I hadn't been out Red Rock Road since the season opened at RedRock RV Park. West of here is the Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge, Red Rock Pass (at the Continental Divide which marks the Idaho and Montana border) and lots of isolated ranchlands in Montana. Red Rock road goes through the Centennial Valley. The Centennial Mountains (both east and west) are on the south. It's a nice drive and all only about 10 miles from here.


I had decided not to go all the way to the Refuge today (Which is only about 12 miles), but to look for wildlife up to the entrance to the Refuge. Wildlife includes finding out what wildflowers are blooming out here. Yesterday brought about .2 inches of rain here and probably more west of here so the road was muddy, but not impassible. It was a clear day but with lots of cumulus clouds.

Reggie jumped into the Jeep and we were off about 9 AM on Memorial Day. We weren't without thoughts about what today was about. (See Reggie's blog about Memorial day here.) I drove slowly, looking for flowers, fence birds, and raptors, not to mention Moose in the willow areas.

The rain had made everything fresh looking, and I suspect dumped a bit more snow on the higher mountains, though it was hard to see the tops due to the clouds hovering about them. It was a beautiful morning all-in-all.

Our first stop was over the Continental Divide at the Hell Roaring Creek, down in the Centennial Valley. This creek has a bit of fame from the fact that it is verified as reaching the furthest from the Gulf of Mexico and being the "source of the Missouri River" at about 3720 miles to the Gulf from the start of it near Mount Jefferson. Remember, Lewis and Clark were looking for it (they missed it by about 100 miles.) The creek was running high from the recent snow melt. I looked around for wildflowers and all I could find were ones we found before near the RV Park: Glacier Lily, Wyoming Kittentails, and the Sagebrush Buttercup. It was peaceful here, with the sound of the rushing water and the mountains towering so nearby.

Many of the ranchers here have cooperated with the Nature Conservancy to preserve this land as it is (forgoing future development). To date, roughly 45,000 acres out of 100,000 in private ownership throughout the valley has been protected through easements.

Sitting on a fence next to the Hell Roaring Creek was a beautiful Tree Swallow. Many Mountain Bluebirds were evident as well.

A little ground squirrel ran across the road and peered up from a place of relative safety at us. Reggie, of course, was delighted to see him and got quite excited from the car. These guys aren't extremely popular due to their habit of digging holes that people and cattle step in, carrying fleas that transmit disease and munch on crops, but they've been here a lot longer than either humans or cattle. They play a big part in keeping the topsoil mixed and viable and are part of the larger food chain.

Down the road a bit is a ranch that specializes in raising Scottish Highlander Cattle. These cattle have wavy shaggy hair and big horns, both male and female. They are very hardy, having been breed in the rugged highlands of Scotland and spend the winters in this valley, which can get down to -40F or colder. They were the first registered breed of cattle and are used to strengthen stocks of normal breeds.


Reggie and I finally stopped and explored for a while at a favorite spot of mine on Red Rock Road. It is right next to Red Rock Creek and has a great view of the Western Centennial Mountains. We looked around for new wildflowers (at least I did.) The only real different one I found was the False Dandelion, or the Mountain Dandelion (Agoseris glauca.) It's actually not closely related to the Common Dandelion, which it resembles and which is considered a weed. It's bigger than a dandelion and lacks the central disc of flowers. It's also rather attractive. There were a few specimens across from Red Rock Creek, in the cattle pasture.

Next was the low growing Leafy Bluebells. They seem to be slightly more blue than the ones near the RV Park, but very beautiful. They grew in full afternoon sunlight on a hillside next to the pasture. There were quite a few there. Alongside the bluebells were several specimens of the Shooting Star but most of them were puny compared to others I had found. Maybe the extra cold and exposed nature of this spot contributed to their size.

While lying down on the ground to photograph the bluebells, I noticed this spider next to me. It was almost totally camouflaged against the ground.

We turned around here and head back to the RV Park. We first stopped at the Continental Divide to look for flowers. Here, I found the lanceleaf Spring Beauty (Clyatonia lanceolata) in full bloom on the hill above the road (north). It's a tiny flower and easily overlooked, but lives up to it's name in the details. Some years, many of it's flower appear pink instead of white.

Two deer appeared above us, but Reggie's presence scared them off. Reggie was interested but I warned him off and he was good. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to photograph them this time.

The Spring Beauty was interspersed with the Glacier Lily which was pervasive in this area. Also present were nice specimens of the Shooting Star and the Goosefoot Violet.


The Nemesis Mountain loomed above us across Red Rock Road from this hill. It was covered with snow and presented itself with much majesty and beauty. A great setting for looking for wildflowers. Won't you consider coming to visit us at RedRock RV park. The wildflowers are yet to peak and when they do, they are spectacular. Thanks for listening (again).