Bear Creek Wildflowers
We hiked the Upper Flumes Trails and spotted lots of wildflowers in the forested, shaded gorge, but also in open glades.
This was a hike past many flowering white queen’s cups (Clintonia uniflora). There were also some devil’s club (Oplopanax horridus) showing small white flowers. There were a few wintergreen (Pyrola chlorantaha sp.) flowering in the forest. Bunchberry (Cornus canadensis) flowers were just emerging in this location. Cow parsnip (Heracleum lanatum sp.) was abundant upstream, past the forested gorge. Yellow monkeyflower (Mimulus sp.) was spotted in a sloped seep area. All photos by the author from that day. Click an image for a lightbox view and a caption.
The drive home was up Bear Creek to Skmana Lake, where there additional wildflowers – fireweed (Epilobeum augustifolium), vetch (Vicia sp.), tiger lilies (Lilium columbianum), chicory (Cichorium intybus), and spreading dogbane (Apocynum androsaemifolium).
Each day of hiking and/or paddling is combined with a nature walk/hike too, amplifying the value of each outing.