We hiked one of my favorite wildflower trails today, the Stevens Trail. It's an old wagon road that crosses the canyon of the North fork of the American River, going from Colfax to Iowa Hill, California. It's about 1,200 feet down from Colfax to the river, a distance of 4-1/2 miles. I've never made it to the river. Last August, the Stevens Trail Fire devastated the area, and I was wondering how the trail had changed. It changed a lot, but it's still spectacular. Many trees are gone forever, but the wildflower display was spectacular. One thing that surprised me was that many varieties were much larger than I usually see. Perhaps the fire left nutrients that made the plants grow unusually big. Whatever the case, it was spectacular.

The flower varieties were too many to count - lots of poppies, lupine, and brodaeia (blue dicks). Some Indian paintbrush, and California pinks (which are red), a succulent called Canyon Dudleya, Globe lilies (Chinese lanterns), Iris, Baby Blue Eyes, Balled Gilea, tiny carnations, Sticky Monkey Flower, a magenta flower that may be another Monkeyflower, and one we call Popcorn.

We could see kayaks in the river far below us, and freight trains rounding Cape Horn above. Cape Horn was one of the most treacherous spots for the Chinese laborers who built the Transcontinental Railroad.

The trail was steep going back, and I thought I was going to die. Guess I'd better get back in shape.

-Joe Offer-