Back in the Saddle

If I had to name the best wildflower hike within an hour or so drive from home, it would have be Saddle Mountain State Natural Area. This coast mountain hike has just about everything: lush forest canopy, rocky protrusions, small springs, open meadows, many common and unique wildflowers at all elevations, and expansive views in all directions from the top. The 5.5 mile hike also has some steep, challenging portions, making it a fun workout for any avid outdoors person. The only flaw with this hike is the sight of many ugly clear-cuts that become more visible as you gain elevation. It's a tough nut to swallow if you believe, as I do, that there are better ways to harvest wood and preserve habitat.*

It really does look like a saddle!

My last visit to Saddle Mountain was about a year ago, so in this post I'll try to expand on last year's visit. Read last year's post.

The weather was near ideal for this year's hike: cool at the start, sunny, and not windy. Saddle Mountain is only about 15 miles from the ocean, so fog can be an issue in the summer. Luckily, on this day, no fog at the mountain - but we did see plenty over the ocean!

My good friend and native conifer expert, Ken Denniston, hiked with me this year. While in the parking lot we ran into a guy named Marsh, who is a bird and wildflower guide and leads hikes for Audubon. This was fortuitous for us, as he pointed out several unique plants along the way.

View of steep summit trail. A saddle and a horse would
be good on that part of the trail!

The Oregon Checker Mallows show their stuff.

All the plants shown here are native to the Northwest. There were two unique plants we noted on this trip, not seen last year: the odd looking, rayless Western Coneflower (Rudbeckia occidentalis) and a blue-flowered version of the Pacific Waterleaf (Hydrophyllum tenuipes). Most everywhere else, the flowers are white. The coneflowers were located near a small spring about 1/4 mile from the top; the waterleafs were near the shady start of the hike, under the alders.

    

Here are just a few of the other blooms we saw on the way up the trail. Mouse-over the photo for names.

     

     

     

   

At the summit, 3290 feet, looking northwest.

    

Saddle Mountain Official Site

NW Hiker Site

Ken's NW Conifer Blog

* Oregon Field Guide Segment on Hyla Woods

     

Solstice and Shade

The enormous Devil's Club leaves help make trail shade.

This is my favorite time of year, as we approach the summer solstice. The long days are great for outings and photos; the warm climate makes so many things grow and bloom, and the end of pollen season is near! It is also the time of year when I dust off my list of places to visit in the continuing search for new and interesting flora.

Our recent run of hot weather in early June, has me thinking about places that are close by and have trails with shade and cool water! If dogs could talk, ours would be saying, "you read my mind, master!" And here in western Oregon, the shade dwelling, lowland wildflower season still has a little bit of life left. So on a recent day of 90+ heat, we packed up and took to the hills - well, to the coast range hills just west of town, to the Gales Creek camp. The area features some humble camping spots, a small day use area, and many miles of trails in the Tillamook State forest, most of which are in the shade!


The temperature was about 10 degrees lower at the creek, so we had a good cool-down time, did a bit of hiking, enjoyed a tasty picnic, and managed to find a few wildflowers in the process. One of these is quite common, but I had never seen it before: Scouler's Corydalis.

Later, we headed north on some back roads to the Four Corners county monument, 17 miles north. A mile long shady trail here leads you to the only place in Oregon where four counties converge.

The area also features the tiny North Fork of Wolf Creek, a smaller but equally accessible place to cool off and/or drink the water (if you are a dog!). We did not stay long at this creek because a very vocal Hairy Woodpecker was not happy with our presence - probably had a nest nearby.

So if you want to escape the direct sun, there are several other fairly local parks that offer a mile or more of shade, including Rood Bridge park, Noble Woods park, Champoeg State park, Stub Stewart State Park, and of course the grandaddy of shady trails, Forest Park. I'm sure there are more, so let me know where your favorite shady places are.



Here are a few of the photos of the day. To see the text for the photos below, hover your mouse or tap on the photo; click on a photo to enlarge it.

          

     

     

     

     

     

Critter Corner

We all have small things in life that drive us crazy. For me, one of the top annoyances is intentionally misspelled business names, such as Krispy Kreme, Stanley Steemer, Kraft, or any place/event that ends in "Faire" instead of "Fair." And I am not alone in this camp. I found many postings about this very subject. One has to wonder why the good folks who come up with these names did so. Perhaps it was ignorance or medical marijuana - who knows? I do know that I avoid spending any money at these places! So when I started writing this post I briefly considered "Kritter Korner" as a weak form of sarcasm, but I resisted that temptation, fearing I would become one of them.

Some may consider this spelling preoccupation of mine to be old hat - and they may be right. Just take a look at the list of rock bands playing in Portland at any given time. More than half of those band names are intentional misspellings and/or quirky word pairings. Misspelled band names have been around for years though: just think of the Beatles! Oddly, these don't bother me, perhaps because it's artsy or I just expect it.

Ok, 'nuff sed! Much more enjoyable for us wildflower fans is being out in the field, not worrying about spelling. As we wander among the blooms and trails we often encounter small critters in addition to the flora. These are generally insects, birds, and an occasional snake.

So in the spirit of giving a hats off to the fauna of the land, this post is dedicated to those critters. Follow the link below for the complete critter gallery on my photo website.

Red Bellied Sap Sucker at Fanno Creek

Butterfly at Cooper Mountain Park

Elk at Ecola State Park

Garter Snakes at Jackson Bottom

Critter Corner Gallery

Rose Festival

Grand Floral Parade, 2013

Since it is Rose Festival week here in our corner of Oregon, I thought it would be a good time to take a look at the humble wild roses that make it all possible! Our local festival has a rich history of formal and informal events, since the first one in 1907. Among the events: two big parades, a queen and princesses, dragon boat races, a treasure hunt, and a massive rose flower show with participants from all over the country. Portland is also home of a notable rose test garden, located in Washington Park. The 4.5 acre garden is a top destination for summer visitors to the city.

Any town worth its salt has a rose garden!

Wild roses, as discovered in fossil form, date back some 70 million years, so they are definitely survivors. Those were simple plants with basic flowers, thorns, and the ability to thrive in marginal conditions. Interestingly, roses grow only in the Northern hemisphere and fossil evidence show roses growing in the U.S. some 35 million years ago near Canyon City, CO. Those fossils closely resemble our wild Nootka Rose and the Swamp Rose.

The genus Rosa has about 150 species throughout the Northern hemisphere. Here in Oregon there are just a few of the wild ones you may come across in the natural world: Nootka rose (Rosa Nutkana, Baldhip rose (R. gymnocarpa), Clustered Wild rose (R. pisocarpa), Wood's rose (R. Woodsii), and the non-native Dog rose (R.canina). All of these grow in our area, except the Wood's rose, which lives east of the Cascades. They are tricky to identify, in part because they can naturally hybridize with each other.

Garden cultivation of roses probably began in China, about 5,000 years ago. Later, the Romans grew and used roses extensively for perfume, a confetti of sorts, and for medicinal uses. However, it was not until the late 1700's that roses from China arrived in Europe. These roses had a gene that made them bloom all year as opposed to once a year. They also had more colors than the existing European ones. Garden hybridizers began to experiment with the Chinese roses at this time and most of our current day garden rose heritage can be traced back to these Chinese-European hybrids. Currently, there are over 30,000 different garden roses available for your backyard gardening pleasure!

Hybrid rose development and sales is now a big business all over the world. It is unclear why roses are so popular with humans. Perhaps, as one source put it, roses are all things to all people. For example, red roses are romantic, while white roses can be at home in a wedding or a funeral. Roses seem to be embedded in past cultures as well as current ones, as we see with our own Rose Festival.

Countless poems, paintings, and songs have rose themes and it is still a popular girls name. This Emily Dickinson poem seems relevant:

A sepal, petal, and a thorn
Upon a common summer's morn
A flask of Dew - A Bee or two
A Breeze - a caper in the trees
And I'm a Rose!

Baldhip Wild Rose

Botanists believe that roses have thorns, so as to keep wildlife at bay, thereby protecting the spread of these shrubs. In our own rose garden at home, this does not seem to work, as the local deer love to eat the buds, before they open! We have tried many remedies for this but if you have one that really works, and is not toxic, let us know!

Meanwhile, enjoy the simple beauty of our wild roses on your next walk, or admire the science and refinement of the cultivated ones in local gardens, and take in a festival event if you can!


Portland Rose Festival website

Portland Rose Test Garden info