Leaves:
Despite being overheated, dehydrated, and hungry, I took a few photographs of the plants. I noticed that the plants
were in general small and the leaf blades were quite short. I sometimes ask myself what I would think if I were to see
a plant well out of its commonly accepted range. If I encountered these plants in
the eastern US I would dismiss them as being
Drosera intermedia, while in California I might think they were the hybrid
Drosera ×obovata.
I found a few infructescences and demonstrated to my satisfaction that they were plump with ripening seed, so clearly
they were not Drosera ×obovata. Still, the leaves were very short, especially compared to the
longer-leaved plants that I have encountered in California.
I realized that I needed to walk the km or so back to my stashed gear so I could hydrate and eat lunch. Despite the fact
that there was a whole, unexplored population of Drosera anglica around me,
I needed sustenance. I considered dropping
my excess gear under an obvious tree, but a moment's reflection ruled this out as a foolish idea--it would have been too
easy to misplace my belongings that way, and I didn't want to spend my precious time looking for lost luggage.
I dragged my feet back to the eastern corner of Tranquil Basin for lunch. And just ten minutes before I reached my
gear...more
Drosera anglica! In fact, an area of plants just as large as the site I had found on the far western corner
of the valley! Blast!
