of your food, trash, and scented items (toothpaste, sunscreen, etc.) from a stout tree limb out of a bear’s reach (10 feet high and 5 feet out from the trunk), or, better yet, put all of that stuff in an approved bear canister. Wash your dishes, keep your camp clean, and try not to cook more food than you’ll realistically eat. You may still hear a bear nosing around your camp in the middle of the night, searching for food, but with the proper precautions, at least you won’t go hungry for the rest of your trip. More than likely, you will see bear scat on the trails as well as other signs, such as scratch marks on tree trunks, or torn-up logs, but people rarely see bears in this region.
Columbian black-tailed deer appreciate the pathways humans have constructed as much as the bears do, so you’ll probably see their signs along the trail as well. You’re apt to see does and fawns along the way, and if you are lucky, a buck or two. Every buck has been hunted since the first year of their life, so they’re justifiably wary of humans. Noises around your camp at night are much more likely to be made by a deer than a bear. Deer are attracted to camp food, especially anything salty, and they also have been known to chew on anything that is sweat-soaked, such as clothing, pack straps, and boots. While setting up camp in Grizzly Meadows after the hot and sweaty climb from the China Gulch Trailhead, I removed my soaking-wet T-shirt and set it out on some bushes to dry. A short time later a deer wandered into camp and started chewing away on my shirt. When the deer finally finished, the T-shirt had a pattern of holes resembling a slice of Swiss cheese. Don’t feed the deer—they become horrible pests once they’ve become habituated to getting food from humans. Don’t approach or try to pet one either—despite our Bambi-inspired feelings, they are potentially dangerous, and they carry ticks and lice. Still, a doe and her twin fawns drinking out of a fog-shrouded stream at dawn is a most memorable sight. Mountain lions, the deer’s only predator (besides humans), are very scarce in the Klamath Mountains.
Black-tailed doe in Morris Meadow
The next largest mammal in the area is the resourceful coyote. Coyotes are rarely seen but more often heard on moonlit nights. Coyote calls, passed back and forth from ridge to ridge, are a thrilling wilderness symbol. Martens, fishers, and long-tailed weasels are also seldom-seen animals, although present in the Klamath Mountains in significant numbers.
Smaller warm-blooded animals of the rodent order swarm in some parts of the Klamath Mountains. Mice, chipmunks, and ground squirrels prosper in areas of high human visitation, with people feeding them directly from their hands and indirectly from the horse feed, horse droppings, and garbage they leave behind. There is a relationship between large rodent populations and healthy populations of rattlesnakes—the snakes move in to take advantage of the abundant food supply. In the less-traveled western Trinity Alps, there is a dearth of rodents when compared to more popular areas in the eastern Alps. Bears, bobcats, weasels, and coyotes may also have an impact on the absence of rodents in the western Alps.
One delightful rodent you’re apt to see is the cheeky Douglas squirrel (also known as the pine squirrel or chickaree). This rodent’s strident chattering and frenetic activity in the mixed-conifer and red-fir forests are often amusing to passersby. The Douglas squirrel is rarely a camp robber, but he may drop a green pine or fir cone uncomfortably close to you as you pass beneath his tree. The piles of cone scales and cones under trees usually belong to Douglas squirrels.
The much larger gray squirrel, which lives in the mixed low-elevation forest, is very shy and seldom seen. Skunks, raccoons, ringtail cats, opossums, and foxes also frequent this community, rarely moving into the upper communities.
Oddly, the western states’ largest rodent, the porcupine, is rare in this area, although quite common elsewhere in California. Bats are often seen around lakes and meadows after dusk, hunting for insects. Their marvelous flight rarely ceases to amaze visitors to their realm.
The Douglas squirrel has attitude to spare.
Photo: Luther Linkhart
Birds
Nothing begins the day quite as well as birdsong outside your tent—unless you’re exhausted from the previous day’s hike and would like nothing more in the morning than to sleep in. Unless the weather is horribly bad, you’ll rarely be without that gentle awakener in the Klamath Mountains. Vireos, warblers, robins, and finches greet you in the mixed-conifer forest. Of course, you’ll undoubtedly hear a few raucous jays as well. In the higher realms of the red-fir forest, you may hear a mountain bluebird, a golden-crowned kinglet, or a hermit thrush. The distant drumming of a pileated woodpecker, evidence that some creatures can be so industrious early in the morning, isn’t all bad. Hummingbirds are occasionally seen in some of the upper communities, no doubt drawn by the stunning wildflowers of midsummer. On the lower trails you’re sure to find the dust wallows of California quail, and you may hear a mother quail calling to her chicks to freeze in their tracks. Even though you’ve just heard their peeping, you’re unlikely to find a single chick after they become silent and motionless, as their camouflage renders them virtually invisible. Blue grouse also have excellent camouflage—you seldom see them in the grass and brush until they instantaneously explode from under your feet, doubling your heart rate.
Raptors are well represented at all elevations in the Klamath Mountains. Many species of hawks course the ridges in search of prey, and golden eagles nest in a few locations. Even bald eagles have been seen in recent years. A few ospreys nest along the rivers, and owls can often be heard at night as high as the red-fir forest.
Literally hundreds of avian species are represented in the Klamath Mountains. If you want to add to your list, pack along a copy of Peterson Field Guide to Western Birds by Roger Tory Peterson, along with a pair of binoculars. You’re sure to find something new with each trip.
Cold-Blooded Animals
Reptiles and amphibians are common in all of the communities, except alpine zones. Various snakes, such as rubber boas, garter snakes, gopher snakes, king snakes, and various water snakes are fairly common in all zones up to the subalpine.
An area with as much water as the Klamath Mountains is bound to be home to a high number of water-loving amphibians. Red-legged and yellow-legged frogs thrive in the wet meadows and ponds in the mixed-conifer forest community. Higher up, you may find tiny tree frogs. An amazing number of salamanders live in damp forest areas up to the subalpine level.
The amphibians that receive the most attention are the newts and salamanders that live in many of the middle- and lower-elevation lakes. Some of them are 8–10 inches long and bright red, quite startling as they come up to the surface to breathe when you’re expecting trout.
A bee inspects an angelica blossom.
Insects
Insects inhabit the Klamath Mountains in numbers similar to all other earthly paradises. Only a few of these numerous species of insects are problematic for humans, and of course many of them can be quite interesting, if not beautiful, creatures. Mosquitoes can be a considerable annoyance in many areas right after snowmelt. Repellents can be quite helpful during the day, and a screened tent can be a godsend at night.
Horseflies and deerflies are irritating later in the summer, but at least they go away at nightfall. During and immediately after the wet spring season, ticks can be a particular nuisance at the lower elevations, especially since they can carry Lyme disease or infections. Repellents sprayed on collars, cuffs, and pant legs should help, but the best way to deal with ticks is by inspecting your entire body daily.
