Next hike.

The next hike will be on Saturday, 20th April.

We meet at the Ballpark in Gillies Bay at 10:00am.

Last week we had another one of those damp and windy days that seem to have been happening a little more often than usual this year.  The snow has gone now from the highest roads on the island so we headed south towards the high ground and parked on the gas line not far from the Hydro Reactor Station.  By heading west under the wires and using the access road that zig-zags down the right of way we eventually reached Thompson Road and then left the wires behind walking north as far as the first side road on the right.  This climbs quite steeply up through a large area that was logged and replanted quite a few years ago.  It was a bit cool and damp where we stopped for lunch, but I was happy to discover a neat little patch of the common Monkey Flower.   Erythranthe guttata is the scientific name for it now as it used to be in a different genus called Mimulus.  It is native over a surprisingly wide area of western North America and I understand it can be found on high mountain ranges as well as along the coastline.  Locally it's very common on the coastal bluffs of Texada often giving them vivid splashes of bright yellow in springtime.

JD.

The bright yellow blossoms of Monkeyflower on a small bluff above Thompson Road.