February 2016: Give California a Little Water and She Goes Crazy

    One week, Death Valley’s Super Bloom. The next, we're off to see the local Sierra Nevada foothills at their extravagant best.
    Heading east on the valley floor, we passed blooming almond orchards carpeted in white and fields of mustard and fiddleneck.

Almond orchard.

Popcorn Flowers & Fiddleneck.

    Soon we turned onto Dry Creek Rd, a barely two-lane road that winds up into the foothills, and were treated to blossoming redbud.

Redbud Trees.

Red line is our wildflower tour route, about 80 miles. I kept it small to show the surrounding area.

    We stopped at the first turn-out to take pictures of wildflowers.

Purple Clarkia & Bolander Monkey Flower, maybe.

Phlox Diffusa—Spreading Phlox.

Shrubby Cinquefoil & Common Brodie, aka Blue Dick, I think.

Shrubby Cinquefoil, I think.

Indian Rhubarb? Slender Buckwheat?

Lupine.

    Rounding a couple more curves, we began to see hillsides swathed in yellow and gold, reminiscent of Death Valley’s painted canyons...

Hillsides swathed in California Poppies.

Roadbanks of poppies.

...or like walking into a Cezanne or Van Gogh impression of the south of France...

...or through the emerald green fields and poppy fields of Oz, only the poppies are orange, not red.

    We arrived at the Mountain House at the intersection of Dry Creek Road and SR 245 and had lunch on the back deck, basking in the perfect weather.
    Continuing our circuit, we passed some cows. I decided we'd need a picture of California's famous Happy Cows for our blog, so Doug did a quick U-turn and dropped me off opposite a black “cow.” 

    As Doug drove out of sight, I found myself with only the road separating me from a huge black bull, as testified to by his huge-black-bull parts.

Marilyn's Happy California Black "Cow." 

    Doug finally returned for me—probably 90 seconds after he dropped me off—and we continued on to Drum Valley Rd. Redbud and buckeyes bordered the road. The buckeyes, unlike the other trees, were almost completely leafed out.

Buckeye trees.

    Buckeye trees get their moisture in spring, then produce drooping clusters of flowers, then go dormant in summer.

    "Bucolic" best describes Drum Valley.

Frolicking cows in Drum Valley.

Well, maybe not this guy.

    The roadbanks were bursting with wildflowers.

Fiddle neck on banks.

    We wended our way home, where our own colors greeted us.

Daffodils.

California Poppies.

Cyclamen & Paper Whites. 

Tulip Trees.

Japanese maples budding out.

Nasturtiums.

Tulips. They liked our cold winter but aren't generally fond of our climate.

One of my favorites, Freesia, which have a glorious scent.

    How lucky are we to live in this amazing place.
                                                                —Marilyn