Welcome to Central Washington Wildflowers. I'm Bruce Perrault and live West of Yakima, Washington. I enjoy hiking and photography and I try to combine these hobbies when I can. I have my favorite places to wander and make pictures and really enjoy native wildflowers. With these, timing is everything, here today, gone tomorrow. Many of the wildflowers are in bloom less then a week and the Spring winds and frost can be hard on them. I grew up near the Rattlesnake Hills in the Yakima Valley and my wanderings also took me into the high mountains, mostly in the Goat Rocks, William O Douglas and Norse Peak wilderness areas of Central Washington. In 1972 we moved to our present location near Cowiche, which has many hiking opportunities close by. 
Places I enjoy are the Cowiche Canyon and Snow Mountain Ranch near Yakima and the shrub-steppe areas East of Ellensburg for Spring wildflowers. Also the mountain areas around Cash Prairie / Bethel Ridge and Meeks Table Natural Area, as we progress into early Summer. The wilderness areas already mentioned above during the Summer months. The image of me is from Table Mountain (6359') North of Ellensburg, with Mt Stuart (9415') sticking up near the center. The second image is a Grass Widow, taken in late March on the Snow Mountain Ranch land. The date and place taken are embedded in each picture. I have included the common and scientific names of each plant, along with a short comment and many times, identification hints by me. The images in the gallery are 640 x 480 pixels for the horizontals and 480 x 640 pixels for the verticals. Below is a site search box to help you locate the many plants that our imaged in this gallery. You may enter a common plant name like Balsamroot or Aspen, also you can enter its scientific name. If you enter more then one word, enclose it in quotes, like "Ponderosa Pine" or "Pinus ponderosa". For those wanting to know the camera details. Prior to 2006, I used a Fuji S602Z (3mp) and from 2006 through 2008, a Pentax *ist DL (6mp). Starting in 2009, a Nikon D80 (10mp) with a Sigma 50mm macro lens is being used. Currently, there are 10 different sub-galleries in which I add or exchange images frequently as I continue my wanderings. Click the blue "Gallery" button below to visit the galleries directory page. Once there, the black arrow on the upper left brings you back here or you may choose a gallery to view. Click on a thumbnail to view the image. You can also run the slide show automatically or manually using the arrow keys or mouse. Clicking the upper left button when viewing slides brings you back to that galleries index page. You may also hit the F11 key to view with your browser in full screen. I have written some tutorials linked below, on methods I use to photograph wildflowers. I hope you enjoy my various galleries and images - Bruce Perrault |
