Collecting great photographs of wildflowers, that grow here in the Wind River Canyon, is a project in and of itself.  It's hard work crawling around the mountains on your old knees, or squatting like a duck on an imposing canyon hillside, just to get a few shots of a wildflower that may die in a few hours in the heat of the day in the Rockies.  But there's always something blooming in the Wind River Canyon.  

     In this week's Wind River Canyon Blog I'll be covering five new wildflower species that haven't been on my Hogbats Photography website.  Let me say before we get started; I've got two species of wildflowers that will not make the list because I can't identify them!  Two books downloaded from the "jungle store" haven't helped to ID them, and they're both on wildflowers of the Rocky Mountains.  They can't be that rare, or can they?  Stay tuned for further information, assuming I ever figure out what they are.

Asparagus Flowers - Wind River Canyon, WyomingBlooming Asparagus Flowers in Wind River Canyon, Wyoming.      This first wildflower is something that you would not immediately think of as a flower.  It's actually a popular vegetable that you've probably never seen blooming like this before.  In all the years that we've let them flower near our cabin, only one person knew what they were!  The adult plant looks like a six foot tall Christmas tree with little flowers that hang like ornaments.  They're about three sixteenths of an inch long.  And you'd never guess in a million years that these dainty wildflowers are actually Asparagus that have been left to grow to adulthood.  Asparagus are beautiful flowering plants that you've never seen except on a plate.  Don't be surprised, as I didn't know what they were either when they began to grow and bloom years ago!

Cutleaf Daisy - Wind River CanyonCutleaf Daisy Wildflowers photographed in the Wind River Canyon, Wyoming.      Our next wildflower also blooms early in the Spring, and is a hardy plant that starts as a green mat before it throws blooms.  It prefers cooler conditions here in the Wind River Canyon; this photo was taken on the 18th of April.  This specimen is known as the Cutleaf Daisy and blooms higher up in the hills above us.  The gold and orange lichens on the boulder are just colorful additions to this picture.  The flowers are 3/4 of an inch across.

Woodland Star - Wind River CanyonWoodland Star Wildflower photographed in the Wind River Canyon, Wyoming.      The next wildflower is an early Springtime favorite of mine, but is not widespread.  They are small half-inch white flowers that bloom on reddish stems.  These magical wildflowers shoot out of the cold-morning mountainsides in mid to late April; weather dependent of course.  

     The name itself suggests a special wildflower.  These are the Woodland Star wildflowers, and are half-inch blossoms that seem to explode, announcing warmer weather in the Wind River Canyon.  They are delicate looking, but hardy plants that need to survive the cold nights here in the mountains.  The green leaves appear palm-like in an otherwise cold morning.  The Woodland Star is a beautiful but uncommon addition to the canyon.

Tufted Evening Primrose - Wind River CanyonTufted Evening Primrose Wildflower, Wind River Canyon, Wyoming.      Our fourth wildflower is one that I've really only seen once, and didn't know existed till this year in June.  This particular wildflower was the reason I downloaded the books.  Tufted Evening Primrose is it's name, and it's the largest of today's wildflowers at four inches across.  These large beautiful wild blossoms are very delicate, and wither in the noonday sun.  They start to bloom in....the evening, hence the name, but the Wyoming heat makes them disappear. 

Prairie Flax Wildflowers - Wind River CanyonPrairie Flax Wildflowers photographed in the Wind River Canyon, Wyoming.      Our fifth and last wildflower of this blog is the ever popular Prairie Flax.  It's also known as Blue Flax or Lewis' Flax.  As you may have noticed I've left out the Latin names for today's wildflowers, because it's all Greek to me.

     The delicate way the thin blue petals are nearly transparent makes them take on an ethereal quality, yet these flowers are not rare in Wyoming; you can easily find them for yourself if you get up and go for a hike. 

     The Prairie Flax was named after Meriwether Lewis (Linum lewisii) and that itself is the only reason to remember it's scientific name.  If you don't know the tragic life of Meriwether, of Lewis and Clark fame, then please Google him.  He had an amazing life worth reading about.

     I've always felt that there's no reason to describe what a wildflower looks like when you can see it for yourself in a good photograph.  The two books on wildflowers I use for reference are at times useless; the photos being of poor quality.  Certain encyclopedic sites are also of value when trying to put a name to a wildflower you've seen, and hopefully didn't pick----because all of my wildflower photographs are taken out in the field.  I don't damage the specimens at all, because nature should be left to the wild.

*Wind River Canyon Blog and all photography by Michael John Balog, Hogbats Photography, Wind River Canyon, Wyoming.

"Keep your camera ready!"