Mineral Point Trail Wildflowers

I can’t believe the profusion of wildflowers we stumbled upon!

Looking for a relatively close, new hike for this spring afternoon, I decided on the Mineral Point Trail. It’s a four-mile out-and-back along Lake Pend Oreille through forested habitat. The trail courses up and down through inland temperate rainforest, pine forests, and mixed forests along the bluffs high above the lake.

Recent All Trails reviews of the Mineral Point Trail overwhelmingly mention the wildflowers and mosquitoes, and recommend bug spray. There was a nice breeze initially, enough to deter flying insects. As the trail took us through hot sunshine and cool shade, we found some mosquitoes. They weren’t bad, and I never broke out the bug spray. However, I’m comparing this to a Wisconsin summer where I have to make a mad dash from the car to the cabin and still end up with a few welts!

The variety and number of wildflowers on this spring hike were an unexpected delight. Each turn and elevation change in the trail altered the microclimate enough that new species flourished. Small patches of western ginger blooms hug the ground beneath towering red cedar trees. The sunny, open hillsides are carpeted in joyful yellow balsamroot flowers.

Heartleaf arnica flower petals twirl artfully in part-shade.

Southern-facing rocky cliffs provide the perfect home for bush penstemon. All along the wooded trail, bead lilies are budding.

Diminutive hooked spur violets dot the grassy areas. Saskatoon service berry bushes burst with a confetti of white blossoms along the edges of the understory. The variety of flowers is more than I could’ve imagined.

One small section has the rare combination of soil, light, and wind to host a dense cluster of delicate fairy-slipper orchids. Another small localized spot has a cluster of dramatic shooting stars.

The fireworks of aptly-named paintbrush keep stopping me in my tracks. The tips of their leaves appear as if dipped in paint, outshining the tiny, ordinary flower.

Delicate fairybells hang under their broad, flat leaves in shadier sections. Yellow swamp violets, craving moisture, cluster in one damp, shady spot in the rainforest. Western meadow rue flowers appear as a showerhead of stamens. Their seedheads, once the flowers fade, are equally remarkable.

All this art of nature is accentuated by periodic viewpoints across Lake Pend Oreille to snow-capped mountains. Views that make me feel like I’ve stepped into a postcard. It was a perfect spring afternoon hike. I’m still marveling at the beauty of wildflowers on the Mineral Point Trail: all flowers and few mosquitoes.

If you’re interested in purchasing or licensing any images you see here, please email me at SNewenham at exploringnaturephotos.com, and I’ll make it happen.

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