RHH's photos with the keyword: catherine creek

These are photos of a few of the wildflowers we found at Catherine Creek Natural Area. The area is along the Columbia River and we visited there before following the Columbia further west and crossing into Oregon.

These were photographed in the Catherine Creek Natural Area in Washington near the Columbia River. They grow, as is often the case, in large masses there.

These were photographed in the Catherine Creek Natural Area in Washington near the Columbia River.

Traveling through eastern Washington, western Oregon and northern California we spent part of day at Catherine Creek Natural Area long the Columbia River. Usually we go there earlier when the wildflowers are in full bloom, but the area was beautiful even though there were very few wildflowers. The area is on the bluffs above the river (the highway is down below) and the creek for which the area is named flows into the Columbia. As one of the photos shows, Mount Hood is visible across the river and so is Highway 84 in Oregon.

This photo was taken in the Catherine Creek Natural Area along the Columbia River in Washington and has Mount Hood in the background on the Oregon side of the river. We visited there for part of a day while traveling through Washington, Oregon and California.

Catherine Creek is part of natural area along the Columbia River in Washington near the town of Lyle. We visited there while traveling through Washington, Oregon and California and though the wildflowers were nearly finished enjoyed the beautiful scenery.

Catherine Creek is part of a natural area along the Columbia River in Washington. This is where the creek drops over small cliff on its way to the Columbia River.

After traveling through Yakima and the Yakima Valley and spending some time at Brooks Memorial State Park we followed Highway 14 along the Columbia River to Catherine Creek where we did some hiking. Driving up to Catherine Creek we saw a Great Blue Heron at Rowland Lake. Several hours later when we left he was still there and displaying.

This Great Blue Heron displaying was seen at Rowland Lake along the Columbia River. We had been hiking in the Catherine Creek Natural Area and were on our way to Dog Mountain.

We were on our way to Catherine Creek Natural area to do some hiking and were passing Rowland Lake when this photo was taken. We would see him again as we drove away but then he would be displaying.

A California Poppy photographed at Catherine Creek Natural Area near the Columbia River.

These, if I am not mistaken, are the Few-flowered Shooting Stars, Dodecatheon pulchellum, photographed at Catherine Creek in the Columbia River Gorge.

This is one of our most common wildflowers. In the spring the hills of eastern Washington are covered with these large daisy-like flowers, often mixed with the blue of Lupines. These were photographed at Catherine Creek in the Columbia River gorge.

These are Common Camas, Camassia quamash, growing in a meadow at Catherine Creek in the Columbia River gorge. We were there two weeks ago and agreed that we had never seen such a display or so many of them. Camas bulbs were an important food source for the native Americans and it may be they dug them here at Catherine Creek. Interestingly we found among them the Meadow Death Camas (Toxicoscordion venenosum) which has very different flowers but similar-looking bulbs, and which is very poisonous and can cause death if mistaken for the edible Common Camas. There is a photo of the flowers of the Death Camas in the inset.

Photographed in the area of Catherine Creek in the Columbia River gorge.

I believe this is the Broadleaf Stonecrop, Sedum spathulifolum. It was photographed near the Columbia River at the Catherine Creek Natural Area, a wonderful place for spring wildflowers.

This is a spring wildflower, Brodiaea coronaria, the Harvest Brodiaea, photographed in the Columbia River gorge at Catherine Creek.

This is another older shot, taken at Catherine Creek near the Columbia River gorge on a beautiful spring morning. It's a flower of a California Poppy almost ready to open.