Walking Through The Bunchgrass

Scott walking through the maze of wild basin rye, a common bunchgrass on the shrub-steppe along Banks Lake and Lake Roosevelt

Daily Note

Every day, a photograph, a poem. We took Guthrie to a new walking spot today, along the very old highway from the 1930’s before the dam was built. It’s part of Steamboat Rock State Park and leads right into the Banks Lake; it’s no longer a road, though, but rather a great dog walk directly through the surrounding bunch grass and other plants.

Here’s another of the plants– a maze of scattered bunchgrass common to the area. It’s great winter forage for big game and livestock. It’s home to small creatures and song birds. It’s amazing to look at and walk through. This variety is called Basin Wild Rye:

Bentler: Basin Wild Rye
US Department of Agriculture Plant Guide [pdf]
Flickr album by Matt Lavin
Wikipedia: Leymus cinereus

The bunchgrass is our forest– alongside sagebrush– and is amazing to look at. It’s a thick bunch of grass growing taller than people and impossible to walk through, but interesting to walk around. And think of all the messages that Guthrie can find with coyote walking by, songbirds chirping, and little creatures like mice, voles, and rabbits scurrying within.

And so, a poem…

Poetry

Walking Through the Bunchgrass

Basin Wild Rye
almost seven feet tall
grasses in three foot bunches
home to small creatures and song birds,
forage for wintering big game, livestock
a maze of messages for a
wandering dog
Sheri Edwards
01.30.24 030.365.24
Poetry/Photography