T ~ Tortoiseshell

Milbert's Tortoiseshell (Aglais milberti ) is one of the best butterflies for photography.  It is large and boldly colored making it possible to capture a useful image from a little further away than the more common, but smaller subjects.  I captured this photo walking down the road from Red Top lookout.  It is one of the best roads for seeing many different species of butterflies.

Their friendly habit of feeding along road and trail edges brings them into your path.  When they land, they will often present themselves open wing.  Mud and water is a attractant and they will calmly sip mud for the minerals.  This butterfly, alighting on a rock along a trickling water path is typical and it is possible to calmly snap pictures, edging closer and closer.

Butterfly photography is a discipline requiring immense patience.  Bountiful flowering plants, mud or water and low wind are key.

Sunshine to make the colors pop is a bonus.

P ~ Physaria alpestris , Washington Twinpod

Physaria alpestris Washington Twinpod


This is the plant that started it all. I met these bizarre pods on a hike at Red Top in 2009. I had no idea what they were. Hollow plastic-like, they rattled noisily when fingered. Someone suggested I post them to Flickr to see if they could be identified. Sure enough I had a hint within a few hours and using the on-line resources of the Herbarium at the University of Washington Burke Museum I was able to make an id. As a member of the mustard family they are one of dozens of confusing and challenging members of this family in the dry side of the Cascades and east slope uplands.

The flower of this plant is unexpected. Bright yellow blooms on long stems straggle along the rocky soils. The leaves are soft and slightly furry. The stems of the flowers can be so long that the pods, when they appear, are far removed from the leaves as if they were not associated with each other.

This plant made me appreciate that no one book can serve to easily aid my knowledge. I currently have three field guides for plants in this region and there are still gaps that must be filled by using the Herbariums on-line photo collection.

Return to Red Top

I returned to Red Top Saturday to check on a few plants I have been keeping an eye on.


The season has been odd this year and today shows that what I though might happen has come true. All season many have said the plants are lagging behind by three weeks. Today I see that many plants came and went and "Poof" many are past it.


But that is OK. I hiked up the Blue Creek Trail to Red Top and then decided to return down via the Forest Service Road 9702. On this road I had some previous butterfly encounters and I knew there was a boggy area that might yield something fun.


Right were the FS road starts at Hwy 97 there is an abandoned log cabin. I found a plant growing early in the spring. It was only a pair of leaves but their feel and structure screamed "orchid" to me. I went back today and sure enough a very large Elegant Piperia was in bloom. This was the first time I had seen this plant in person.

When I parked my car to visit this spot the area was filled with clouds of moths. Many of them landed on the car and on me. I managed a few shots and I received word that the id is probably Western Spruce Budworm moth. I noticed that here and up to a certain elevation level there is extensive damage to the growing tips of most of the conifer trees. There were many birds about feeding on the moths.

Hiking up the very steep trail I finally found Rattlesnake Plantain in bloom. I believe this is the latest blooming orchid of the season.

Other than that, most plants were way past blooming. The ground was very dry. I did encounter an interesting mixed flock of Nuthatch and Brown Creepers. There was a lot of activity on one dead tree. Obviously a tasty larder of bugs and grubs. I could hear pounding and breaking of bark flakes.

I heard a lot of helicopter activity and when I finally reached a clearing saw one fly over with a water bomb bucket. There were at least 6 round trip passes while I hiked up and I was hoping to get a picture from the top but by then the flight passage had stopped. The fire lookout was manned and the volunteer said the flights were landing or dropping below the ridge line into Esmeralda Basin. He said their was no fire there and thought they might be practicing. The wind at the top of the ridge was fierce and cold. Clouds were quickly moving in from the west.

I decided then to hike down via the FS road to see if there might be some nice butterfly action. I had some great encounters in the past at one spot where water from snow melt flooded the road and made mud. Butterflies love to feed on mud.

There was absolutely no water to be found except a few moist slopes. There was a lot of thistle and Sub-alpine Daisy and that is where the butterflies allowed the best pictures. Many would tease me by landing on the road, as if to gather minerals from the dry soil.

Bee on Sub-alpine Daisy

Atlantis Fritillary , Speyeria atlantis

But some thistle allowed great pictures.

Calcedona Checkerspot.

I was also happy to fine some Pinedrops. This amazing saprophyte is covered in sticky hairs which trap bugs to supplement the plants diet. Having no chlorophyll they take nourishment from other plants and many process bugs as well. They can grow quite tall. This one is at least two feet high and still not spreading its flowers.

This one is starting to unfold the flowers.

When the plant dies it will leave a dried skeleton which might persist for a year, marking the spot to watch the nest season.

The boggy area was filled with grass, Paintbrush and Bog-orchids. I found a lucky butterfly as well







Greenish Blue Plebejus saepiolus

The place I left my car was where I found Mountain Ladyslipper earlier this season. I looked in the bushes here and found more Elegant Piperia as well as the dried remnants of the Ladyslippers. I could recognize the individual plants from my photos last time. They are still lovely.

Fun Weekend Fungus

There is no way that there could have been a more perfect day than Saturday. I knew it was THE day for fine weather. I was thinking I would go over to Mt Townsend and do the climb that was postponed and not restored by the Plant Society. We tried but the long range forecast for the weekend, at the time , was not good.

Saturday would have been perfect and I tried. First step on going to a place I have not been is check some resources for getting to the trail head. I found three different directions and could follow none of them on my map. That in itself is one to keep me away from a solo trip.

I headed over the pass on Hwy 2 bright and early for a trip from my Wildflower book. Chiwaukum Creek is east of Leavenworth and promised a good trail and a chance to be in lovely woods.

It was. The creek, not a dainty gurgling trickle but a roaring plunging furry was a constant noisy companion the whole way. Like the sounds of the freeway, but much more pleasant.

The Pine woods of the east side are my favorite for their scent alone. A warm still day smells the best. The understory in these woods is usually open and easy to get in to. There you find a lot of fun things like mushrooms. Today there were Coral Mushroom erupting everywhere.

As I gained altitude I started finding Morels.

Once again I am reminded about wearing a backpack instead of a hip pack and inside that pack should be a plastic container and a paper bag. Paper for mushrooms, plastic for fruit.

The first 1 1/2 mile of the trail is actually an old road that has been gated. There are a few homes tucked into the private land leading up to the National Forest. There had been a lot of recent disturbance , including some logging. This old log was totally devoid of its outer bark. This pattern shows that a Pine boring beetle had been hard at work making its art, and damage. I somehow remember reading that some species of beetle has their own distinct pattern type. I like this wild artistic pattern.

Many trees were hung with Witches Hair.

I rambled off trail in many places to look about in likely areas for unusual plants. I climbed up rock slopes for Lewisia and other rock loving flowers. Hookers Fairybells were bountiful.

I was thrilled to find Wild Ginger. This has such an unusual flower and on the wet side, if you can find it, the flower is often smooshed small and soggy under the low growing leaves. There the leaves were up and the flowers neatly arrayed for photos.

I occasionally went over to the creek to admire its power and play Pooh Sticks. At one creek side I encountered a small "flock" of butterflies. Many butterfly species sip minerals from wet dirt and mud and this is the time of year it is easy to get somewhat near to observe. I was able to sit down and watch the little blue butterflies but they were too jittery to get good photos.

I continued on until I got to a trail junction the book said was 5 1/2 miles. I had some beautiful views of open sky and canyon walls.

I pulled out my phone and was amazed that I actually had an active screen in this remote area. I also saw that it was 2:50! I had been on the trail 5 1/2 hours.

I knew I best tear myself away. I headed back down trail and tried not to stop... to much

This fine butterfly, a Green Comma, was lazy in the late day sun and I was able to get a decent picture.

I encountered a flock of small blue butterflies that flew up from the ground like confetti. They allowed me to sit down next to the moist spot they were sipping on and I got some nice pictures. They are Spring Azure.

It took me 1 hour and 15 minutes to get back to the car. This does not count the time spent talking to two fellows about the trail and the mushrooms. They convinced me Coral Mushroom is good eating.

Sunday came as promised. Rainy and dreary. After a breakfast of sauteed Coral with egg I headed back east of the mountains. I had a couple places in mind and I would decide when I got there. I figured the rain would be stopped by the time I got to Easton... or Cle Elum...

or not

I threw in the towel figuring perhaps if I went north a ways the rain would stop

or not

I need to add a poncho to the "backpack for every purpose" that should be living in the trunk.

I returned to the Blue Creek Trail that climbs to Red Top. This was a feature write up in the Native Plant Society newsletter. I knew Red Top from a visit last summer and wanted to see Washington Twinpod in bloom. I located some Mountain Ladyslipper orchids that the author said should be in a location. They are not yet blooming. Indeed everything in this area seems to be a few weeks off schedule. On this trail the only flowers open seemed to be the yellow Glacier Lily and violets, very early spring flowers. There was still snow in some of the north facing slopes.

Along the very steep trail I did find some wonderful Ponderosa Pines with lower limbs frosted with moss. I loved the look.

Near the top I did find some Twinpod starting to bloom. I will have to return and get the plants in full bloom to complete my set of photos of this curious flower.

I also lost the trail, which the author said was easy to do. With the clearing of the weather and the dampness of myself I felt done.

I had a good 1000 feet/1 mile stretch of the legs and my pockets were full of Morels. I knew if I left now I could be in range of the NPR station that broadcasts "The Splendid Table" at 200pm. That always puts me in the mood. Sunday there was even a discussion of light red wines for Summer. Getting home by three I had decided I would fricassee the mushrooms with chicken and onion. I stopped at the store form some shallots and a nice Spanish Crianza.

I used a bit too much Rosemary