Hike at Kamiak Butte

Finally...the time and the weather to get out and do some exploring! Greg has a weeklong break before his research position starts, so we've taken the opportunity to see some more local sites. Monday, we took a 10 mile drive to check out Kamiak Butte, one of the highest buttes in the area. A little background about what a butte is (in layman's terms!)... this area used to be covered by ocean. When the water left, there were all these mountains of deposits left behind. Later, lava bubbled up through the earth's crust and covered all but the highest mountains of deposits. The lava was later covered by a layer of loess, but again, the highest areas of deposits were still exposed. Those areas are called buttes or steptoes. The layer of loess is what makes the Palouse such a fertile area. Hopefully there aren't any geology experts reading, because I probably just butchered that explanation!!

Anyway... at 3641 feet, Kamiak Butte is a national natural landmark. We got some great views of the Palouse. In one of the pictures, way out in the distance on the right hand side you can see a town, which is Pullman. It is literally plopped down in the middle of wheat fields. Here are some pictures.

This is one of the best inventions we've come across. The park has a dispenser at the trailhead that holds these convenient little pooper scoopers. There is a stiff wire in the opening that allows you to "scoop". The wire then pushes into the cardboard to seal the bag and there is a convenient handle so you can carry the poop out like a purse. Amazing! By the way Hannah, if you get a small brown package in the next few days from Greg...I wouldn't open it if I were you!! :)

This is a view of Kamiak Butte as we were driving away. It really doesn't look too big in this picture, but don't be fooled. Everything is big out here!