Wildflowers at The Dalles

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Sugar Pine
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Wildflowers at The Dalles

Post by Sugar Pine » April 23rd, 2018, 5:30 pm

Hiked Chenoweth Tableland and Sevenmile Hill on Sunday. Balsamroot are out and spectacular, especially lower levels of Sevenmile Hill. Lupine also coming out, especially on the western edge of Sevenmile Hill.
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Sevenmile Lupine.jpg
Sevenmile - west side
Sevenmile.jpg
Sevenmile - east side
Chenoweth.jpg
Chenoweth

justpeachy
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Re: Wildflowers at The Dalles

Post by justpeachy » April 23rd, 2018, 8:13 pm

We were at Sevenmile Hill on Saturday. This is the third or fourth year I've visited that spot and unfortunately it is definitely not a banner year for balsamroot out there. But those flowers are still a sight for sore eyes after the long winter! :D

Image

Image

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MariposaMan
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Re: Wildflowers at The Dalles

Post by MariposaMan » April 24th, 2018, 10:25 am

Thanks for info and pics. Some friends and I plan to do some hiking at Sevenmile Hill in about 12 days; hopefully the balsamroot and other flowers won't be too far past prime. This will be my first visit to the Gorge this year, driving up from Eugene, so I'm looking forward to it!

As it was the weekend, did you encounter many other hikers? Would you recommend gaiters/leg protection? My understanding is that the oft-described loop route on Sevenmile Hill is mainly off-trail, but it's not clear whether any (minor) bushwhacking may be necessary.

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chiefWright
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Re: Wildflowers at The Dalles

Post by chiefWright » April 25th, 2018, 7:41 pm

MariposaMan,

Last time I did sevenmile was before the big burn a few years ago, but based on the pix it looks pretty much the same. Gaining the ridge is more wading thru balsamroot than bushwhacking. Once on the ridge, you're either crossing open meadow or reasonably open oak forest.

Ah, the dilemma on any hike east of Cascade Locks: Do you want gaiters and/or long pants to protect against poison oak, or shorts to see the ticks when they start crawling up your legs? I chose long pants yesterday while gallivanting thru the Labyrinth. I needed to extricate one tick on my left knee when I stripped down at Coyote ridge. But no rash today!

Your call. Don't expect to come out of the gorge without some minor damage if you really want to experience what it has to offer. On the other hand, don't be dumb and come out strapped to a bodyboard.

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greglief
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Re: Wildflowers at The Dalles

Post by greglief » April 27th, 2018, 7:43 am

MariposaMan wrote:
April 24th, 2018, 10:25 am
Some friends and I plan to do some hiking at Sevenmile Hill in about 12 days; hopefully the balsamroot and other flowers won't be too far past prime...
Unfortunately I think that you will have missed the best of the balsamroot bloom. The next several days will be fairly mild in the eastern Gorge, but the past three days and the second half of next week will push them along. Plus, as justpeachy noted, it is not a banner year based upon what we experienced at multiple locations. However, they should still be profuse, which helps make up for the less-than-stellar bloom quality.
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Sugar Pine
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Re: Wildflowers at The Dalles

Post by Sugar Pine » April 27th, 2018, 7:34 pm

There were about 5 cars in the parking lot at Sevenmile when we arrived late, about 1 pm after hiking Chenowith. But, the parking lot isn't very large. It is all cross country. There is poison oak and personally, I would not consider wearing shorts, but I have serious issues with poison oak. I was surprised by the comment that it isn't good this year. This is my first trip to Sevenmile Hill, but I think this was much better than what I've seen at Dog Mtn., Catherine Creek and other popular wildflower hikes in past years, although mostly limited to balsamroot. While the balsamroot might have peaked, you should see more blooming lupine. The best flowers were nearer to the parking lot than the river, so you don't have to hike the entire loop.

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Re: Wildflowers at The Dalles

Post by greglief » April 27th, 2018, 8:37 pm

Sugar Pine wrote:
April 27th, 2018, 7:34 pm
... I was surprised by the comment that it isn't good this year. This is my first trip to Sevenmile Hill, but I think this was much better than what I've seen at Dog Mtn., Catherine Creek and other popular wildflower hikes in past years, although mostly limited to balsamroot.
First, I am glad that you enjoyed your visit to Sevenmile Hill. It is a wonderful location. Perhaps when it becomes more exposed by social media, that situation will change, but in the meantime we can enjoy its beauty in relative solitude.

I was with justpeachy last weekend, and I concur that based upon multiple years over the past 4+ years, this is not the best balsamroot that we have seen. For example, in 2016 the blooms were both more robust and profuse. Here are two examples for comparison:

Image

Image

That is not to say that this is a bad year -- far from it! The balsamroot is still quite profuse, which helps compensate for the fact that the quality of the individual blooms is not as stellar as in previous years.
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TwoPaw
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Re: Wildflowers at The Dalles

Post by TwoPaw » April 28th, 2018, 6:20 am

if you want predictable there's always the Wooden Shoe tulip fields

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Re: Wildflowers at The Dalles

Post by justpeachy » April 28th, 2018, 6:46 am

TwoPaw wrote:
April 28th, 2018, 6:20 am
if you want predictable there's always the Wooden Shoe tulip fields
Nothing is predictable if Mother Nature is involved. ;)

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MariposaMan
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Re: Wildflowers at The Dalles

Post by MariposaMan » May 8th, 2018, 10:23 pm

greglief wrote:
April 27th, 2018, 7:43 am
MariposaMan wrote:
April 24th, 2018, 10:25 am
Some friends and I plan to do some hiking at Sevenmile Hill in about 12 days; hopefully the balsamroot and other flowers won't be too far past prime...
Unfortunately I think that you will have missed the best of the balsamroot bloom. The next several days will be fairly mild in the eastern Gorge, but the past three days and the second half of next week will push them along. Plus, as justpeachy noted, it is not a banner year based upon what we experienced at multiple locations. However, they should still be profuse, which helps make up for the less-than-stellar bloom quality.
Thanks for the heads-up. My group hiked Sevenmile this past weekend; the balsamroot bloom was impressive, even if slightly past peak, and the lupine were beginning to make a strong showing. Many smaller, less conspicuous flowers, too.

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