Hurricane Hill Trail
The Daily Bucket is a regular feature of the Backyard Science group. It is a place to note any observations you have made of the world around you. Snails, fish, insects, weather, meteorites, climate, birds and/or flowers. All are worthy additions to the bucket. Please let us know what is going on around you in a comment. Include, as close as is comfortable for you, where you are located.
Every summer since 2009, we've taken one or two trips up to Hurricane Ridge in the Olympic National Park to see wildflowers. I'm beginning to collect enough records to be able to compare different years and have some expectation for what might be blooming at different times during the short summer season. Join me on our most recent walk (8/6/13) along the Hurricane Hill trail, a very popular 3 mile roundtrip up to a knob at 5757 ft elevation from which one can see the interior Olympic peaks as well as the Strait of Juan de Fuca and across to Canada.
Harebells or Bells of Scotland (Campanula rotundifolia)
This July was exceptionally dry and it showed. The predominant flowers in the meadows were the Harebells which is typical of late summer. Their blue was offset by white of Pearly everlasting, Yarrow, and Western bistort as well as the red of Indian paintbrush. But the diversity of wildflowers seemed down from previous years. Done for the year were the Lupine, Columbia lilies, Olympic onion, and Phlox (and, of course, the early Glacier and Avalanche lilies).
Fireweed was growing in rock crevices where there is little competition. These specimens were only about 2 ft tall, but are the same species that grows 5 ft tall along our roadsides down below.
Fireweed (Chamerion angustifolium)
There were still a few mats of Smooth douglasia. I recognized some that had gone to seed. This is yet another plant named for David Douglas (Scottish botanist who explored the Pacific Northwest in the 1800s).
Smooth douglasia (Douglasia laevigata)
Near the top of the trail, there was a patch of Coralbells, growing in the rocks along the edge of the ridge.
Coralbells (Elmera racemosa)
In previous years, we've seen black bear, Olympic marmots, mountain goats, and Kestrels along this trail. Not this year. Deer were hunkered down in the shade of trees and trying to chase away flies. Wildlife highlights were the endemic Olympic chipmunks at the pinnacle and Horned larks in the meadows near the top.
Olympic chipmunk
The photo does not convey how tiny this chipmunk is. They make up for their size by being incredibly bold beggars from the hikers that reach the top of Hurricane Hill. This was my first confirmed sighting of a Horned lark.
Horned lark
Thanks for joining me on this hike.
Now, it's your turn! What are you seeing in the natural world on these late summer days?
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