THREE BROTHERS
Contributed by Alan Tracey
FACTS
Country: Canada
Location: BC, E. C.Manning Provincial Park
Round trip: 21km
Start elevation: 1,950m
Final Elevation: 2,273m
Maps: (1:50,000): 92H/02
GETTING THERE
The well-marked trail starts from near a microwave tower where there is ample parking (upper and lower lots). The road to the microwave tower exits north from Highway 3, across from the Manning Park lodge and restaurant complex. The paved road climbs steeply to a viewpoint and from there continues for about 5 km as a well-maintained gravel road to the tower area where it terminates.
Two of the more popular hiking trails in Manning Park in south-western British Columbia are the Mt. Frosty Trail and the Heather Trail to Three Brothers Mountain. The trail to Three Brothers starts at about 1950 m near a microwave tower then drops a little in elevation as it leads to the Buckhorn camping area (about one-third of the way in). In this part of the trail, it leads through a forested area with small meadows and also some boggy areas that are traversed via board walks. Two plants to be observed here, but perhaps not further along the trail, are the bog orchids, Plantanthera hyperborea and P. dilatata. The sparkling white flowers in tall stalks makes for easy recognition of P. dilitata while P. hyperborea hides itself in plain site because of its green-coloured flowers. The trail slowly climbs from the Buckhorn campsite until it breaks into the alpine meadows where it is more or less level until the final ascent.
In these meadows is found another common orchid, Spiranthes romanzoffiana, named after the spiral arrangement of its white flowers on the flower spike. Numerous other plants including phlox, shooting stars, louseworts, lupins, Indian paint-brush, anemones, delphiniums and others are common in the meadow area and make a stunning display in June, July and August. Along the creek beds also will be found white-flowered Caltha leptosepala and Trolius laxus. The final ascent to the summit (2273 m) of Three Brothers Mountain traverses a very different, gravelly, much drier habitat. Predominant plants in this area include such wonderful plants as Phacelia sericea, Silene acaulis, Lupinus lepidus var. lobbii (L. lyallii), and the erigerons, Erigeron aureus and E. compositus. Other composite flowering plants, along with penstemons, polemoniums and phloxes are commonly encountered here.
Alpine & Subalpine Plants
PARTIAL SPECIES LIST ON & AROUND THREE BROTHERS
Anemone drummondii
Anemone occidentale
Caltha leptosepala
Cassiope mertensiana
Castilleja species
Dodecatheon sp.
Dryas octopetala
Erigeron aureus
Erigeron compositus
Eriogonum species
Erythronium grandiflorum
Kalmia microphylla
Ledum glandulosum var. glandulosum
Lupinus arctica
Lupinus lepidus var.lobbii
Pedicularis species
Penstemon davidsonii
Penstemon procerus
Phacelia sericea
Phlox diffusa
Phyllodoce glanduliflora
Phyllodoce empetriformis
Rhododendron albiflorum
​Platanthera dilatata
Polemonium pulcherrimum
Potentilla species
Saxifraga bronchialis
Salix species
Silene acaulis
Spiranthes romanzoffiana
Trollius laxus
Veratrum viride
Veronica cusickii
Viola palustris
Viola sempervirens
THREE BROTHERS GALLERY.
The photos were taken on July 11, 2009.
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