Wednesday, June 2, 2021

A Memorial Day Weekend hike, with consequences

While I would have been content with a 3-day weekend spent in the garden, Andrew had other ideas. He wanted to return to the Salmon River Trail, a magical place we visited last fall (my posts here and here). 

Back then we hiked the main trail up to the point where the salmon were spawning (I shared a video of that on Instagram, here), but now he was curious about what lay around the bend. So why not? I deserved a day out playing, off we went...

Oxalis oregana was everywhere, there were huge patches of it in many places but I only managed this one shot.

There were also many fallen trees, some already serving as a home for an entire eco-system.

I could have spent an hour just looking at the plants here, but instead we marched on...

I thought these looked a little like orchid leaves popping up through the moss. I have no clue what they actually are. (update from Evan: Clintonia uniflora, a lily relative

Moss sculpture!

There were only a few skunk cabbage (Lysichiton americanus) along the trail, but they were looking rather luminous. 


It was nice to see there's still water up in the mountains, it's been a very dry spring here in Western Oregon.

Here's 15 seconds of tranquility for you (sound on)...

There was sun at the high points on the trail, usually filled with Sedum spathulifolium.

So back to the title of this post; "a hike with consequences"...

Here's a lovely river view I enjoyed for a short stretch of time while Andrew fished. Unfortunately I wasn't just relaxing. I was soaking my ankle in the ice cold river hoping to reduce the swelling from a nasty ankle twisting incident. 

As we stood on the trail, looking down at the river—Andrew heading down to fish—I said "I think I'll stay up here"... then looking it over closer and seeing a navigable pathway, I decided I'd go down too. That was a big mistake. I slid on some loose dirt and small rocks, and my foot didn't slide with me. There were snaps, I felt them and they were loud enough that Andrew heard them. Damn. All I could think was "how am going to get all the way back to the car?" which was something like a mile and a half away...

I walked. I'm sure it wasn't the best thing that I could do—we did stop so I could give it an icy soak again—but what other choice did I have?

Back at the car I snapped these photos of Oplopanax horridus, aka devil's club (I think). Nope! Another Evan update, this is Heracleum maximum.

And Maianthemum racemosum (formerly Smilacina racemosa), aka false Solomon’s Seal

As I write this post my ankle is swollen up something awful and the bruising has set in and is making all quite dramatic. Since I can stand and walk (carefully, flat footed) without any pain I am assuming it's not broken, but I may have torn some ligaments. So much for active gardening for awhile...

All material © 2009-2021 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.

31 comments:

  1. Loree, please go have it checked and X-rayed just to be sure. You may have bigger consequences it you do not do that.

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    1. Thanks Nancy, you and the others convinced me and I did. It's broken. Surgery ahead....

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  2. Ouch! The description of audible snapping really made me cringe. I hope the damage isn't too bad and you heal fast. The orchid-like leaves belong to Clintonia uniflora, a lily relative, and the devil's club is actually Heracleum maximum.

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    1. Thank you for the ID's.... I'd love to see the Clintonia uniflora blooming.

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  3. I agree with Nancy, a trip to the doctor is called for, if only to ease your minds. Snapping sounds are not good. It was a beautiful hike and you got some wonderful shots but you don't need any long-term consequences, or hesitancy about returning to the trail in the future.

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    1. Thanks to you and the others I did go to urgent care yesterday. It's broken. Surgery is in my future.

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  4. Ouch. I did something similar, with a similar snap and bruising, last year while stepping down from a rock step in my garden. Foot went sideways and I went down. It healed up on its own, but it took some time. Hope you're back up to speed sooner!

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    1. I was thinking I'd be healing on my own too. Little did I know...

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  5. My thoughts are with you.

    Beautiful photos, by the way.

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  6. AnonymousJune 02, 2021

    I agree with Nancy above. Get your foot checked. I could tell you lots of stories about people who didn't think they had a break when they did, plus soft tissue injuries are nothing to sneeze at either. Sometimes they need repair. Aside from that, the area is breathtaking. Wish I could have been there too.

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    1. Thanks to your comment and the others I did go to urgent care yesterday. It's broken. Surgery is in my future...

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  7. Goodness, hope it didn’t get worse and you’re feeling much better now. Wishing you a speedy recovery!

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  8. Dang!!! I agree completely with Nancy. Have your ankle checked today! 'Snaps' are never good said from a woman with several of those over the decades who now has a fused ankle.

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    1. Fused ankle! Yikes. That doesn't sound good. I did go to urgent care yesterday. It's broken. Surgery is in my future.

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  9. PS... this trail is so rich in beauty with a lushness and the spring blooms only the PNW can provide. All the deep green I dream of living in the SW desert. Your photos also give me the smell of damp earth. Yes!

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    1. It was such a beautiful outing! I am trying to hang on to that.

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  10. Ouch. Darn it. I hope you heal quickly. Your photos are beautiful.

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  11. Oh no! That sounds so painful! But leave it up to you to snap a few last photos after you got back to the car!

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    1. Andrew was fishing near the car, I had time to kill so...

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  12. I'm so sorry that happened to you on such a beautiful hike in the woods, but you really should have that checked out .. there could be more damage than you think. I wouldn't gamble with a guess at what happened.
    I Googled your woodsy treasures and they are gorgeous ! Plus that video with the marvelous water music ! Loved it ! Thank you ;-)

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    1. Yep, I went to urgent care yesterday. It's broken...

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  13. Nothing like unexpected trauma. Definitely ruins a nice holiday.

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  14. Beautiful woodland! We like frozen peas for such mishaps -- get well soon!

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    1. We happen to have a nice little selection of gel ice bags. They've been in rotation.

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  15. Oww! I'm sorry. Best wishes.

    And don't fall on it again after it's all healed, like I did.

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  16. Oh ! Poor you ! Hope it heals up fast for you . Love the tranquility video ! :) x

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  17. So sorry about your injury, Loree. I hope the surgery goes well. What a beautiful hike--the scenes remind me of some Wisconsin forest hikes--particularly in the Door County woodlands. Take care!

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