We hiked up red Hill between Cache Creek and Spences Bridge then drove through Venables Valley, paddling the lake and exploring the hills.   The highlight of the day was the bitterroot in bloom (June 10 article), but we spotted a few more wildflowers and insects along the way.

Wild blue flax (linum sp.) flowered in patches at the bottom of Red Hill.

A mutated gaillaria caught our attention nearby.

Woollypod milk vetch was forming woolly capsules.

On Venables Lake there were many exoskeltons of dragonflies on the reeds.

A soldier fly landed on the paddleboard and stayed long enough for a portrait.

Not a great photo, but included nonetheless is a pair of brine flies on an alkali pond.

There will be many more days of exploration throughout the upcoming months.