Natural History Wanderings

Washington Trails Association had the following new wildflower reports. Here are some excerpts:

Oak Creek Wildlife Area – Cowiche segment — Apr 14, 2013 —  Eastern Washington — Yakima
There were lots of nice wildflowers, especially balsamroot & lupine. It was a little stormier than we expected, but it was still a nice hike.

Fragrance Lake — Apr 12, 2013 — Puget Sound and Islands — North Sound
The “fragrance” of the lake, Skunk Cabbage, is in bloom. We also saw some Trillium in various stages of opening along the trail up to the lake.

Frenchman Coulee — Apr 12, 2013 — Eastern Washington — Wenatchee
As I headed up the trail (actually an old dirt road) toward the big waterfall at the head of the coulee, I began to see lots of wildflowers in bloom. You might not notice them at first as they are small relative to the sagebrush that covers the area. Most would be unfamiliar to those used to hiking the wildflower meadows of the mountains, and some are very small; small, yes, but making up for diminutive size with sheer abundance. Yellow Bells, one of the few species I recognized, are reaching the end of their bloom cycle. But I saw many others that are yet to flower, so the next month or so should be good for wildflower lovers; I recognized some Zigadenus (now Toxicoscordion) species, unidentifiable until they bloom.

See all of their reports at Trip Reports