well. We met at Bernice's then I introduced him to Fact & Fiction and Butterfly Herbs. After coffee we walked...

Up Choke Cherry Gulch where the arrow-leaf balsamroot was blooming in yellow-gold. A variety of euporbiaceae was tinting the slopes yellow-green. Saw lots of indigo lupines and deeper blue/purple larkspur. Took photos of course. This particular path isn't too steep which was okay with my back ...and his. Travis pointed out a fox on the run. Two dogs were chasing it. Later we saw 5 horses on the ridge.

There were sheep and the shepherd's wagon by the sheep pen to the west. Took photos of them grazing. I'm sure they were munching away on the grass and the weeds. Have no idea where they will be grazing this year. Last year they-all were up on Mt. Jumbo.

Mt. Jumbo looked spectacular in green by-the-way. Greener then last year methinks.

But at 55 degrees and dropping it was chill when the wind picked up and the sun hid behind leaden clouds. Always nice to see a veil of showers crossing the valley though ...as long as one is dry, of course!

While I was up there Mandy called from Des Moines to say she was on her way to a concert by Celia. I was thrilled to hear she would make it there. Thrilled to get a couple photos she sent to my phone afterwards! Yep, Celia and the Pink Trestle Fairy invaded Iowa. Wish I would've been there too.

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