I spent this weekend with my son, Eric, and daughter-in-law, Suan, and their three dogs: Ski, a rat terrier; Zoe, a min-pin; and Cassie, a min-pin foster with a broken leg. On Friday all six of us hiked four miles on the Independence Trail, off Highway 49 near Nevada City. This route is flat since it follows the Excelsior Canal and Flume System built back in gold mining days (1856) to carry water 25 miles downstream from the South Fork of the Yuba River. The dogs led the way at a fast clip, especially Cassie, in her flaming pink cast. I don't believe she realizes she has a broken leg. Bright yellow woolly sunflowers lighted our way and the big red blossoms of spice bush stood out in the dappled woods. We saw the white flowers of mountain misery all along the trail and a variety of foothills wildflowers—my favorites: clarkias, wild honeysuckle, and yarrow. The route was mostly in forest, with occasional sunny openings. We met only one other hiker, when we were practically back at the car. The next day Eric, Ski, and I decided to try the Lock Leven Lakes Trail, off I-80. This trail, starting at about 5,000 feet, is steep and rocky. After we crossed the railroad tracks, we encountered a lot of snow and decided to turn back—it was just too slippery. On this short hike I found a treasure: plain-leaf fawn lily was in bloom in the woods—I had never seen it before. Another prize was Phlox diffusa. I usually hike in the Sierra in late July, so I miss the early flowering of this sweet little plant. But today it was in full bloom, from white to lavender. It was lovely. Pinemat manzanita was climbing up over the rocks, inviting many photo ops. We took a short walk down to the Yuba River and found pussypaws on the granite and a tiny saxifrage in the wet places. It was still early in the day, so we hopped over to the Eagle Lakes Trail, promising to go only as far as we had energy and before we knew it we were at the top. The way was covered with a lot of water that forced detours. I found more of that tiny saxifrage as well as Prunus emarginata, mule ears, two kinds of yellow violet, Penstemon newberryi, and two species of Eriogonum, ovalifolium and umbellatum. By the sixth mile, Ski was running out of juice, so Eric gave her a ride back to the car. We put in a total of eight miles for the day.