It`s on the early side but there are plenty of wildflowers already in bloom along the Elowah / McCord Creek Trails, as well as on the cliff faces. Red-flowering currant (Ribes sanguineum) is prevalent on the first part of the trail, providing nice pink contrast against the blackened tree trunks. There are some nice patches of western bleeding heart (Dicentra formosa) and Nuttall`s toothwort (Cardamine nuttallii) along the first section of trail. Gold stars (Crocidium multicaule) were the main attraction today. The higher I climbed, the more there were. There is a lot of Western meadowrue (Thalictrum occidentale) along the first section of trail, but most of it has not yet opened.
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<B>Cliff Face</B>: There are still some Columbia kittentails (Veronica missurica ssp. stellata) in bloom. Profuse rusty-haired saxifrage (Micranthes rufidula) in bloom. Woodland star Woodland stars (Lithophragma glabrum) are in bloom. Cascade desert parsley (Lomatium martindalei), cliff paintbrush (Castilleja rupicola), and Sitka mistmaidens (Romanzoffia sitchensis) are starting to open. Lots of rockslide larkspur (Delphinium glareosum) coming soon. White shooting stars (Dodecatheon dentatum) should open within the next ten days.
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See the full gallery in the OW Facebook group.
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