Mt. Wells Park, in Victoria's Western Communities, is one of my favourite spring hikes. It has all of the colourful and delicate native plants that I am coming to know and love. And, it is home to the very best display of Satinflowers in all of Vancouver Island. This flower ( Olsynium douglasii ) is only found on southern Vancouver Island and in a few spots in BC's southern interiour. Its delicate magenta petals look like they have been cut out of a satin ball gown. In the sunlight this flower nods and swings, splashing colour and light all around. It is one of our most beautiful harbingers of spring, and when I see it, I know warm days are coming.
These flowers are almost always a magenta purple, but every now and again we see a very rare white Satinflower, or a variegated one. A few years ago Mike and I were bushwacking through some back routes on Mt. Wells when we stumbled upon a patch that had all three types of plants -- magenta, white, and both together. I'm pleased to report that three years on the plants are still there and doing better than ever.
Mt. Wells was established as a park in 1994, but it was only in the past few years that a new path has been put up its north slope. Unfortunately, this path has suffered terribly from overuse. The erosion is quite wide on the steep bits. This year Victoria's Capital Regional District installed an ugly chain fence up through the area. Not very pretty, and far, far, far from "natural", but necessary to keep people off the delicate habitat to either side.
There are other routes up Mt. Wells, but they can be difficult to find, and some go over private property (or at least I assume it is private -- it doesn't belong to the park). However, once found they are well marked and you can't go wrong.
Mt. Wells is an example of a roche moutonee -- a rocky hill shaped by glaciers to give a smooth up-ice side and a rough, bouldery surface on the down-ice side. The up-ice side is where the main trail is located.
Mt. Wells is famous for its native plants, but its bird life is just as fascinating and lovely. Sooty Grouse, Golden Eagles, Ruffed Grouse, Pygmy Owls, and lots of other birds can be found here. Just this past week (April 8, 2009) I rode out from town with Alan and Rick. We heard and saw Sooty Grouse and Townsend's Warblers. Both are magnificent birds and NOT easy to get good looks at. As well, three weeks ago Alan and Jan were hiking on the south side of Wells when they looked up and noticed a Saw-whet owl just a few metres away at eye level.
My worry for Mt. Wells is that it will be "developed" (what a stupid word to use for the process of habitat destruction in service of yet more suburban sprawl) right up to the park boundaries and the delicate balance that allows unique plants like white Satinflowers to flourish will be completely over turned. As I was saying to a friend last week "we humans have a lot to answer for"!
Magenta and White Satin Flowers on Mt. Wells.
Info and map of Mt. Wells Park .
More flower pictures from Mt. Wells.
Photos of Sooty Grouse on Mt. Wells
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