Ric, Maddie, and I monitored three transects at Hannegan Pass as well as Anderson Creek Rd and Heather Meadows. At the Hannegan Pass transects, most of the snow has melted, and with it the first flush of flowers (like Glacier Lily) have senesced. Skies were overcast and threatened rain, but none fell. However, temperatures in the mid 50s kept all but a few bees from enjoying the ample Salmonberry, Bleeding Heart, Yellow Violet, and Fendler’s Waterleaf flowers. There appears to be a large elevational gradient among the transects. The Trilliums were pretty much finished at the lowest transect, but still going strong at the highest. Those avalanche meadows are so verdant right now! Flowers are stacked upon flowers. It must be bee heaven in warmer weather.
Anderson Creek road is in a blooming lull. Most abundant were Bog Orchid, Piggy Back Plant, and Bunchberry. Goat’s Beard will start blooming soon. We past a few piles of bear scat, and saw evidence of them browsing on Cow Parsnip stalks.
Picture Lake still has 1-2 feet of snow in most places, but a few tree islands are just starting to melt out and the buds are swelling on the blueberries. Two weeks from now, this transect will likely have significant snow free patches.
Up at Heather Meadows, there is still several feet of snow, but there is bare ground under the large trees along transect c with Black Huckleberry and Oval-leaved Blueberry blooming. There are also some Cascade Blueberry blooming in the parking lot. I was amazed at the difference in snow depth under the canopy of trees. In the span of a few feet, you could go from bare soil to over 4 feet of snow.
