The Gulf fritillary or passion butterfly (Agraulis vanillae) is a bright orange longwing butterfly most commonly found in southern areas of the United States. The butterfly is attracted to Lantana flowers for nectar and Passion flower vines for depositing their eggs. The Pardoll's put a Passion flower vine on their patio and they carefully monitor and photograph the butterfly's life cycle. The vine is eaten down to the bare earth but returns to full foliage each season to host another cycle of life for these butterflies.
The Ancients - Bristlecones
The Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest is home to the oldest trees in the world, bristlecone pines. Some of these living trees exceed 4000 years of age and exhibit spectacular growth forms of twisted and beautifully colored wood. The Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest is a protected area high in the White Mountains in Inyo County located in eastern California. These trees grow between 9,800 and 11,000 fest above sea level in alpine conditions. There are two trails. We took the shorter Discovery Trail which is one mile in length. As you can tell from the images, we were threatened with rain the whole time and it was very cold and windy.
Mule Days Parade
When we arrived in Bishop we saw signs of Mule Days to be celebrated over the Memorial Weekend. I had to smile as I remembered arriving in Mountain View and seeing ads for Bean Fest and Outhouse Racing. We sometimes find ourselves in place for interesting events. Mule Days is described as a world class equestrian event promoting the legacy, heritage and talents of the mule. The five day event features classes, competitions, exhibitions and finally a parade. Thousands of people come into town and mules rule the day. I was surprised to find several competitions that I would not associate with mules, such as dressage and rodeo. Turns out that mules are not just pack animals, although they rule that role. Enjoy the parade.
That was all. A street sweeper followed behind and people dispersed or hung around for the craft show that was in a park just behind where were were seated. Fun morning!