Leavenworth Ski Hill

Leavenworth Wildflowers

Balsamroot along Eagle Creek Road outside of Leavenworth, WashingtonMay is a month for wildflowers over on the east side of the mountains. In the foothills beyond to the town of Leavenworth, the canyons can come alive with large blooms of balsamroot and lupine. Conditions aren’t as forgiving over there since the weather warms up and stays warm longer so timing can be crucial. Mid-May seems to be about the time of “peak” blooms; I wanted to make a visit around that time but had to delay it until this past weekend. This lowered my expectations but there were still other areas I haven’t yet checked out. What I ended up finding were good patches of flowers in the area around the Leavenworth Ski Hill. There still was enough evidence to indicate that peak bloom was probably a week ago (around the middle point of May). Beyond the town of Leavenworth, wildflower conditions fall off more quickly. I visited the Eagle Creek valley northeast of town and found some nice pockets of lupine and balsamroot near the end of the paved portion of the road. Further east towards Dryden, I traveled up Ollala Canyon and found conditions to be pretty burnt out (if there was a wildflower season at all). South off of Highway 97, Camas Creek Meadow was devoid of any flowers. The only area outside of Leavenworth that was pretty nice was along Mountain Home Road (which connects Leavenworth to Highway 97 in a roundabout manner).

Balsamroot along Eagle Creek Road outside of Leavenworth, Washington
Balsamroot along Eagle Creek Road outside of Leavenworth, Washington
Looking up Eagle Creek valley, outside of Leavenworth, Washington
Balsamroot near the Leavenworth Ski Area, Leavenworth, Washington
Balsamroot near the Leavenworth Ski Area, Leavenworth, Washington
Balsamroot near the Leavenworth Ski Area, Leavenworth, Washington
Balsamroot near the Leavenworth Ski Area, Leavenworth, Washington
Balsamroot and lupine near the Leavenworth Ski Area, Leavenworth, Washington
Balsamroot bloom along Mountain Home Road outside of Leavenworth, WashingtonOn my way back home, I re-entered the grey and rainy environment of the west side of the Cascades. Just west of Skykomish, the South Fork Skykomish River had a slight fog bank lingering above the surface and it was too good to pass up. I stopped in the vicinity of the Money Creek Campground to take a few more shots..

South Fork Skykomish River west of Skykomish with surface fog
South Fork Skykomish River west of Skykomish with surface fog
South Fork Skykomish River west of Skykomish with surface fog
South Fork Skykomish River west of Skykomish with surface fog

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