Bumper Crop!

That lovely smudge of Wildflowers in the foothills

So, was innocently crossing my current home state with a friend, Ila, and we made a sharp eastward turn just north of the 'Grapevine' which is a mountain you need to cross over if headed for southern California. Instead of the grapevine we drove through the tiny town of Arvin. Just as we headed out of town, I spotted a smudge of color in the distant foothills. What the... could those be..? WILDFLOWERS! WHOOO HOOOO!

White Popcorn flowers, blue Lupins and a hearty dose of golden Fiddleneck

I was so excited at the sight of the billowing pools of flowers I was an embarrassment to myself, sputtering, "Wow! Holy Crap! Oh my god! I can't believe it!" over and over until really, someone ought to have slapped me. Really though, how could I face that kind of display and not do my best to verbalize my joy?

Pastel Pastures

On arriving at the base of the foothills, at the start of the wildflowers, we were not alone. There were cars on the byway, and people climbed out of their cars, cameras in hand, ready to commemorate the day and get their flower fix. A few families had picnic  blankets on good spots to the outside of the pasture fencing so they didn't harm any of the wildflowers. What a nice view to enjoy while downing a family meal.

A little more lupins here, only a splash of Fiddleneck

Some areas had blotches of pinkish-purple  made up of yet-another of my claimed 'favorites', Owl Clover. Maybe that's because it seems to include two of my joys - birds and wildflowers. Is it possible to count a dozen varieties among one's flower favorites or is that cheating?

The pinkish/purple hues are the Owl Clover as shown close-up in the photo below

 pinkish purple Owl's Clover

This was the best show of wildflowers I've seen since 2009. I don't know if this is a great year for the Arvin region, or if it gets this kind of display most years. I'm hoping this is a preview of things to come in Bear Valley which is closer to my neck of the woods, north of Clear Lake County. I can't wait to go wildflower exploring in the coming few months.