<< A Beautiful Day at the Dike

05/19/23 - The Fourth Plague

With summer approaching, we figured we had better toughen up and get into shape for climbing. The Lake Angeles Trail is a good trail for this with a steady ascent 2450' from the trailhead to the lake. We didn't even get halfway to the lake, but one hiker who had told us that the area is clear of snow. Maybe next time.

We expected to see trilliums, and we did. The big surprise were the frogs, little Pacific Tree Frogs. There were swarms of these little guys at several points along the trail. We have been hiking the Lake Angeles Trail for over twenty years now, and this is the first time we've seen frogs along the way. They came in green, brown and red, and they hopped about furiously then froze making them very hard to see.

We ran into another group of hikers and mentioned seeing frogs. "Did you see the frogs on the trail?" "Oh yes, the fourth plague." We all had a good laugh. Frogs, or perhaps toads, were the fourth of the ten plagues inflicted on the Egyptians in the Bible. We tend to avoid plagues, but we're more than willing to put up with a few frogs when out on the trail.


The first frog

Another frog

Possibly the same guy after some hoppage

A little frog hiding

The stream, in full spate, one crosses at about 750' above the trailhead

The foot bridge

A trillium

More trilliums

Greenery

Yet another frog

Yet another trillium

Water under the bridge

Carnivorous plants

Still another frog

And a froggy friend

A big flowered trillium

An older, pinker trillium

Looking down off the trail

A curtain of drips

More along the trail, no frogs

The big rock about 500' about the trailhead

A trillium collection

Heading back down

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