NPSO 2019 Annual Meeting

July 12-14     Klamath-Siskiyou Mountains

Field Trips

Sunday July 14, 2019    9:00 - 3:00                    Field Trip # 31

Difficulty:     Easy  (<1 mile) - This will be a fairly easy trip with roadside botany and short walks from the road, off-trail and on uneven terrain.

Elevation:     No significant mileage or elevation change.

Group Size Limit:     15

Trip Description:     Explore the serpentine flora of Free and Easy Creek with botanists Richard (aka Juniper) Brock and Gretchen Vos. This will be a mix of roadside, trails, and off-trail hiking in a serpentine habitat rich with many rare plants.

Hiking consists of easy short walks near the road, with optional moderately strenuous scrambles. We will meander around botanizing Free and Easy Creek, mainly off of Forest Service roads. Free and Easy Creek is located west of Kerby in the Illinois River Watershed.

Floristic Highlights:     We hope to see Calochortus howellii, Microseris howellii, Hastingia bracteosa, Viola primulifolia ssp. occidentalis, Darlingtonia californica, Chamaecyparis lawsoniana, Gentiana setigera, Senecio hesperius and more!

Appropriate Footwear:     Sturdy footwear is advised.

Special Considerations:     Bring trekking poles if you use them.

Meeting Place and Time:     Trip # 31 leaves at 9am from Pacifica.

Driving Directions:     From Pacifica drive north on Water Gap Road to Highway 238. Drive straight onto Highway 238 toward Murphy. Turn left onto Murphy Creek Road and then immediately turn right onto Southside Road. Turn left onto Fish Hatchery Road. At Wilderville turn left onto Old Redwood Highway. Turn left onto Highway 199 and drive through Selma to Kerby. Turn right on Finch Road. Turn right on West Side Road. Turn left onto Forest Service Road 011.

Driving miles from Pacifica to trailhead:     35 miles one way from Pacifica. (Drive time about 45 minutes.)

Leaders:       Gretchen Vos & Richard Brock

Gretchen Vos is a professional botanist with Siskiyou BioSurvey, meaning she gets to hike and survey for rare plants most days in the spring and summer. Her favorites include the tiny or tricky, particularly lichens, grasses and serpentine flora. When she's not working she can be found reading, birdwatching, gardening or creating mosaics.

Siskiyou fritillary (Fritillaria glauca) grows in the area.

Siskiyou iris (Iris bracteata)

Port orford-cedar (Chamaecyparis lawsoniana)

Darlingtonia californica flower