Field Trip: Saddle Mountain Hike
May 22 @ 7:30 am - 4:30 pm
Thursday, May 22, 7:30 am – 4:30 pm
Field Trip: Saddle Mountain Hike
Leader: Linda Moore
Location: Saddle Mountain in the Coast Range
The hike up Saddle Mountain isn’t easy, but the trip to this botanist’s Mecca in the Coast Range is worth it. We’ll leisurely ascend 1,700 feet over a challenging five-mile, out-and-back hike to the highest point in Clatsop County. Along the way, we’ll see plants that have found refuge there since the last ice age, some that can’t be found anywhere else for dozens of miles, and some that can’t be found anywhere else in the world. Among the many wildflowers, expect to see saxifrages, larkspur, Lomatium ssp., prairie smoke, Saddle Mountain bittercress, chickweed, checkermallow, wallflower (aromatic!), countless chocolate lilies, and monkeyflowers carpeting the hillsides below the mountain summit. Enjoy an amazing “big bloom” wildflower display and fill your senses. Cameras are encouraged. Bring lunch and be prepared for a moderately difficult hike in potential variable weather. Hiking poles are strongly recommended. An Oregon state park pass is required for each vehicle at Saddle Mountain.
A carpool will leave early from Hillsboro at 7:30 am with the aim of arriving at the trailhead by 9:00 am. This trip is limited to eight participants. Contact Linda at ab*********@***oo.com to register or if you have questions.
