Perch Lake

Perch Lake is my personal favorite place in the state of WA.  There is something indescribable about its location within the caverns of the Grand Coulee, amidst the boulders of ancient flood debris.  The towering walls of the Grand Coulee are built of vertical pillars of basalt rock, with outcroppings and terraces just like an ancient castle.  Those coulee walls also reflect sound in strange ways, so the fish flipping out of the water or the birds calling to their friends sound differently here, because of the echos and breezes.

There is a community of animals that welcome the frequent visitor to Perch Lake.  I appreciate the swallows which dart around and above the lake, eating insects, I assume.  Their pattern of flight is so erratic and sometimes they fly so close to my head I can hear the sound of their tiny wings flitting them through the air.  The perch themselves are pretty hospitable as well. When wind is calm and the lake is smooth like glass, they sometimes flop out of the water chasing after their dinner.  Lots of bees.  They aren’t as welcome, but for whatever reason they never posed a problem.  Ravens, Seagulls and Red Tailed Hawks seemed to share supremacy in the skies.  The sound of the Ravens’ cackle was so interesting when reflected off the lake water and coulee walls.  As with anyplace in the state park, the smell of sage fills the breeze, so if you don't smell it right away, just wait until the wind changes direction.  It is amazing and even on dusty days, you can it mixes in with dust and smells so fresh and amazing.  It is a very calming aroma, and provides a 'green' sensation in this desert region.

One of the most interesting things I observed for the first time at Perch Lake, was a cyclone shaped flock of seagulls above the lake.  I realized I could hear a bunch of seagulls but couldn’t see any.  But at a closer look, very, very high up in the air was a rotating cyclone of seagulls flying around each other.  They looked so tiny they were up so high.  Maybe this is normal behavior for seagulls, but it was the first time I’d seen or heard anything like it.  

Deer roam the park and seem to have become quite accustomed to humans.  Only once did I see one at Perch Lake, but it was memorable because the deer was descending the coulee wall behind the lake.  There are snakes, too.  The terrain is heavenly for western rattlesnakes, and others.  I mostly saw small snakes on the road after they were dead.  Once I thought I saw a recently dead snake, but then when I walked back by awhile later....it was gone!  I heard a rattle one time while on a trail, but I barely saw something crawling off the trail ahead in the periphery.  I really don’t know for sure it was a rattlesnake but I soiled my drawers as if it was one.  There were lots of quails in the park.  They were easily flushed from giant sagebrush if a hiker like myself walked too close.  It was sometimes startling, but more often I could hear them scurry away on the ground ahead and off the trail.

Bald eagles winter at the state park and are quite impressive to see in the wild.  The eagles can see very well and really don’t like humans, so it was nearly impossible to get any photos of them.  I never saw them very close to Perch Lake, but they were sometimes visible hovering above the edges of the coulee walls...reportedly taking advantage of updrafts on windy days.  They are huge birds.

Here are some more photos of Perch Lake:

http://www.panoramio.com/photo/42017616
http://www.panoramio.com/photo/61386183
http://www.panoramio.com/photo/61615594
http://www.panoramio.com/photo/62470589
http://www.panoramio.com/photo/19934864