12 May 2012 Orchids and Clintonia

There was still enough rain to leave our stream flowing. We enjoyed a walk around the property mostly to see if we could spot any of our orchids and hoping to see them getting ready to bloom. We were excited to find an orchid on a trail where we have never seen them before. There was no spike, but still it was great to spot yet another orchid in our woods.

With no luck finding orchids in bloom in our woods, we made our way to Anders Run for a quiet walk through the woods there. We were rewarded with some nice blossoms and multiple orchids. They were where we have come to expect them each year.

After leaving Anders Run, we made a journey over to Morrison Run for a hike and a little caching. On the way out Ali spotted clintonia in two places. There was a large stand in blossom on top of a rock structure, but too little light for good pictures. At the second location Ali spotted, I was able to climb up and use the flash to get a nice image. It has been a couple of years since we have seen clintonia in bloom so this was a special treat. It was a spirited walk through the rocks with a couple bonus finds in the wildflowers.

Morrison Run was flowing quickly and looked great as the day closed out.