Plants 10-50 cm. Stems erect to ascending or divergent, much branched, sparsely hairy (hairs low, conic), resinous. Leaves ascending to spreading, distally recurved; blades narrowly obovate (sometimes conduplicate), 6-12 × 2-4 mm, midnerves raised adaxially, (margins often undulate) apices acute, mucronate to cuspidate, faces gland-dotted to resinous; sometimes with axillary fascicles of 1-7 leaves. Heads usually borne singly, sometimes in cymiform to racemiform arrays (4-6 cm wide). Peduncles 1-15 mm (bracts 0 or 1-4, scalelike). Involucres narrowly campanulate, 8-12 × 4-6 mm. Phyllaries 22-28 in 4-6 series, green to tan, squarrose or reflexed (outer), ovate to oblong, 2.5-7 × 0.6-1.5 mm, unequal, outer herbaceous or herbaceous-cuspidate, innermost chartaceous (bodies usually apically obtuse to retuse proximal to appendages), midnerves and subapical resin ducts darker, apices acute to acuminate, abaxial faces glabrous, resinous. Ray florets 4-7; laminae (white) 4-5.5 × 1-2 mm. Disc florets 10-18; corollas (white) 5.5-7 mm. Cypselae tan to brown, narrowly turbinate, 3.5-4 mm (5-ribbed), densely pilose, sericeous to villous; pappi whitish, 5-6.5 mm. 2n = 18.

Flowering late summer-fall. Crevices on rocky cliff faces, often on limestone; of conservation concern; 2100-3400 m; Calif.

Ericameria gilmanii is known only from Inyo County.