Good to hear from Bryan Gough

Bryan has been a contributor to the blog over the years, with photos of interest of Baldy in the early years, and work on the access to "Linda Lake" or "No Fish Lake". At one time, he manned the Forestry Lookout at the top of the mountain.

Here is a photo he sent of the tree in Ron's photo, and a little info.

Your blog photo of that lonely tree in Sidley by Ron reminded me of a pic I took on April 25, 2003, nearly twenty years ago, of that same solitary behemoth in which the tree is still very recognizable. Ponderosa pine and western larch share a commonality in that after they die their sap (pitch) slowly settles into the roots and lower trunk, acting as a preservative and allowing the trees to remain standing dead for many decades, long after the lodgepole pine, engelmann spruce, and douglas fir have fallen and rotted away completely. Ron's photo of the tree, while now missing the finer branchlets and twigs, appears to show a hawk perched at the very top.