2016 - Robert's adventures in the Northern Sierra Nevada - California

[Robert]

This Arnica species grew throughout the meadow. I had other goals in mind this day, thus I did not take the time to key out this species. Arnica chamissonii was in bloom near the trailhead, however this species appeared to be another species. Without a name it was quite lovely non the less.



This area consists of many meadows at various altitudes, exposures, moisture contents, etc. Each meadow has it subtleties of environment, thus this region has a considerable diversity in its flora. The Cyperaceae and Poaceae families are well represented and are a very important feature of the meadow ecosystems. I have found a considerable diversity of species within these family groups in this area and I find the study of them very fascinating.

Cirsium andersonii, pictured, is commonly seen and blooms over an extended period of time.



Solidago elongata, a late blooming species, is seen very frequently in this part of the Sierra Nevada Range.



The meadows are punctuated by forested areas and drier, rockier ground.

This was a beautiful specimen of Pseudognaphalium canescens found in one of the drier habitats.



Pseudognaphalium canescens is similar to P. thermale. Reaching the higher terrain on Tells Peak was important to me this day and I did not spend a lot of time checking many of the plants. The leaf base on this plant was not decurrent, so P. canescens is a fairly safe bet on this one.

[Robert]

Ceanothus cordulatus is a common species in dry, exposed habitats. The species has wicked thorns, however I am consistently drawn by its blue-green foliage. Again and again, I have observed beautiful color contrasts when I have found this species growing in close proximity to various other species. Something to keep in mind while works and planting in my home garden.



Despite pressing onward toward Tells Peak, I did take time to enjoy some butterflies that were attracted to the open flowers on this Monardella odoratissima var. pallida.



The species for this day was Symphyotrichum spathulatum.



They were in bloom everywhere and created a tremendous show of color.



Synphyotrichum spathulatum has an extended blooming period late in the season. In our Sacramento Valley garden it tends to bloom off and on all summer, however it always looks best in the autumn as the weather cools.  Like many "Asters" it can spread around, especially in good soil. It has never been a problem for us, however it does need attention in good ground to keep it in place.


To be continued.......

[Robert]

TELLS PEAK

Part II

For a number of miles the trail slowly climbs in elevation. Between meadows the forest in dominated by Lodgepole Pine, Pinus contorta ssp. murrayana or Red Fir, Abies magnifica. Where small creeks bisect the trail there are dense thickets of Alder, Alnus incana ssp. tenuifolia. At times the trail passes through alder tunnels full of blooming plants of Delphinium nuttallianum and Aconitum columbianum.



Next to the running water Lady fern, Anthyrium filix-femina, is frequently seen growing in lush, dense stands.



Along drier sections of the forested trail an occasional Pinedrop, Pterospora andromedea, can be seen. The old flowering stems seem almost petrified standing erect in the dry pine duff.



At one point I arrived at an extremely moist and swampy meadow with two streams running through it. Along one stream there was a beautiful stand of Monkeyflower, Mimulus guttatus, in full bloom. This species I generally associate with lower elevation ecosystems. It was a delight to see them thriving at this site.

I was soon interrupted by two men on horse back. The horses were having a very difficult time negotiating the swampy sections of the trail and it was very difficult for me to be aware of the men forcing the horses through the mess still mounted.



This was a good time to make myself busy at the other end of the meadow. There were very nice stands of Arnica latifolia growing sporadically throughout the meadow. Yes, I did key them out. 

[Robert]

Occasionally there were views of the Crystal Range trailing off to the south. At this point I caught a nice view of Silver Peak. There was a time in the past when I climbed all the major summits of the Crystal Range during the summer and autumn. So far this year I have yet reach the summit of even one peak. 



Farther along I arrived at one of my favorite meadows in this area. This seasonally dry meadow is dominated by Mule's Ear, Wyethia mollis. The meadow is huge continuing for at least a mile in several directions.



The woolly gray-green foliage of Wyethia mollis is quite dramatic, however this meadow is even more dramatic in the early summer when in full bloom. Along with the Wyethia, there are thousands of Large-flowered Collomia, Collomia grandiflora, Navarretia leptalea ssp. leptalea, and various species of bulbs blooming in this meadow. It is a tremendous sight!



Each meadow is different in its own unique way. This moist meadow was dominated by Helenium bigelowii.



Hundreds were blooming in this small meadow making a fine show.

[Robert]

Still another meadow was dotted with the white flowers of Parnassia palustris.



As I approached Tells Peak the trail runs out of relatively flat territory and climbs extremely quickly. At this point I came across a pair of hikers as well as the horse back riders who had given up at the base of the steep grade. The trail rises seemingly vertically at this point through dense thickets of Huckleberry Oak, Quercus vacciniifolia, and there is not shade from the hot sun. Even after negotiating the Huckleberry Oak the trail still climbs steeply.

It was in this section where Aconogonon davisae grew.



Aconogonon davisae is not the showiest species, however they can look nice at times in the autumn when the foliage can turn shades of red, orange and gold.

The real show in this area are the Penstemons. Penstemon newberryi grew abundantly on these steep rocky slopes. Their flowering season had long since ended, however they had set a tremendous seed crop.



Being high on the slope provided an opportunity to enjoy the outings vistas off to the west. This view is to the southwest with Union Valley Reservoir in the distance.



As I approached Forni Lake, the trail neared the exit stream at times as it cascaded down the mountainside. Once again I enjoyed the lush growth of Lady Fern, Anthyrium filix-femine.

To be continued.......

[Robert]

TELLS PEAK

Part III

In addition to the lush foliage of Lady Fern, the outlet stream provided moisture for Thimbleberries, Rubus parviflora. It was my pleasure to arrive when they were at their peak of ripeness. Generally the wild creatures help themselves to most of the ripe fruit, but they left plenty for me to enjoy this day.



As I crested the slope near Forni Lake there were large patches of Vaccinium cespitosum - and with ripe berries too! What a natural feast. Vaccinium cespitosum is gorgeous in the autumn when the foliage turns brilliant scarlet-red.



After enjoying a few more berries, I hiked the last few feet to Forni Lake.



Forni Lake is situated at the base of Tells Peak at an elevation of 7,910 feet (2,411 meters). The lake would make a perfect base camp for plant exploration and study in this area.



Unfortunately by the time I arrived at Forni Lake I had only an hour or so to explore perhaps a tiny faction of the slopes of Tells Peak which loomed there directly in front of me.

[Robert]

I quickly rounded the south shore of Forni Lake and proceeded up the southwestern flank of Tells Peak.

A trail rose steeply for several hundred feet and then leveled with... guess?

More meadow land.



This meadow was full of Vaccinium cespitosum, Kalmia polifolia and Phyllodoce breweri. Mimulus primuloides and Oreostemma alpigenum var. andersonii were blooming throughout the short grasses and sedges.



Among the willows Castilleja miniata was still blooming.



I had just arrived but sadly it was very late and necessary for me to leave immediately. I very much wanted to explore the slopes of Tells Peak but real had not accomplished much in this regard. For me another disappointment.... but a blessing to be out in the mountains again. 



To avoid hiking in the dark I should have turned back an hour or more earlier. It was now time to hike (extremely quickly) back to the truck. The views were fantastic. Looming darkeness or not I was going to stop and take in the scenery.

[Robert]

In this view to the southwest, the summit of Mount Diablo (in the southern coast range) can be seen just above the haze of the Great Central Valley in the center of the photograph.

This more or less ended the botanical part of this outing as I raced back to the truck.

Despite my complaining about not not having enough time to explore the high peaks of the Crystal Range, I still accomplish a great deal on this outing. It is very satisfying for me to know that there is an infinite amount of creative and fascinating work to do in this region.

[Robert]

I will be out of town until next week.



Between appointments I find it interesting to check on the flora in waste areas around town. This is a typical empty field near Diamond Springs, California.



The flora in such areas is mostly invasive species. 70% to 80% of the species are not native.

It was a warm day, 95 F - 35 C, however I did find one flower still open on this Madia elegans. The flowers wilt once the hot sun gets on them.



This is a section of the El Dorado Trail. It was once a railroad right-of-way and is now a bicycle and pedestrian path. It is fun to poke around and see what I might find. Identifying species from dried and broken remains can be enlightening, so there is never a dull moment for me.

Examining a plant with a hand leans can be very enlightening. There are times when I wish that my camera had the capability to produce good photographs of tiny objects. There is so many fascinating things to see on the miniature scale.
Kickxia elatine is a good example. This member of the Plantaginaceae has tiny yellow spurred flowers with a purplish upper lip. They are quite beautiful. Something with flowers 5 to 10 x would be quite outstanding.

Anyway..... I look forward to resuming my regular outings in about 2 weeks. I the mean time, I will see what I can get myself into..... regarding plants.

[Hoy]

Lots of interesting plants and descriptions, Robert!

I have been "out of town" myself for a few days, but not seen much of interest. It is more or less the same species everywhere around here and the bogs are wet!

Vaccinium uliginosum is very common here and I saw a lot of it. It looks different from your variety though! Tragopogon pratensis, Verbascum thapsus, Parnassia palustris and Rumex acetocella are native but not invasive. The latter is usually found on poor soil and none of them grows where I went these days.

Synphyotrichum spathulatum looks very nice! Reminds me a little of our Tripolium pannonicum.
Pterospora andromedea looks very interesting! Does it parasite pines?

Thanks for showing all the interesting plants and landscape!

[Robert]

Hi Trond,

I will be heading home tomorrow, Thursday!     

My understanding is that Pterospora andromedea is a saprophyte - but do not hold me to this. Its been a long, long time since I looked into this.

I think that I mentioned the perennial border in our front yard in Sacramento. I grow many Symphyotrichum spathulatum from seed and I will be trialing the best in this border. They tend to run around like some other Asteraceae, however I am not worried about them getting out of control. They worked very well in our border up at the farm in Placerville. They bloom on and off all summer into the autumn. The cool weather of autumn brightens the flower color.

I do not want to bore the folks on the forum, but I completely uncovered some of farm from an ocean of weeds. The ground is still very fertile even with volunteer vegetables growing. The vegetable beds are lined with perennials and a few rock garden type plants. After walking away from them for months, I only lost one plant - Salvia guaranitica. The Nepeta, Oregano, Rudbeckia, Epilobium, and Agastache are all blooming right now. Amazing!     Now that it is all cleaned up it looks good. I will fill you in on the details when I get settled in at home.

I will be resuming my outings next week. If all goes well I will travel to someplace different - maybe Ebbetts Pass. It has been quite a few years since I have been to Ebbetts Pass. It would be good if I could return. The scenery is fantastic and so is the flora.

[Hoy]

Robert, looking forward to your reports, anytime, anywhere!

[Robert]

Trond,

I pretty-much have my next outing planned. I will be going to the Ebbett's Pass area, but from a different direction. The last time I was in part of this region was when I was 5 years old + - . So some of this trip will be basically new territory. Very exciting for me. I am looking forward to see what I might find.

[Robert]

It was  a very stormy day yesterday. When I arrived at Ebbetts Pass there was quite the tempest! I will post this outing as I can. It will be more words than photographs and it was very much an adventure!

Conifers along the trail covered in rain and mist.

[Robert]

EBBETTS PASS

Wednesday

21 September 2016

Sacramento Weather

Weather: High Clouds
Temperature, High:82 F (27.5 C)
                     Low:62 F (16.5 C)

Placerville Weather

Weather:High Clouds
Temperature, High:79 F (26 C)
                     Low:48 F (9 C)

Wednesday's outing started out unassuming enough. Very early in the morning our first autumn rainfall for the season arrived. It was nothing more than a few light sprinkles, there was no measurable rainfall in our gauge. When I started out for Ebbetts Pass there were still a few light showers in the area, however the storm was moving east and the weather was clearing.

My plan this day was to travel to Mokelumne Hill an old 49er gold mining hamlet in the Mother Lode. This part of the journey was uneventful. At Mokelumne Hill I turned east toward another 49er hamlet by the name of Railroad Flat. My plan was to take the road from Railraod Flat to Summit Level Ridge and then to the main highway up to Ebbetts Pass. This I hoped would take me through some interesting country where I might find interesting plant species.

Things took an unexpected turn when I missed the turn off to Railraod Flat and headed off in the wrong direction. I soon realized my navigational mistake and found the correct turn off to Railroad Flat. From there I easily found the road to Summit Level Ridge. This narrow, one laned, paved track soon became a gravel road. After some distance gravel gave way to dirt and powder dust. This was not unexpected in this part of the Mother Lode. What did concern me were all the "No Trespassing" signs. This did not seem like friendly country!

The first sign of difficulties started when the road entered an area of recent logging. First the logging appeared to be forest thinning. This soon turned into wholesale clear-cutting of the forest. The road became a mess, thick with 4 dm deep dust, with many hidden rocks and ruts. This was no place to observe plants.

It was slow and difficult driving, however I was hoping I would arrive at Summit Level Ridge soon. This was not the case. This dusty, rock littered, and rutted road seemed to never end. Many equally unmaintained roads branched from the road I was following. After awhile I felt lost. In addition, the partly cloudy sky had turned dark with threaten clouds. This was discouraging. I might waste the whole day getting out of this mess.

After what seemed like a long distance the road surface started to improve and the logging ended. I saw a Forest Service boundary sign on a tree, so at least I now knew I was on public land and no longer traveling through private property. I still did not know where I was in relation to the Ebbetts Pass highway. I really did not want to continue on this road so I turned off at the first promising looking road. This I did and after 100 meters I came to a well graveled Forest Service road.

I still had no idea exactly where I was, however I felt a sense of relief once I started off down this road. And down it went into a canyon, and so did the rain. Despite being a well maintained gravel road there was still plenty of dust on the road, which quickly turned to mud as the rain continued. My 2 wheel drive truck started to lose traction as I attempted to turn on this windy road. I was not too concerned about going down, but would the truck have enough traction to get up the other side of the canyon?

I safely arrive at the small bridge at the bottom of the canyon. From here the road made a hard right hand turn and forest opened up to a large meadow on the right and a few cabins in the forest on the left. This was a welcome sight. Very quickly the road became paved again. An automobile turned onto the road in front of me. I had no idea where to go, so I followed the car in front of me. Fortunately after a few turns the car in front of me arrive at the Ebbetts Pass highway.

It turned out that I was in the small town of Arnold. From here I continued up the highway to Ebbetts Pass. It rain the whole distance. By the time I arrived at Ebbetts Pass, 8,730 feet (2,661 meters), the rainstorm had turned into a complete tempest with hollowing winds and pelting rain. I had brought my rain gear, but I did not want to go out in this, so I needed to come up with another plan.

From the top of the pass I could see some blue sky off to the east, so I quickly decided to travel down to the east toward the East Carson River where hopefully I would find better weather conditions.



Down I went as it continued to rain until I arrived at Centerville Flat, elevation 5,952 feet (1,814 meters). Here where Silver Creek meets the East Fork of the Carson River the rain stopped and I walked down to the Carson River.



Above the river was a dry open pine-juniper forest. Jeffrey Pine, Pinus jeffreyi, was the dominant species, however there were also Single-leaf Pinyon Pine, Pinus monophyllus, and Juniper, Juniperus osteosperma?

I was a bit puzzled by the juniper trees as they keyed out as J. californica with leaves in whorls of 3 and obvious glands, as well as ash gray bark. All the juniper trees were single trunked which fits J. osteosperma. Even though the juniper did not key well I am willing to go with J. osteosperma and the trees do not look like any J. californica I have ever seen in the wild.



Most of the area under the trees was dry grass with scattered shrubs. Cercocarpus ledifolius var. intermontanus (pictured) was the most common shrub, however there were a few Bitterbrush, Purshia tridentata, and Sagebrush, Artemisia tridentata.



Down by the river there was the usual assortment of willows, Salix sp., and Poplar, Populus trichocarpa.

I found one plant of Oenother elata ssp. hirsutissima still in bloom.



White Rabbitbrush, Ericameria nauseosa var. hololeuca, was in bloom in scattered stands in this area too.