Note: From Sevenmile Road, this route climbs along a narrow strip of USFS lands to the ridgeline of Sevenmile Hill. Know your route before going to avoid trespassing on neighboring private lands. Pull completely off Sevenmile Road as vehicles travel fairly fast down this road. For those that hike an old dirt road uphill to access Sevenmile Hill, be aware that the road passes into county lands below a small quarry, and this is now posted as "No Trespassing". Supposedly, law enforcement (and locals?) use the quarry for target shooting, and there was one incident last year where an off-duty officer kicked would-be hikers out of the area. Proceed with caution here, and carry a map and know where you are going to avoid private property!
Watch for rattlesnakes along the rockier routes up the hill from spring through fall.
Weather: Hazy sunshine with some clouds passing overhead. Temperatures to the mid-50s. Winds 10-20 mph from the WNW, strong enough to require an extra layer of clothing during lunch or during an easy ramble along the summit ridge.
Click here for a more comprehensive Sevenmile Hill plant list for the entire season.
Haircap Juniper Moss: Polytrichum juniperinum
Lace Lipfern: Myriopteris gracillima
Fragile Fern: Cystopteris fragilis
* Arroyo Willow: Salix lasiolepis ? - Catkin buds beginning to break before the leaves appear.
Bluebunch Wheatgrass: Pseudoroegneria spicata
Medusahead: Taenitherum caput-medusae - Last year's heads.
Bigleaf Maple: Acer macrophyllum
Oregon White Oak: Quercus garryana var. garryana
Ponderosa Pine: Pinus ponderosa var. ponderosa - Only at the ridgetop.
Douglas Fir: Pseudotsuga menziesii (var. menziesii) - Only at the ridgetop.
Sagebrush Mariposa: Calochortus macrocarpus var. macrocarpus - Basal leaves.
Ball-headed Cluster Lily: Dichelostemma congestum - Leaves emerging from the ground.
Yellow Bells: Fritillaria pudica - One plant with a flower bud.
Bicolored Cluster Lily: Triteleia grandiflora var. howellii - Numerous basal leaves.
Hyacinth Cluster Lily: Triteleia hyacinthina - Basal leaves.
* Grass Widows: Olsynium douglasii var. douglasii - Decent bloom in places.
Heartleaf Buckwheat: Eriogonum compositum var. compositum
Tall Buckwheat: Eriogonum elatum
Miner's Lettuce: Claytonia perfoliata ssp. perfoliata
Red Miner's Lettuce: Claytonia rubra ssp. depressa
Chickweed: Stellaria media
Upland Larkspur: Delphinium nuttallianum
Western Buttercup: Ranunculus occidentalis var. occidentalis
* Spring Whitlow-grass: Draba verna
Scale Pod: Idahoa scapigera - Lots of leaves.
* Smooth Prairie Star: Lithophragma glabrum - Beginning to bloom. This is the non-bulbil-forming variety.
Fleshy-leaved Saxifrage: Micranthes fragosa
Hood River Milk-vetch: Astragalus hoodianus - Leaves emerging from the ground.
Columbia Gorge Broad-leaf Lupine: Lupinus latifolius var. latifolius (formerly var. thompsonianus) - Leaves emerging from the ground.
Big-head Clover: Trifolium macrocephalum - Leaves emerging from the ground.
Filaree: Erodium cicutarium
Poison Oak: Toxicodendron diversilobum
Burr Chervil: Anthriscus caucalis
* Columbia Desert Parsley: Lomatium columbianum - Beginning to bloom on the lowest slopes.
* Largeseed Biscuitroot: Lomatium macrocarpum (yellow-flowered form) - Beginning to bloom on the lowest slopes.
Bare-stem Desert Parsley: Lomatium nudicaule - Leaves emerging from the ground.
* Gorman's Salt and Pepper: Lomatium gormanii - Plants without a stem leaf. Blooming at all elevations but most numerous high on the ridge.
Nine Leaf Desert Parsley: Lomatium tridentatum var. triternatum - Leaves emerging from the ground.
Silverleaf Phacelia: Phacelia hastata var. hastata
Fiddleneck: Amsinckia retrorsa - Leaves emerging from the ground.
Yarrow: Achillea millefolium - Leaves emerging from the ground.
Carey's Balsamroot: Balsamhoriza careyana (or a hybrid with B. deltoidea ?) - A number of planst with inflorescence buds on lower slopes.
Bachelor's Buttons: Centaurea cyanus - Leaves emerging from the ground.
Smooth Hawksbeard: Crepis capillaris - Leaves emerging from the ground.
Salsify: Tragopogon dubius - Leaves emerging from the ground.
Elk - Tracks
Mule Deer - Tracks
Coyote
Bald Eagle surfing the ridgetop.
Red-tailed Hawk
Gray Partridge
Common Ravens
Horned Larks
Western Meadowlarks