On the day following my previous
post, my wildflower-keen friend and I hiked the big loop from Muddy Hollow Road
through White Gate and Estero Trails. It was another exciting day for
wildflowers, with literally thousands of Douglas irises greeting us along the
way, as well as well as beach strawberries, morning glories, and some of the
flowers we had seen on Chimney Rock. A few poppies poked their way through the
ground, the cow parsnips were on the cusp of opening, and we spotted a single
blue violet as we neared the end of the trail.
I was eager to see what would emerge over the next few weeks.
This past weekend, I dragged another
friend – a wildflower-spotting reinforcement as it were – to take the Inverness
Ridge – Bucklin – Bayside loop. Once again, we were deluged with colorful
blooms, many of the ones noted the weekend before, but quite a few new ones,
too, including bleeding heart, dwarf bramble, milk maid, and forktooth ookow
(what a clunky name for such a gentle blossom!).
We took photos of a half-dozen yellow flowers that we simply could not
identify on the spot, and later failed to find in my guidebooks.
And then, within the final mile of
the hike, my companion, who by this time was well-trained to pause at every new
species encounter, said, “What’s this?”
And there it was – the chocolate lily!
It was tucked into a shaded area, all alone. We inspected it, nabbed a
photo, and celebrated our find with a glass of wine.
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