Fireweed
Epilobium angustifolium
Description: Pink flowers about 1 inch wide with four petals clustered near the top of a stem 1 to 7 feet tall with lance-shaped leaves 2 to 6 inches long. Grows in rich soil in moist or disturbed areas of woods, prairies and hills. Blooms June to August. (“Peterson Field Guides: Rocky Mountain Wildflowers,” by John J. Craighead, Frank C. Craighead Jr. and Ray J. Davis)
Recently seen: Pattee Canyon National Recreation Area east of Missoula, Red Eagle Lake trail in Glacier National Park.
The walk: Glacier’s Red Eagle Lake trail begins at the 1913 Ranger Station, about three-quarters of a mile from the St. Mary Visitor Center. Drive one-quarter mile southeast of the St. Mary entrance station on Going-to-the-Sun Road, turn south on an access road and then southwest at the next intersection. The trail travels southwest along an old road, then climbs to a grassy, wildflower-filled plateau and descends to Red Eagle Creek. Near the creek, hikers enter forest burned by the 2006 Red Eagle fire. After crossing the creek on a suspension bridge, it’s about another mile through the burn area to the junction with the St. Mary Lake trail at about five miles. After crossing a second suspension bridge near the junction, the trail continues 2 1/2 miles southwest through old silver trunks to the mountain-ringed Red Eagle Lake. Look for fireweed throughout the old burn area.
See more picture from the trail to Red Eagle Lake here. (They are in reverse order because we hiked the trail back to St. Mary as part of a backpacking trip.)
