Poppies and Windmills

I ventured to the Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve last week.  It was just a bit early, but there were a lot of poppies...as opposed to a profusion.  This pic shows hillsides of poppies (orange) and desert sunflowers (yellow) with the windmills of Tehachapi Pass in the distance.

A hillside of poppies.

More poppies!  It was a windy day but the flowers were resolute.

Fiddlenecks.

Thick poppy field rolling down the hill.

Poppies going uphill!

A sea of windmills.

Back in JTNP.  Chuparosa in bloom in the low elevation Colorado desert of the park.  The Colorado desert dominates the south...hotter and drier than the Mojave desert in the northern and western areas.  The Joshua Trees grow in the higher, cooler Mojave desert.  It snows up there once in awhile in the winter, around 5000 feet elevation.  The chuparosa here is growing down around 2000 feet. 

Blooming beavertail cactus.  

Beavertail blooms up close.  Normally this cactus and the hedgehogs are the first to bloom...hedgehogs were still laying low, though.  It was a cool winter up and down the entire west coast.

JTNP rocks, the trademark landscape of the park.  The surreal stones make JTNP a power spot.

Sunset turns the mountains red near Jackalope.

The pool at Jackalope.  It was not heated and was only about 65 degrees, but was refreshing on a hot day...at least for a brief dip.Su

Sunset beyond the poles.

A Fine Spring in JTNP

Last week, on the way home from the energy of Las Vegas, I decided to chill in the Cali desert for a few days.  I rented a house called Jackalope, about a dozen miles east of Twentynine Palms.  It was verrry quiet and peaceful, especially at dawn and dusk.  Here's the backyard.  Mellow and private.  The weather was very summery...high 80s in the afternoon, high 50s at dawn...very nice.  There was an aboveground pool that provided refreshing dips every afternoon after slogging around the desert all day.  The Lizards were right at home.

Looking west, the snowcapped San Gabriels rise between the desert and LA.  The house was not totally isolated, as you can see, but most  residences are on five acre plots, a legacy of land grants made to World War I veterans a century ago.   

Desert dandelions blooming in the Mojave.

Phacelias.

JTNP was carpeted in grass and flowers.  A refreshing sight after the long drought.

A desert Dandelion up close.

Desert as garden.

Chias were profuse in the lower elevations through the southeast part of JTNP.  

A vast poppy field near the south entrance to the park.

Poppies galore!

Dandelions nestling under gnarly branches, probably from a creosote bush.

Lushness All About

I spent much of February wandering about the local area investigating the results of our drought busting wet winter.  Didn't have to go far...beauty was all around me.  The banana slugs are thriving at Purissima Creek in San Mateo county.

I hike along Purissima Creek several times a year.  The peace, majesty, and beauty of the redwoods are always fine.  These are second growth trees but they are over a century old now, so some are getting pretty big.  And the creek is thriving, thanks to the rains.

The trail does assume Russian Front characteristics in spots during wet weather.

A waterfall gurgles down through the forest.

The Carmel River has been flowing strongly.  This picture was taken on Monday February 20, after heavy rains had stopped and the river was rising toward flood stage.  Over two inches fell at Monterey on that day, a rare occurrence.  The muddy river waters create brown breakers where fresh and salt water meet at the mouth.

The mighty Carmel charges into the sea.

I drove upriver to check out the Carmel River at Garland Park, about a dozen miles inland.  It was raging through the bottomlands adjacent to the main channel, and threatening to encroach on the path.  When I took this pic the river was about a foot below official flood stage, and soon afterward rose another two feet, so it probably flooded the path.  Couldn't get a closer look as the authorities were closing the park as I arrived.

This is El Toro Creek on the same day, between Monterey and Salinas.  The creek is almost always dry at this spot...but not now!

A gnarly oak in the West Marin countryside.

This is Nicasio Reservoir on a tranquil morning in West Marin county.  These pix were taken on Valentines Day.

There was about a five day lull in the rain in mid February when I traveled to Marin.  I took the Tomales Point Trail...sunny, warm day though there were quite a few muddy spots on the path.  I came upon the local Tule Elk herd lounging and grazing.  Not only was it sunny and warm, there was little wind...there is almost NEVER a day this nice in July and August, but they're fairly common in winter, especially in dry years.

A ranch fence dotted with lichens.

This is Pierce Ranch, at the end of the road on Tomales Point.  Like several other dairy operations on Point Reyes, it was established around 1860, and operated until the late 1960s.  It's a historic exhibit now, but several of its contemporary ranches are still operating, and producing milk and cheese for the North Bay.

Tomales Point.  Bodega Head in the distance to the left.

The ravens stand sentinel.