Deep Kirk Nine

@deepkirknine

Hiker, woodworker, retired arborist & climber, animal lover, tree hugger, and brought up to believe in democracy and liberty. And also Death to fascism. Location: Central WA, USA

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Bluesky

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Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 11d

Looking out over quartzite moraines at 11,000' near treeline on Wheeler Peak in Great Basin NP NV. Only three tree species grow here at this elevation, and they're easy to tell apart by their foliage alone: -Bristlecone Pine -Limber Pine -Engelmann Spruce #GreatBasin #trees #hiking #ForestFriday

Sparsely growing evergreen trees scattered over a vast slope of white rock under a clear blue sky.

Close up of a cluster of Bristlecone Pine needles.

Close up of a cluster of Limber Pine needles.

Close up of a cluster of Engelmann Spruce needles.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 11d

Ancient Bristlecone Pine portrait 9 (final) This tree still has one live branch. It was dated by coring to over 3200 years old. #GreatBasin #trees #hiking

A beautiful specimen of old gnarled Pine tree next to the hiking trail, with trees and mountains in the background under a clear blue sky. An informational sign is posted of front of the tree, and I'm standing next to the tree for scale.

A park service information sign describing the life cycle of a Bristlecone Pine. This particular tree was dated to between 3200 and 3300 years old.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 11d

Ancient Bristlecone Pine portrait 8 #GreatBasin #trees #ThickTrunkThursday

A gnarled old pine tree, likely over 2000 years old growing in a harsh landscape of white quartzite rock.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 11d

Ancient Bristlecone Pine portrait 7 #GreatBasin #trees #ThickTrunkThursday

One of my favorite gnarled old pine tree growing in a rocky moraine.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 12d

Ancient Bristlecone Pine portrait 6 #GreatBasin #trees #ThickTrunkThursday

Another gnarled old pine tree, growing from a bouldery moraine of white quartzite rock, with other ancient trees in the background.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 12d

Ancient Bristlecone Pine portrait 5 #GreatBasin #trees #ThickTrunkThursday

A gnarled old pine tree growing from a rock moraine. Other ancient trees can be seen scattered across the slopes in the background.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 13d

I almost forgot, last night Louie stole my dinner! I had put a plate of leftovers in the microwave- chicken, broccoli & potatoes, then Ieft to answer the phone. I forgot to close the microwave door, and he stuck his snout in there and cleaned the plate. I was so mad- I really wanted that chicken.

Louie laying on the floor, looking innocent and settling in for a nap.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 13d

Happy Wednesday Blue Sky from from my goofy boi Louie #dogsofbluesky

Louie our black and white mutt sitting kind of goofy on the concrete walk in front of the house.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 13d

Ancient Bristlecone Pine portrait 4 #GreatBasin #trees #ThickTrunkThursday

Another gnarled old pine tree growing from a bouldery quartzite moraine.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 13d

Ancient Bristlecone Pine portrait 3 #GreatBasin #trees #ThickTrunkThursday

The thick lower trunk of a ~3000 year old tree.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 14d

Ancient Bristlecone Pine portrait 2 #GreatBasin #trees #hiking

Another gnarled pine tree, possibly over 3000 years old growing on a harsh quartzite moraine, in association with Engelmann Spruce trees and prostrate Juniper shrubs, under a pale blue sky.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 14d

Ancient Bristlecone Pine portrait 1 These old trees are very individualistic, each one displaying a unique form that expresses it's own attempt to adapt to survive in an exceedingly harsh growing environment. #GreatBasin #trees #hiking

A gnarly old pine tree, possibly over 2000 years old, growing from an inhospitable quartzite moraine.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 14d

Some views from the summit of Wheeler Peak NV #GreatBasin #hiking

A view from the summit. Green round irrigated fields ban be seen in the valley bottom, with more mountains in the distance under a partly cloudy blue sky.

Looking across at the rugged rock face of Mount Simpson (I think). The rock here is a hard and layered quartzite.

Looking across at more mountains under a partly cloudy blue sky.

A hiker wearing a green backpack starting the long hike down from the summit. In the distance can be seen the large white turbines of the Spring Valley wind farm.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 14d

You don't see a lot of living things at 13,000' but there are always a few. Wheeler Peak summit 7/26 #GreatBasin #hiking

White flowering herb growing among rocks on the summit.

A solitary orange and black butterfly flitted around up there.

This summit-dwelling chipmunk went around trying to sneak into everyone's backpacks while they were resting from the hike. Here he's stuffing his cheeks with some granola crumbs he found on a rock.

Magenta-flowered herb growing in rocky soil on the summit.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 14d

A few shots from our hike up Wheeler Peak NV a few weeks ago, -Looking up the trail toward the mountain -Trudging up an endless rock ridge -A gaggle of primates on the summit -Two more primates on the summit #GreatBasin #hiking

A view up the trail toward the rocky summit of Wheeler Peak, 13,000'. The lower part of the hike led through a few miles of forest and sub-alpine meadows.

Looking up the hiking route- a harsh landscape of rock and scrubby plants under a bright blue sky. A hiker can be seen in the distance.

A group of summiteers hangs out on the rocky summit of the peak, including a very hardy 8 year old boy who hiked up with his dad.

Two geezers relaxing out on the summit trying not to look too out of breath. That's me on the right, the good-looking one in a hat and sunglasses. Next to me is some old guy from Montana.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 15d

RATM

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 15d

Comfort Food post #7 (bachelor edition): Fried chicken tenders (they don't need BBQ sauce but I love it), roasted balsamic broccoli and oven chips, & Capresi salad (w/ home-grown tomatoes and basil!). And a nice Dirtyface Amber Lager to wash it all down. #food

A tasty-looking dinner spread laid out on our live-edge sycamore dining table.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 15d

A grove of ancient Bristlecone Pines growing on a harsh moraine of broken quartzite at an elevation of ~11,000'. Great Basin NP NV 7/26 #GreatBasin #Trees

Twisted and gnarled trees on a rough landscape of boulders and scree. Most of these trees are many hundreds or thousands of years old. It's an unforgiving climate there- hot and dry all summer, and cold and windy all winter. Old Bristlecone pines usually aren't very tall- their tops get knocked down by lightning, fire, wind, and rockfall, and over the years they adapt into a low and stout form, like large shrubs.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 15d

Wheeler Peak 13,065', 2nd-highest point in NV, in Great Basin NP. -From a visit in May '24, lots of snow on the mountain -Looking straight up Wheeler's scary 2000' East face -July '26 the snow is gone. -The rocky trail up to the summit follows the obvious North ridge. #MountainMonday #GreatBasin

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 17d

The four stages of Louie this afternoon: -Awake -Yawning -On the ground -Out cold #dogsofbluesky

Our black and white mutt Louie looking at the camera with his mouth open in a goofy grin.

Louie rolling on his back on a concrete walkway.

Louie flattened all the way out on the walk, asleep.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 18d

I've just spent a week in Great Basin NP NV, followed by a week in San Diego CA, had a cool time in both places, a few pics coming soon. Louie was glad to get home from the sitter's. We played some hot Frisbee then went down to the river for a swim, now we're ready for a nap maybe.🥱 #dogsofbluesky

Louie our black and white dog is laying up on the ottoman next to the armchair where I'm sitting, and he's staring at me judgingly. Even though he's really tired, he wants to play some more, and he's pawing at me to get up. But I'm also verr tired because I got in at 1:30 AM due to a delayed flight home, and zzzzz.

Another shot of Louie sitting on the floor next to me. His eyes are closed and his mouth is open in a big yawn. He's going down for a nap too.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· 21d

Apocalypse Now Though I didn't actually see it until a few years after it came out...

A screenshot of a scene from the movie, featuring the actor Martin Sheen playing the character of Captain Willard.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· Jul 6

A cool graphic I swiped from Instagram. Although it appears dormant, Mt Rainier is quite active and has some spooky stuff going on inside. Magma never sleeps... www.instagram.com/p/DYBVh1vgbz...

An artistic rendering of what the inside of Mount Rainier might look like, with a core of molten rock deep in its base.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· Jul 6

Quick Frisbee session with Louie, and a little fun with slo-mo. I'm signing off now for a few weeks; the travel bug bites once again. But don't worry- <insert Terminator meme here> I'll be back. 😎 #dogsofbluesky

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· Jul 6

The East face of Mount Rainier, taken 6.24.26. We had intended to climb the mountain via the Emmons Glacier route, but the weather forecast was terrible and we decided to go south and climb Mt Adams instead (as detailed in my earlier posts). See Alt for more info- #MountainMonday #Pnw

The imposing mass of Mount Rainier in Washington state, elevation 14,410 feet, or 4392 meters. It's an active volcano, is the tallest mountain in Washington, and has the largest glacier in the lower 48 states- the Emmons Glacier as seen in this photo. The mountain appears almost covered in snow and ice, with prominent rock ridges and peaks, against a partly cloudy blue sky, with evergreen trees framing the foreground.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· Jul 5

And now he's totally knackered, all settled in for a nice nap. #dogsofbluesky

Our black and white dog Louie is curled up on the floor, sleeping hard after a full morning of swimming and playing.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· Jul 5

Here the dogs are staying hydrated, and Louie's learning to respect boundaries... #dogsofbluesky

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· Jul 5

Louie and Lucy on their play date today. They really love each other, and it's great to see them so happy together. #dogsofbluesky

Four images of Louie and Lucy dogs hanging out in the yard together.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· Jul 5

Lucy always hogs the frisbee, but Louie doesn't mind, he's just so happy to have someone to hang out with. #dogsofbluesky

Louie our black and white dog is laying in the grass resting with Lucy, a brown dog. Lucy is holding the green foam frisbee in her mouth and front paws, and is not sharing it with Louie.

Deep Kirk Nine@deepkirknine· Jul 5

After a nice swim in the river, followed by a hose-rinse and some vigorous brushing, Louie had a play date with Lucy, a cattle-dog mix from the neighborhood. #dogsofbluesky