In preparation for my survey of the Tells Peak region this coming summer and autumn, I am reviewing many of the plant species I am likely to encounter, as well as species that grow in the immediate vicinity but I have yet to be documented in the Tells Peak area.
I have been conducting botanical field studies in the Tells Peak area for decades. In the picture above, I am standing on the summit of Tells Peak. This photograph was taken sometime during the early to mid 1990’s. Tells Peak is the lowest and most northerly peak of the Crystal Range. It is also the only peak of the Crystal Range with trees on the summit. The three conifers in the background right side are Mountain Hemlock, Tsuga mentensiana. The smaller conifer behind my back is Whitebark Pine, Pinus albicaulis.
Lewisia triphylla, pictured above, is one of 4 Lewisia species found in the Crystal Range area. In my next posting I will describe these species as they are found in this region, as well as Lewesii kelloggii ssp. kelloggii , which is found a short distance south of the Crystal Range but has yet to be documented in the Crystal Range area.
