Sure, snowy trails are beautiful in the winter, but months of barren, black-and-white scenery have us dreaming of color. This time of year is synonymous with budding flowers, but peak blooms vary throughout the country. Where should you start 鈥 and most importantly, when? We dug through the archives to find our favorite wildflower hikes plus current information on when you should expect to see the bulbs at their most chromatic. 鈥 Emma Veidt, Associate Editor
Featured Hike: Porters Creek Trail, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, TN
Now is the best time to see wildflowers in the Smokies at their peak bloom. These flowers鈥攄elicate, white trillium and fringed phacelia鈥攁re much more gentle on the eyes than the showy posies out West. That doesn鈥檛 mean they aren鈥檛 impactful. When you reach tree cover on the Porters Creek Trail, look down. From the forest floor, they make a beautiful contrast against the hunter green old-growth forest.
Featured Hike: Dog Mountain, Columbia River Gorge, WA
With over 3,000 feet of vert in less than 3.5 miles, this hike up Dog Mountain is a steep one, but luckily you鈥檒l have to take it slow to see all the blooms. You鈥檒l climb to the top of a meadow and look down over panoramic views of bright wildflowers, the Columbia River Gorge, and off in the distance, Mt. Hood. When the balsamroot peaks (which tends to be early to mid May), the hills are blanketed in golden yellow. Bonus buds that time of year include lupine, Indian paintbrush, and chocolate lily.
Featured Hike: Alpine Pond Nature Trail, Cedar Breaks National Monument, UT
This 2-mile hike between colorful corridors of columbine, desert globemallow, mariposa lilies, and more gives you the most bang for your buck this wildflower season. Plus, Cedar Breaks National Monument has such a diverse biome that you don鈥檛 only get fields of wildflowers, you also get views of the badlands, ancient volcanic deposits, and mixed spruce, fir, and aspen forests. Catch the florals at their brightest between late June and early July 鈥 or join the festivities during this year鈥檚 20th annual Cedar Breaks Wildflower Festival, dates TBD.
Featured Hike: Scenic Overlook to Davis Trail, Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve, KS
The Sunflower State lives up to its name in Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve. The preserve, an 11,000-acre oasis of never-plowed prairie, is home to poppy mallow, wild bergamot, narrow-leaf bluets, and wild sunflowers. The Scenic Overlook to Davis Trail is the best place to see it all. Plan your trip for early July through late August for peak bloom.
Featured Hike: Four Lakes Loop, Trinity Alps Wilderness, CA
If your spring and summer are already booked, you still have a chance to see high-altitude blooms come September. On the Four Lakes Loop, catch white Solomon鈥檚 seal, pink monkeyflower, and bright purple and blue fringed gentian. The loop itself is only 5.2 miles long (although tough, with 2,500 feet of gain), but you won鈥檛 want the show to stop there. You can turn the loop into an 18.4-mile-long lollipop backpacking trail by tacking on the Long Canyon Trail from the Long Canyon Trailhead.