Wildflower riot in the Goat Rocks (hiking pics)
NorthCascades
Posts: 10,968 Member
Magical day in the Goat Rocks yesterday. In the center of a triangle Adams, Rainier, and Saint Helens make, high up on the ruins of a giant extinct volcano. We left the trail for a long ridge traverse and then came back down between two waterfalls. It was a wildflower riot.
We started on the Snowgrass trail, which is an uphill grind through the woods for 5 miles, then the trees thin out and finally open into jaw dropping meadows. Once we got out of the trees, we could see our surroundings.
Grumpy Mount Saint Helens.
Wildflower carpets
Eventually we hit the PCT and followed it north.
The Crest Trail offered great views. Big surprise, right?
We had considered doing Old Snowy, our exact plan was "see how we feel when we get there." But give two photographers more wildflowers than either of them has ever seen before, and we ran out of time. We also considered doing the Goat Lake loop. So we dropped down from the PCT under Snowy to the Goat Lake trail. It was fun! My friend got a couple great shots of me.
Jack admiring the view of Rainier.
Finally back to the trail we started on. I think this is a lava flow.
Trees starting to fill in. One last look at the high country above.
Avalanche lily. I've never seen one of these in bloom. The North Cascades are full of the yellow ones (glacier lily). I've wanted to see these for years, never tried very hard though. Didn't even know they were there when we planned this. Nice treat.
And into the woods. We got back to the car just before sunset. Hoped to see more evening light filtering through the trees, but there's a ridge blocking the sun when it gets low.
We started on the Snowgrass trail, which is an uphill grind through the woods for 5 miles, then the trees thin out and finally open into jaw dropping meadows. Once we got out of the trees, we could see our surroundings.
Grumpy Mount Saint Helens.
Wildflower carpets
Eventually we hit the PCT and followed it north.
The Crest Trail offered great views. Big surprise, right?
We had considered doing Old Snowy, our exact plan was "see how we feel when we get there." But give two photographers more wildflowers than either of them has ever seen before, and we ran out of time. We also considered doing the Goat Lake loop. So we dropped down from the PCT under Snowy to the Goat Lake trail. It was fun! My friend got a couple great shots of me.
Jack admiring the view of Rainier.
Finally back to the trail we started on. I think this is a lava flow.
Trees starting to fill in. One last look at the high country above.
Avalanche lily. I've never seen one of these in bloom. The North Cascades are full of the yellow ones (glacier lily). I've wanted to see these for years, never tried very hard though. Didn't even know they were there when we planned this. Nice treat.
And into the woods. We got back to the car just before sunset. Hoped to see more evening light filtering through the trees, but there's a ridge blocking the sun when it gets low.
17
Replies
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Stunning photos! The wildflowers are absolutely gorgeous! 🌼 💕
I think you should consider submitting them here: https://www.birdsandblooms.com
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Amazing. We are planning to go to Washington in the next year for some hiking. I'll be reaching out to you for tips!2
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You always take such gorgeous pictures! Thank you for sharing your adventures with us!1
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Fabulous, stunning. Thanks for sharing!1
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Oh, wow! Thanks for sharing!
When I was a kid, I carried my Golden Guide to Wildflowers everywhere with me. I knew all my wildflowers by heart. But being from the Deep South, some of these are still as exotic as the most exotic orchid to me, lol.
Breathtaking!2 -
Thanks for the pics! Absolutely gorgeous!2
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Just wow.
I'm surprised I can't make out any bees going crazy in there.1 -
I love, love, love Western wildflowers!0
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springlering62 wrote: »Oh, wow! Thanks for sharing!
When I was a kid, I carried my Golden Guide to Wildflowers everywhere with me. I knew all my wildflowers by heart. But being from the Deep South, some of these are still as exotic as the most exotic orchid to me, lol.
Breathtaking!
Goat Rocks where we were is an extinct volcano, and it's down wind from Saint Helens. So it's basically a giant pile of natural fertilizer.
I only know some of the flowers here, I have some guidebooks, but don't carry them with me (this was 14 miles, and 3,100 feet of vertical, and books are heavy!) and it's really not the same looking at an identification guide at home. 😐
The blue ones are lupines. You probably have those too?
The scarlet ones are Indian paintbrush. I've never seen them so red. In the Rockies they're called prairie fire. They're parasitic, their roots invade nearby plants roots, they take nutrients.
The pink and some of the white ones are heather. I think it only grows in cold places?
Other white ones are beargrass, owls clover, and (I think) parsnip.
There's a greenish thing in there, looks like a flower but without the pedals. That's pasqueflower that's gone to seed. "Mouse on a stick."1 -
I always love when you share your pictures. My Grandma's home used to have a beautiful view of Mount Saint Helens. It's been one of my favorite places to visit.1
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Nice!1
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Reminds me just a little bit of the Marmot Meadows area of the Harding icefield (Kenai Peninsula, Alaska)(although not quite the variety of wildflowers, still a striking site against the backdrop of glacier).1
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NorthCascades wrote: »springlering62 wrote: »Oh, wow! Thanks for sharing!
When I was a kid, I carried my Golden Guide to Wildflowers everywhere with me. I knew all my wildflowers by heart. But being from the Deep South, some of these are still as exotic as the most exotic orchid to me, lol.
Breathtaking!
Goat Rocks where we were is an extinct volcano, and it's down wind from Saint Helens. So it's basically a giant pile of natural fertilizer.
I only know some of the flowers here, I have some guidebooks, but don't carry them with me (this was 14 miles, and 3,100 feet of vertical, and books are heavy!) and it's really not the same looking at an identification guide at home. 😐
The blue ones are lupines. You probably have those too?
The scarlet ones are Indian paintbrush. I've never seen them so red. In the Rockies they're called prairie fire. They're parasitic, their roots invade nearby plants roots, they take nutrients.
The pink and some of the white ones are heather. I think it only grows in cold places?
Other white ones are beargrass, owls clover, and (I think) parsnip.
There's a greenish thing in there, looks like a flower but without the pedals. That's pasqueflower that's gone to seed. "Mouse on a stick."
We have none of them. 😢
Our wildflowers tend towards daisies, black eyed Susans, Queen Anne’s Lace, Joepye weeds, clovers, daylilies, the occasional mallow.
Even hearing some of the names you just reeled off gives me goosebumps. Indian Paintbrush? Lupines?!!!! Wowsa!
I would kill to see fields like you’ve pictured. They remind me of those spiral notebook with the beautiful covers they sold back when I was a kid. Nature Conservancy or some such group. We couldn’t afford them. I always got the plain covers but lusted after the pretty ones. I was a secret notebook fondler when we’d go to Kmart, lol.
Thanks so much for sharing!1 -
Absolutely beautiful! Thanks for sharing.1
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