Spring at Healdsburg Ridge

Spring 2017 Update: Dogs on leash now allowed on trails. Beware ticks and poison oak.

Not too late for spring flowers this year. (See June 2013 post below. Other posts: Dream  April 2013, Heights April 2010.

The meadow up on Serpentine Trail is so amazing, I just have to try my best to climb the hill to see all the wildflowers. Through the woods uphill were soap plants, vetch, buttercups and rattlesnake grass.

We didn’t climb this hill near Fox Pond, but the volume of purple vetch was incredible.

Now to the meadow flowers, I’ll let them speak for themselves. Goldfields, larkspur, hairy cat’s ear, blue dicks, filagree, sanicle, owls clover, rose clover, cowbag, checker mallow, lupines, and cream cups to name a few.

Don’t forget that climbing a hill will also reward you with views. This one is of the Russian River and the mountains to the east.

Don’t forget to check the nearby neighborhood – here with a lilac bush with butterfly.

Hurry before spring is over.

See you on the trail!

Words by Lynn, pictures by Lynn and Mike, available upon request.

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Too Late for Spring – post from late May 2013

By the name of it, you know that Healdsburg Ridge is not a flat place. But the appeal can be strong for vista, the wildflowers and the scenes of walking and fishing. (In the shadows, some little boys are fishing in Fox Pond.)

Because it was May, I knew most wildflowers were probably gone. In the shade all the way to the ridge, many ithurial’s spears peeked out.

New trail work, maps and signage don’t quite match up at Healdsburg Ridge, but you can’t get too lost. You just might have to go up and down and up again.

The meadow along Serpentine Trail is where the best show of flowers lives.

In May, the wildflowers have very specific spots where they can survive. Yarrow are happy in one spot and Mariposa Lilies in another.

Then there’s the view and the subtle colors of the grasses.

In some places the color comes from bark, new leaves or berries.

If you don’t want to climb at all, just stop at Fox Pond and watch the pond lilies.

I realize this isn’t exactly a trail guide, but we have visited before – once when the trails went straight up the Heights of Healdsburg and once more recently on much improved trails Dreams do come True.

Click for a link to the Open Space District page on Healdsburg Ridge.

Directions: North of Healdsburg. Turn off of Healdsburg Ave onto Parkland Farms Boulevard. In ¾ mile turn right on Bridal Path. There are some marked parking spaces. The trailhead is at the east end of Arabian Way.

Dogs: The paths are open to dogs on leash. Warning to you and your dog – poison oak is everywhere.

Wheelchair – steep and not always accessible. Access to paved road is not so friendly.

See you on the trail!

Words by Lynn Millar

Photos by Mike Millar

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