Saturday, August 30, 2008

Cascade Crest Wildflowers

The Cascade Crest course left me stunned with the proliferation of wildflowers that appeared everywhere. Some were more prevalent at higher elevations (heathers, mountain daisy (which are a lavender hue), lupines), others in lower woodlands (bunchberry, vanillaleaf, rattlesnake plantain, solomon's seal, twisted stalk).

Other wildflowers I saw:
baneberry (and maybe valerian, they look similar)
lovage (look's like queen anne's lace)
parsley (there are several wild varieties)
columbines
tiarella
bellflower
indian paintbrush (ranging from red to coral)
larkspurs
aster
pinesap (I thought this was damaged/browning indian pipes because I didn't know this relative)
ladyslipper (leaves only this time of year)- much longer stems, different from Eastern varieties
tiger lily (just one, small, orange)
beargrass (wow! saw lots of this and also saw lots of grass without blooms- it goes dormant)
devil's club (no flower)
something similar to mayapple- mammoth in size, dinner plate sized leaves

Many western red cedars, incense cedar and hemlock, fir. Often, western red cedar was draped with a lichen called witches' hair, also horsehail lichen and wolf lichen, which is intense in color and makes a chartreuse dye.