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The County C Hill (April 10, 2004)

I have been going to this hill regularly in the spring since I moved to Wautoma twenty years ago. There are many different signs of spring, but my spring would not be complete without making the trek to the C-Hill to see the Pasque flowers and hopefully see my first Olympia Marble of the year. There may be other sites in Waushara County that have Pasque flowers, but I have not seen them anywhere in Waushara or surrounding counties except here. The flowers first start coming out of the ground near the end of March, and depending on the weather they will flower anywhere from the first week of April until the third week of April. The peak flowering period lasts only a short time, and despite the white flowers that tend to blend in with the dead, dry grasses from the previous year’s growth, they are certainly worth seeing.

If you are traveling west down County C from Highway 73, just west of Wautoma, the hill is on the right about 2 miles and just past County T. There are actually two hills, the tallest is the first hill that you see, and this has had some Pasque flowers, but not as many as on the smaller hill. From this large hill there are spectacular views of the county.

On the larger hill I usually see my first Olympia Marble of the year. This species doesn’t ever seem to stay still long enough to get a good look at it, let alone try to get a good photo. Over the years, I have followed this species around the hill many times without having any luck in photographing this butterfly. Last year I got this photo of a mating pair.

The smaller hill is fairly open with a few small shrubs, and completely surrounded by trees. The tree line between the hill and the road is certainly its protection. I would guess that few people that drive by on County C know or care that the Pasque flowers are there. However, my spring is not complete without a trek to the C-hill to view the Pasque flowers and get down on my knees and take in this first smell of spring.