Trees Along My Journey
Canada to Baja California, Mexico
We shall never see, a thing more lovely than a tree.
earning about trees is hard. I bought a book published by the Audobon Society. This book
did not describe most of the trees that I saw. So, I decided to collect my own trees.
This page on trees, is only beginning. My plan is to have an image of the tree, the trunk and
a closeup of needles or leaves on a branch end.. Text showing when and where the image
was collected will be included.
Of course the trees will at some time be identified. That is my goal.
Quaking Aspen
We captured this lovely tree near the Ochoco Forest in Oregon, and are thankful to a reader of
our Blog named Thomas for identification. The Aspen's leaves shimmer in the Sun, giving the
name "Quaking" to this lovely tree.
Quaking Aspen
Douglas Fir
This very beautiful tree is abundant in Oregon. The Douglas Fir looks a great deal like
the Grand Fir, below. At first we confused these two trees. Then we found Douglas Fir growing
right next to Grand Fir, and saw that the needles were very different.
Trunk of mature Douglas Fir.
Young Douglas Fir.
Trunk of young Douglas Fir.
Grand Fir
We captured this tree in the Ochoco National Forest, May 27, 2005. The needles grow singly,
wide and flat. When looking at the needles from the end of a twig, they appear flat. The
needles grow from opposite sides of the twig. The upper side of the needles is a deep green,
and the lower side a bluish green.
Grand Fir
Juniper
This Juniper was captured on May 27, 2005, along the banks of the John Day River near Spray,
Oregon. Juniper is the most abundant tree in this area. Rubbing the needles between my
fingers, produces a distinctive fragrance. Growing from the needles, are what appear to
be bluish berries.
Juniper
Juniper-High Desert
This Juniper was captured on May 17, 2006, at the Islands in the Sky section of Canyonlands
National Park. The tree was growing at the 6,000 foot elevation near Willow Flat campground
in the State of Utah. The shape of this Juniper is different than the Juniper above, as
you may see.
Often when these Junipers die, they remain for many, many years as shown in the bottom
image below.
Juniper - High Desert
Ponderosa Pine
While camping in Oregon's Umatilla National Forest on May 28, 2005, I captured this Ponderosa.
Many Ponderosas have the distinctive reddish bark as on this tree. Many however, have bark
with much less contrast. The needles grow in bundles of 3, and are about 6" long. Online
descriptions of the Ponderosa state that sometimes needles grow in bundles of 2. I have not
seen any bundles of 2. The altitude here is 4,050 feet.
Ponderosa Pine
Pacific Silver Fir
We found these Pacific Silver Fir trees in the Klackitat County Courthouse Park in
Goldendale, Washington on May 30, 2005.
Pacific Silver Fir
Blue Spruce
This lovely little Blue Spruce was captured from the frontyard of a home in Goldenvale,
Washington on May 31, 2005. This lovely blue-grey color and shape of the needles is
exceptional!
Blue Spruce
Subalpine Fir
On June 5th, 2005 at the Red Top Campground in the Wenatchee National Forest, I
captured my Subalpine Fir. The needles of this fir are very coarse in appearance, and
grow all around the branch rather than in rows.
Subalpine Fir
Western Red Cedar
In the Okanogan National Forest on June 12, 2005 at the 2,390 foot level, I captured my
first Cedar Tree. A fellow who lives close by this tree, came by and identifed it as a
Western Red Cedar. I am searching for a free standing Red Cedar, but so far all of them
are all growing close together.
Western Red Cedar
Western Larch
This Western Larch was captured at the 6,800 foot level on Mount Baker, Washington close to the
southern end of the Pasayten Wilderness. For awhile, I thought that this
tree was a Tamarack because the needles grow in bunches.
Western Larch
Tamarack
This Tamarack was captured in the Town of Newhalem, Washington across from the General Store.
This little tree is domestic, not wild. For awhile, I confused this Tamarack with the
Western Larch above.
Tamarack #1
Unknown Tree
We saw a bunch of these trees, as we were leaving the Okanogan National Forest on June 16,
2005. We captured tree at about the 4,500 foot level, west of Mazama, Washington.
We would like this tree to be an Oregon Ash, but it isn't. It might be a Pacific Willow,
but it was growing on a mountain, away from any water.
Tamarack #2
Western Hemlock
We captured this Western Hemlock in the Snoqualmie National Forest at the East Creek
Trailhead on
June 17, 2005 at the 2300 foot altitude. This area
has tons of different trees. Cedar, spruce, fir, pine and of course, this Western Hemlock.
The cones are
about 3/4" in length. The needles are about 3/8" long, a deep green color on top and lighter
green on the bottom and have rounded tips. The needles are staggered along the twig.
Western Hemlock
Boxelder
This tree was captured in Zion National Park, on the trail to Weeping Rock. That was
on April 26, 2006. Zion is an oasis in the middle of a Utah desert. There are
many different trees growing here.
A member of the maple family, boxelder is probably familiar to many people. It grows wild
in most states.
Boxelder
Pinyon Tree
This Pinyon Tree was captured on May 17, 2006, at the Islands in the Sky section of Canyonlands
National Park. The tree was growing at the 6,000 foot elevation near Willow Flat campground
in the State of Utah.
Pinyon Tree
Bristlecone Pine
This Bristlecone Pine was captured on May 26, 2007, on the Alpine Pond Trail in
Cedar Breaks National Monument in the State of Utah. The tree was growing at the
10,400 foot elevation.
Bristlecone Pine
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