Day 258: Roughly a quarter inch across, the flowers of Lewisia triphylla (Three-Leaf Lewisia) are borne close to the ground. Its leaves are succulent (fleshy); flowers emerge on reddish stalks lacking basal leaves, and the inflorescence of a single plant may contain up to 25 blooms. In the case of these specimens found near Chinook Pass (Wenatchee National Forest), they were mostly single. I was thrown off track by the leaf and the absence of pink veins on the petals and wound up referring it out to my contact at the Burke Herbarium for identification. The photo and 10 others taken while on this particular hike will be included in Burke's database. It was a very productive trip! Four of the species we encountered only marginally outside the Park will be the objects of a search next week when we make a patrol of a different trail in the same area which lies within Park boundaries. Lewisia triphylla is one of our targets.
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