Black Mountain - May 22, 2021

[scatman]

A nice hike up Black Mountain on Saturday, between a rainy Friday and a rainy Sunday, with the foothill wildflowers putting on a show for us.

Katie on the trail

Dyer's Woad

Milk Vetch

Dalmatian Toadflax

More vetch

Hawksbeard

@Rockskipper, I think I got this right this time - a stink beetle

Common Yarrow

Death Camas

Hillside full of balsamroot

Lewis Flax

Mule's Ears, just beginning to bloom in the upper foothills

Arrowleafed Balsamroot - the dominant wildflower in the foothills, though in the lower elevations, they are starting to dry up a bit.

Ball-head Waterleaf

(L-R) Burro Peak, Grandview Peak, Black Mountain Ridge

Desert Paintbrush

Larkspur

Antelope Brush, Sage and Arrowleafed Balsamroot

Service Berry

Horned Lizard

Sniff, sniff

Bastard (no not me) Toadflax

Lookout Peak, viewed from the Black Mountain Ridge

Glacier Lilies

The Dude Benchmark, with the dried up Salt Lake beyond

Groundsel

Anyone know this shrub? @Outdoor_Fool ? Is it manzanita?

Swallowtail on the ridge

Phlox

More Balsamroot

Homeward bound.

 

[Bob]

Only rain? Two days snow here... Mtns getting hammered

 

[scatman]

Only rain? Two days snow here... Mtns getting hammered

The mountains got some snow here last night and early this morning too, maybe above 7000 feet.

 

[Absarokanaut]

Snowed pretty darn good on e driving over Togwotee yesterday. Love the flowers man. Let me know when you come this way.

 

[The Trout Whisperer]

Man! Th backcountry fashionista strikes again! That camo n tartan plaid kilt is da bomb...love th picks..

 

[Outdoor_Fool]

Anyone know this shrub? @Outdoor_Fool ? Is it manzanita?

@scatman Did you take a good look at the leaves? If the leaves are leathery/waxy with 3 prominent veins running up the leaf from the base, I would say it is one of the Ceanothus varieties. In CO, we had Ceanothus velutinus. Defintely has the growth form of Ceanothus.

 

[scatman]

@scatman Did you take a good look at the leaves? If the leaves are leathery/waxy with 3 prominent veins running up the leaf from the base, I would say it is one of the Ceanothus varieties. In CO, we had Ceanothus velutinus. Defintely has the growth form of Ceanothus.

I didn't take a closer look at the leaves, but I think you are right about the identification. It's called snowbrush ceanothus. I took a zoomed in shot and it looks to me like there are three prominent veins that run through the leaf. If you can enlarge the image, you'll see them. I'll check the waxy feel the next time I see them.

I've had to bushwhack though these many times along the ridges here in the Wasatch, which makes for slow going foe me anyway. I always wondered what they were. Thanks for your input.

 

[Outdoor_Fool]

Looks right. Bushwhacking through this is a pain at the least.

 

[Ugly]

I didn't take a closer look at the leaves, but I think you are right about the identification. It's called snowbrush ceanothus. I took a zoomed in shot and it looks to me like there are three prominent veins that run through the leaf. If you can enlarge the image, you'll see them. I'll check the waxy feel the next time I see them.


I've had to bushwhack though these many times along the ridges here in the Wasatch, which makes for slow going foe me anyway. I always wondered what they were. Thanks for your input.

Slow going for you? Naw... should be slow going for anyone who can feel pain!
I have scratches on my shins still from last weekend's bushwacking jaunt I took through it. Good to know the name so I can use it as a curse, like I do with tamarisk.

I like the attention to flora and fauna @scatman in these reports. Lean something new every time. The balsamroot and mule ears do look really nice in places too, and some lupine too, unless its just purple vetch.

 

[scatman]

Slow going for you? Naw... should be slow going for anyone who can feel pain!
I have scratches on my shins still from last weekend's bushwacking jaunt I took through it. Good to know the name so I can use it as a curse, like I do with tamarisk.

I like the attention to flora and fauna @scatman in these reports. Lean something new every time. The balsamroot and mule ears do look really nice in places too, and some lupine too, unless its just purple vetch.

I can picture you cursing, making your way along a ridge @Ugly. I had two nasty encounters with this snowbrush ceanothus a few years back when I was trying to tackle the Millcreek Ridge Route. First stretch was when I lost the trail coming off Millvue Peak (my fault), and the second lengthy encounter happened between Mount Aire and upper Burch Hollow. It wore me out for sure, but it certainly makes one appreciate a nice trail.

I did see some lupine just beginning to bloom - not a very good shot I'm afraid. This was the only lupine that was blooming that I saw on our hike.