Spring 2005

Flower and Mushroom Forays

Winter was dry this year, and we may be looking at a drought later this summer. The spring has been wetter than usual, however, with rainfall well above average, several late snows with storms sweeping in off the ocean as the weather shifts towards our summer pattern of west winds.

Spotting a break in the rain I picked up mom for a wildflower expedition. A fresh storm rolled through as we reached the top of the ridge.

The rain was light and it stayed warm out, so it wasn't uncomfortable. We stopped and photographed some chocolate lilies in an old clearcut...

It continued to rain lightly while we were in the woods. The contrast between the dark green firs and the flowering dogwoods was intensified by the gray evening light. The dogwoods floating sprays of white in the forest shadows...

As we traveled east, out of the woods and onto the plateau the rain tapered off and stopped and it turned into a beautiful evening. We stopped at this cabin, one of the oldest remaining structures in the area, dating back to before Oregon became a Territory of the United States.

We soon arrived at Tom McCall Preserve, the object of our expedition...

Mom and I headed down the trail and took these photo's

All too soon it was time to go home, ending another successful wildflower expedition with Mom!

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