We took the east most trail both up and down, the easiest. The girls are much slower than me, both up and down. Not sure why, since they are in their 20s, one has just completed Mazamas' BCEP this spring, the other goes to gym 4 times a week. At least they are happy and easy going. We hit the first meadow about an hour in. Balsamroot in/past full bloom. Handed out my sunscreen. Here, you can see the yellow slope up ahead. Before getting here, we saw a couple of patches of blue dick, many hawkweed and some lupine. Encountered an elderly couple hiking out without getting to any meadow (what's the point of coming here, I wonder). Then the trail goes in the trees again, but less steep. Lots of tall White Western Groundsel (Senecio integerrimus var. ochroleucus) -- took me a while to id this. Need long sleeves and long pants in the woods. Lots of poison oaks (low elevation) and then biting little flies.
7:30 we were at the meadow. Wind chased flies away. I put on my fleece. Sunset is at 8:40 today. By 8pm, evening sun was casting a glowing light on the yellow carpet of flowers. It's impossible not be dazzled by this beauty, no many how many time I'm here. Balsamroot mostly, and small thin leaved lomatium (maybe nine-leave) in mid-elevation and buttercup and pink phlox on the top. Not a lot of paintbrush. Lupine was still coming. Most of the blue was larkspur. Quite some chocolate lily. 
No Hood today. Clouds were thick, just not where we were. Had dinner sitting on the top watching the sun dropping behind the clouds around 8:30. Put on another layer of clothes.We started decent ~8:45. Turned on headlamp once in the trees. ~11:30pm, we were back to Portland.
