Jumping the gun on Mount Hood flowers..!

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Splintercat
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Jumping the gun on Mount Hood flowers..!

Post by Splintercat » August 2nd, 2013, 2:53 pm

Jeff and I ran into some round-the-mountain hikers on Gnarl Ridge last week who were raving about "flowers everywhere" at Elk Cove... which of course meant that I was back up there like a lemming, four days later (last Sunday), camera gear in hand..! :roll:

Well, it's true -- there were a lot of flowers and I had a lovely afternoon... but it turns out that panicking was not in order (you would think I'd know this by now..?) While the flowers up on the walls of the cove were past their prime, there's still a lot to unfold down on the floor of the valley. When I got to my obsessively favorite spot ("the hole") for photos, I discovered that I was at least a week ahead of the asters -- maybe two weeks. So, plenty of time to get up there an enjoy. :D

Thought I'd post some comparisons from last year to this year, since the bloom season does vary a bit -- but not as wildly as my imagination when I make my panicked, too-early trips up there! :lol:

Elk Cove with asters in bloom last year...

Image

...and a week or two early for the asters, this year:

Image

(...and yes, this means I'll probably need to head up there again this year...)

The 2012 photo is taken at about 6 PM and this year's photo at about 5:30 PM, so interesting to see how the rapidly departing sun illuminates the scene differently.

Tom :)

pdxgene
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Re: Jumping the gun on Mount Hood flowers..!

Post by pdxgene » August 2nd, 2013, 3:47 pm

Thanx Tom ...
It's been hard to resist after reading a couple of those. I have to keep telling myself, 'not yet, not yet'. It is nice to have a few years worth of comparison trips to refer back to. I thought we might be way too late for Canyon Creek Meadows but it turned out the same there and we ended up timing it just right. Plus earlier = more menacing flying things that bite..

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oldandslow
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Re: Jumping the gun on Mount Hood flowers..!

Post by oldandslow » August 2nd, 2013, 6:16 pm

Really informative post with great picture proof.

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xrp
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Re: Jumping the gun on Mount Hood flowers..!

Post by xrp » August 4th, 2013, 4:55 pm

I was just up there (Paradise Park) this weekend and the flowers are definitely out and looking great!

No mosquitoes. Flies are out, but not many were biting.

scole
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Re: Jumping the gun on Mount Hood flowers..!

Post by scole » August 4th, 2013, 7:24 pm

Awesome! Thanks for the update about Paradise Park. I'm thinking about heading up there later this week. The timing is much appreciated!

Steve

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