owl tracks in the snow

Ye ké ch'i zhän?

What kind of tracks are these?

Dàzhän medhį kè ch'e.

This here, owl tracks.

Rainbow on a hook

Mbetà ka ädéch'äŕ.

Fishing for rainbow trout.

tracks

fox (ńthe) track (ke)

A beautiful autumn in the Yukon
drew itself to a close with golden sunlight slanting long
over the boreal forest.

The ground is frozen and the snow is settling in for the season.  "Yūk'è kwädèłè" is Southern Tutchone for "Winter, it's getting to be."

                                      photo: c.l. genier

I too am settling in for the season

and finally finding time 

review and share photos 

taken throughout

the summer.

                             photo: c.l. genier

This red fox kit was enjoying

strawberries by the side of 

the highway just south of the 

bridge at Marsh Lake. 

In Southern Tutchone 

a red fox is called m'the det'äl.

Strawberries are called kursi zhür.

oysters on trees, false morels, & faery rings in the Yukon

I love mushrooms; as a child I always looked forward to picking mushrooms for cooking.  Gramma would caution us to be careful so we usually picked the mushrooms of the bolete family, particularly those with the large white stems with tight orange caps.  This summer there was a number of mushrooms growing in the forest, many I couldn't identify but admired for their beauty like these growing on a standing dead aspen:

I think these may be Oyster mushrooms which are usually edible however they do have a poisonous look alike called Angel Wings.  I'm not sure which these are but they are gorgeous.

Another mushroom that is quite pretty is 

the false morel: 

Some people say the false morels are edible, others say not...I chose to err on the side of caution.

This mushroom is supposedly edible if picked at the right time and cooked correctly, I don't have that knowledge but love the pattern that emerges as the skin of its cap dries and shrinks.

 This mushroom has its stem growing through a length of decayed wood; against the backdrop of moss it makes a beautiful picture.

Trails of mushrooms could be found everywhere leading to 

faery rings throughout the forest...

European folklore say faery rings are gateways into elfin kingdoms; circles where elves gather and dance.

In many of the beliefs faery rings were to be left undisturbed as the rings were considered sacred places.

I don't know of any Southern Tutchone folklore about mushrooms or the individual names for the mushrooms in Southern Tutchone however they are referred to generically as

ġlūr gee  which translates to "squirrel food".

I found several trails and rings very late one August evening near Fox Lake.

Merlin Falcon

Merlin Falcon

...this small bird of prey was sitting on a stone

by the side of the road.

The Merlins prey on shorebirds, pigeons, mice and insects 

but prefer songbirds. 

autumn again...

Autumn sunshine gives a golden glow to the boreal forest along the Yukon River...

...transitioning....getting ready for a gorgeous winter in the Yukon playground.