Hikes: A Morning Chorus

Hikes: A Morning Chorus

The American calendar has 12 months (“moons”) in a year, named for Roman gods, Latin numbers, and a couple of Caesars thrown in too. This system is out of sync with the 13 full moons that occur during each voyage of our home planet around the sun. The Samish calendar, tied to the natural cycles of the earth and sky, has 13 moons, each named for an appropriate environmental attribute. 

The first moon of the year, beginning at this week’s winter solstice, is called Ngíngene7 [pronounced kind of like “ning-en-ah”]. It is the Moon of New Beginnings. The sun has begun its journey back toward our side of Earth, and our sunsets are already a few minutes later than they were last week. (The sun will not begin to rise earlier, however, until the second week of January.) And soon we will see buds swelling on Indian plums and other early bloomers. The tide of winter has turned, even though our calendar calls it just the beginning of winter.

Another example of new beginnings demanded our attention as we hiked up Guemes Mountain early Monday morning. Rain had poured the night before. Mists swirled as we ferried over to Guemes from Anacortes at dawn, with clouds still veiling the mountain peak. But sunrays began to burst through as we followed the island’s shoreline to the trailhead.

Hiking up the trail through the lower forest, shadowy in this early morning, all sounds were dampened, except for … can that be … frogs? And not just one or two. Every hundred feet another one joined in, all along the trail as we hiked upward. We would pass one and we would hear another further up, the heart-warming sound of the male Pseudacris regilla, or Pacific Chorus Frog, formerly called the Pacific Tree Frog.

Why the name change? Biologists discovered that their features are closer to the Chorus frog genus than the Tree frog genus. These frogs prefer to live in moist underground burrows, and they sport small foot pads to climb into brush, rarely going high into trees. And besides all that, the name Chorus just fits them so well!

The males created a chorus of love songs our entire way up to the top of Guemes Mountain, as they looked for a partner to create tadpoles, and challenged other males to stay out of their territories. The call they used this morning was not the usual “kree-yeck” sound we know so well from springtime evenings (or “Rai-neer” if you know that long-ago advertisement). No, this sound they were making (watch the movie if you have time to listen to them) says to other frogs “I’m bigger than you.” Females are most attracted to frogs that sing the most. Take that to heart, men.

Usually, these songs start next month, but the frogs don’t have calendars; they just know that our weather is warm and they are ready for new beginnings. Interestingly, the Samish name of next month’s moon is Wéx̲es, the Frog Moon!

At the top of Guemes, we enjoyed the cloudy views of Cypress, Blakely, and Fidalgo islands to the west and south, and Samish Island to the east. The Cascades and Olympics were shrouded in lingering mists. We hung out at the top, enjoying the peak experience, but our calendar was full for the day and we had to get back home. As we descended, the frog choruses continued. Sunshine broke through into the forest, creating magical slashes of light, and refreshing our spirits with brightness and warmth.

Our calendar says it’s a new year next week. But the solstice has passed. New beginnings are all around us and within us as well. Rejoice, no matter what the weather brings, or the calendar says. And listen for the love songs of our state frog, the Pacific Chorus Frog.

For the four-minute audio-video experience, get a big screen and go to this link: https://youtu.be/a6bNBhnCQug ​Be sure to turn up your sound to hear the chorus!

Directions

Trail Conditions: Excellent, even in late December after several rain and wind storms. Volunteers have done a remarkable job of improving the drainage system on this trail while retaining the natural experience of hiking in a Skagit Land Trust natural preserve. Thank you, Skagit Land Trust, all of your volunteers, and all those who helped protect this precious place in Skagit County through gifts of service or finances.

Directions: take the Guemes Ferry at 6th Street and I Avenue in Anacortes to Guemes Island. Go east on South Shore Road to the trailhead, a perfect two-mile route to bike or hike, followed by a one-mile plus hike up to the summit.

By Bus: Take Skagit County Transit from anywhere in Skagit County to the Guemes Ferry.

By Bike: as above. Anacortes has quiet backroads and several miles of bike lanes that are ideal for biking.

Mobility: Getting to the trailhead is paved, gently rolling, and very little vehicle traffic. The trail is gravel mostly, uphill most of the way, narrow, and with occasional rough terrain.

Republished with permission. Read the original article.