The plant is endemic to eastern California, where it grows in the Sierra Nevada, and in the Owens Valley and Glass Mountain areas to the east in the Great Basin region.

Its habitat is generally open woodland and forest areas, at elevations from 1,700–2,500 metres (5,600–8,200 ft).

It produces a hairy stem 10–20 centimetres (3.9–7.9 in) tall.

It is lined with leaves, each divided into five linear lobes.

The inflorescence is a cluster of funnel-shaped white flowers with yellow throats and pale yellow tubular bases over 1 centimetre (0.39 in) long.