Teanaway Fireworks Show

I recently returned from my first camping trip of 2020! As I missed out on my usual April/May camping trips this year, this one was sorely needed. I spent two peaceful nights in the Teanaway region, north of Cle Elum. The last time I was in this area in the summer was for a camping trip in 2014; since then, I'd only visited for a couple of autumn day hikes. I've been missing out! The colorful wildflower meadows were a fourth-of-July fireworks show in their own right.

Esmeralda Basin

My first hiking destination was the Esmeralda Basin trail to Fortune Creek Pass. With a net elevation gain of less than 2,000 feet and a consistent, moderate grade, it's one of the kinder and gentler hikes in the Teanaway. It seems less popular than some other trails in the area (e.g. Lake Ingalls), perhaps because there's no big view of Mount Stuart. I thoroughly enjoyed this hike, though. There was a fun diversity of flower types and mountain views, and I appreciated being able to climb at a reasonable pace (and often in the shade).

One of my favorite moments of the whole trip was when I came upon a large patch of shooting star (genus Dodecatheon) blooming in an open forest; it seemed like something out of a fairy tale. The flowers are so small in the frame that this image doesn't look great at a small size (e.g., on a phone), but as a large print, I think it would look better. F/14.

Continuing on the theme of shooting star, here is an image of those flowers blooming around a small stream. There isn't as much of a sense of depth as I'd like, but again, maybe at a larger size this would be better. F/16, 1/8 second.

The mountain views along the trail are also noteworthy, improving as the trail ascends. At Fortune Creek Pass, extremely gusty winds - I mean, shake-the-tripod-and-blow-your-hat-off kind of winds - precluded a long photography stop, but I did manage to walk away with this image of Hawkins Mountain. Due to the winds, I had a tough time freezing the motion of the pine branches, so the detail quality isn't ideal. I'm happy with this framing, though. F/14.

Below, one of the Esmeralda Peaks. F/14.

Here's a meadow with western red columbine (Aquilegia formosa) in the foreground, and shooting star visible out of focus. I actually really like how this one turned out; the narrow depth of field accentuates the columbine in the foreground, but the mountain slopes in the distance are still discernible as such. F/8.

Below, a view back down the basin. F/14.

Lastly from the Esmeralda Basin trail, a patch of some sort of anemone (genus Anemone; I didn't take a close enough look to determine the species). This image does a good job of depicting the harsh landscape near the pass, which is a contrast to the lusher meadows lower on the trail. F/14.

Bean Creek Basin

The next day, I hiked to the Bean Creek basin.That trail is shorter but steeper than the Esmeralda Basin hike, reaching the meadows of the upper basin in only about two miles. First, a view of the upper basin, with some paintbrush (genus Castilleja) in the foreground. F/13.

Next, a closer view of some paintbrush from that meadow. I tried a similar composition with a wide depth of field, but it wasn't as interesting, and a bit of a backpacker's tent was visible in the distance. F/8.

From the lower reaches of the trail, cow parsnip (Heracleum maximum or Heracleum lanatum) blooming in a brushy meadow near the creek. F/6.3.

Finally, a view looking back down the Bean Creek valley, with lupine blooming in the foreground. I took this picture knowing that there would be some distortion due to the wide angle and the downward tilt of the lens. I often complain about this sort of distortion and try to avoid it, but oddly, I think it works here. It accentuates the valley-view concept, and perhaps it's severe enough to seem intentional. F/14.