We took the one-mile hike off the Pacific Crest Trail to Hidden Lake, south of Carter Summit, to find the tiniest of flowering plants carpeting the exposed, sunny talus on the way there. Teeny dots of white, pink, blue, yellow, fuchsia--an entire garden of miniature marvels. (Click on any photo to see larger.)
The delightful and undaunted monkeyflower:
A Calochortus lily, C. elegans, no bigger than your thumbnail, hiding in the huckleberry oak:
Ball-headed sandwort:
We don't know what this one is. Do you?
The well-named pink pussy paws:
Rock and heat-loving sedum:
Little Maiden Mary Blue Eyes:
And one big one: Purple milkweed (which, technically, is a cluster of tiny flowers).
On the way to this eponymous hidden treasure, a cool respite from the heat of the trail:
