Google Earth for Yamadori Scouting?

Atom#28

Atom#28

Chumono
Messages
557
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1,271
Location
Eastern WA
USDA Zone
6b
Has anyone here had any luck using Google Maps/Earth as a means of pre-scouting "Yamadori Hotspots"? This peak is elevation 5,700ft. I found an area that looks promising, lots of felled trees and trails to explore. Heading up next Friday to take a look :)

scouting.jpgscouting2.jpg
 
Y
Atom#28 said:
Has anyone here had any luck using Google Maps/Earth as a means of pre-scouting "Yamadori Hotspots"? This peak is elevation 5,700ft. I found an area that looks promising, lots of felled trees and trails to explore. Heading up next Friday to take a look :)

View attachment 262019View attachment 262020
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Yes, often.

Keep looking around that peak for rocky outcrops.

This is what I look for in my area. The circled zones. Geography is as important as elevation around here, more so even.

Many many places here have the right geography but the forest is too young due to past fires. You can learn to spot old forest from a long ways away when you know what to look for. D0C471F1-9B67-49CD-B3DA-D22CF415F86E.jpeg
 
leatherback said:
Show the tree man, not the mountain :)
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RMJ challenging re-potting

Greetings, here's a survivor of the early freeze event I mentioned in my intro post, turns out rmjs seem to be pretty tough, for this one the huge box probably helped too. This one came out of the rocks with an absurdly large rootball, just very slightly smaller than the size of the rootmass...
www.bonsainut.com www.bonsainut.com
 
Where in Eastern WA?
I seem to recall seeing lots of Juniper out towards the Spokane area that reminded me of what I have seen down near Bend OR. FYI I live in Yakima, and consider everything east of about Moses Lake "Spokane Area". :)
I have been wondering about the possibility of collecting out that way. Maybe the area around Clear and Medical Lake? Or south of Cheney?
 
I do this all the time. Last weekend my family went to Sunriver Oregon for Labor Day, and a quick look showed me I would be surrounded by lava beds. When I zoomed in I was able to see what areas were part of a National Monument where collecting would not be permitted, and what areas were part of the National Forest where collecting is allowed with proper permits. You won’t know for sure until you lay your eyes on a place, but this certainly helps me narrow down my options.
22E2F5F4-F198-4241-B21D-9C65DE210882.png
 
amatbrewer said:
Where in Eastern WA?
I seem to recall seeing lots of Juniper out towards the Spokane area that reminded me of what I have seen down near Bend OR. FYI I live in Yakima, and consider everything east of about Moses Lake "Spokane Area". :)
I have been wondering about the possibility of collecting out that way. Maybe the area around Clear and Medical Lake? Or south of Cheney?
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Hi, neighbor! I'm in Spokane. Lots of family in Yakima, though. Spent a lot of my childhood there, looking at those big pillowy hills.
Other than in yards and landscapes I haven't seen many juniper. However, I am totally new to bonsai, so I haven't really been paying attention to species in the wild until recently. But, I got BONSAI FEVER now. I look for nebari on every tree I see. I study bark and branches and foliage as I drive to work. Last night I literally dreamed about bonsai all night. I have a list of about 15 air layers I'm planning to start in my yard this spring. Yeah, I'm super hooked. My wife is bit worried, I think LOL.

But I degress....

I have spent a lot of time around Medical Lake and in the hills around Cheney. Best bet in those areas would be to find a gracious landowner, I think. My current yamadori hunting grounds are further north, in the Colville National Forest. I'm not looking to bring home any ancient/amazing trees yet, because i need to learn how to keep 'em alive in a box, first! So mainly scouting for now. Its also a great excuse to get out in the woods and play in the dirt for a while
 
Atom#28 said:
My wife is bit worried, I think LOL.
Click to expand...
So was mine, but once I started to get trees to a point where they were pleasant to look at (for non Bonsai folks at least, still closer to "sticks in pots" in BN terms.) she started to support my habit...er...um...I mean "hobby". This year she even let me spend $150 on a hinoki for my birthday (It was WAY over priced, but don't tell her...shhhhh....).

Atom#28 said:
I have spent a lot of time around Medical Lake and in the hills around Cheney. Best bet in those areas would be to find a gracious landowner, I think. My current yamadori hunting grounds are further north, in the Colville National Forest. I'm not looking to bring home any ancient/amazing trees yet, because i need to learn how to keep 'em alive in a box, first! So mainly scouting for now. Its also a great excuse to get out in the woods and play in the dirt for a while
Click to expand...
I am in a similar place in regards to collecting. Just getting around to scouting for potential material to practice collecting, not even dreaming about getting anything worthy of the description "Yamadory" yet.
I don't get out to the NE Wa area much, but the last few times I did it seemed there was some potential for Junipers in the area just West of Spokane.

Next time you are in Yakima feel free to look me up. We can BS about bonsai over a beer or two. ;-)
 
amatbrewer said:
Next time you are in Yakima feel free to look me up. We can BS about bonsai over a beer or two. ;-)
Click to expand...

I’ll hit you up next time I’m over! Same for you. Lemme know if you’re in town; We’ll find those Medical Lake junipers.
 
I think if my wife caught me scouring Google earth for yamadori, she would certainly think that I've crested a new horizon of insanity.......and she'd be wrong! Hahahaa!
 
Only issue with Google maps is that they can be old photos and access roads to spots change yearly some times. But it's a place to start.

I highly highly advice buying a "back roads" map. They typically have updated forest service trails and roads marked along with accurate lines of public, blm, and private lands.
 
eb84327 said:
Only issue with Google maps is that they can be old photos and access roads to spots change yearly some times. But it's a place to start.

I highly highly advice buying a "back roads" map. They typically have updated forest service trails and roads marked along with accurate lines of public, blm, and private lands.
Click to expand...


Edit:. They will also give u better idea of the actual topography. Pictures don't always paint the best picture of slopes, hill sides or rock faces.
 
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