Life and times of a new farmer/homesteader
On growing up in a temperate rainforest... {
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Wednesday, January 3, 2007
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When most folks think of a rainforest, they think of the tropics, like
the Amazon basin or parts of Africa or south Asia or Hawaii. Not
all rainforests are like that.In the northwest part of north America, there are many areas that are classified as temperate rainforests. From Northern California, through to southern Alaska, there are several rainforests, all have different features but they have one thing in common: Rain. The Olympic penninsula in Washington state is one. The sequoias and redwoods of northern California are (I believe) also rainforest. When rain clouds hit mountains, the clouds rise, get cooled off a bit, and rain happens. I grew up on the western edge of the Cascade Mountains, near the southern edge of Washington, on the border of Clark and Skamania counties (just inside of Skamania,) in an area known as upper Washougal. I lived 40 miles due south of Mt. St. Helens. Yes, I lived there in 1980, when it blew up. The things I remeber most growing up were the river in my backyard, the volcano, the earthquakes, and the trees. Let's talk about the trees... On the acre my parents had (and have,) we had six Douglas Firs. The shortest one was about 130 feet tall. If my math is right, that's about 40 meters. We also had a couple of Hemlocks, some Cedars, some Maples, lots of Laurel, tons of Alders, and a ton of blackberries. We lived in a pretty populated part of the county, most lots were about a half acre. Many were vacation cabins. Many, although not as many, still are. I remember the spring, when the trilliums would bloom. Most were white, but some were purple. I was always told not to pick them, because they only bloom every seven years and they needed to go to seed. I also remember ferns, some so large that as a seven year old I could hide under them. There were quite a few Rhodadendrons, and some azalias. Mom planted dafodills too. Not much would grow there, as the rain was pretty constant, and the trees shaded everything when it wasn't. I could never get a ripe tomato. Corn was out of the question. Lots of herbs grew well though, as did horseradish. Those things that did grow, that were suited to lots of water and little sun, grew very well. There wasn't much wildlife, as the area was pretty populated. There was one tame deer for about four years. I don't remember its name right off, but it would walk right up to you. Someone actually put a green bow around its neck, I don't know who. People would see it for miles around, and it walked through our back yard to the river on at least four occasions that I saw it. It was a pretty little blacktailed doe. There were also raccoons, and opossums, and porcupines, and skunks, and rabbits, and squirells, and chipmunks, and in the river there were beaver and otter and mink. We had otter in our backyard swimming hole. They were a great deal of fun to watch, as they would slide down the bank on the other side of the river. I remember seeing one mink, but that was nearly 30 years ago. There is a huge old beaver who haunts the next hole up river, also fun to watch but far more industrious. There were salmon, and steelhead, and crawdads, and lots of little fish in the river as well. I caught my first salmon, my first steelhead, and my first crawdads there. I also collected fresh water mussels, and I foraged alot of the local plants. The birds were very special. There were ducks, and geese, and kingfishers, and finches, and robins, and all sorts of other stuff. Most impressive were the great blue herons. Watching a great blue heron and a kingfisher fish is in interesting study in contrast. A great blue heron will stand quietly in the shallow rapids, waiting and watching. After a while, it will spot something tasty, and its head will dart into the water, normally coming up with a small fingerling fish. I always thoought it looked like it was fishing with chopsticks. A kingfisher, on the other hand, will fly full bore over the clearest part of the pool, about a foot or so off the water. When it sees something tasty, it makes a 90 degree turn straight up for about six feet, flips over and dives head first into the water, slamming it with a force not often seen in nature, at least not in birds. It then comes up with its fingerling, and flies off. I always thought of it as being like fishing with a hammer. Both were effective, but completely different. Herons in flight look almost prehistoric, almost dinosaur. Their call is something you will never forget if you hear it. When I would go hunting, I would go in the hills and mountains near the headwaters of the Washougal river. I would occasionally bring home grouse, and rabbit, and deer. I also saw cougar, bear, bobcats, and elk. It wasn't all that different from here. The bears around here are pretty much all black bears, and as such pretty small and skittish. I have seen brown bear up near Mt. Ranier, but that's a different story. Where I grew up is where I learned my love and awe of nature. Thank you for asking me to share it with you. Raymond { Last Page } { Page 151 of 181 } { Next Page } |
