Carrizo Plain - May 2006

I took a drive to Carrizo Plain again on Saturday, May 6th. It was a slightly overcast day, but warm and breezy. Being that it is May, I wanted to catch the last bit of the wildflower season. It has changed a lot over the last few weeks. The fields of gold have pretty much disappeared, but some other flowers that I didn't see last time have arrived. These include the Thistle Sage, Chia and Farewell to Spring. Gone are the fields of Goldfields and Tidy Tips, though a few remain here and there. Some poppies were sprouting up on the roadside.

The pronghorn were out in the fields. I even spotted a mamma and baby, though they were too far away to capture on my camera. Up the road I came across a small herd of them, and the apparent lead male (or so he seemed to be) came maybe withing 15 feet of my car. I guess once he figured out I wasn't gonna hurt him, he eased up enough to come closer, but he still kept a watchful eye on me at all times.

The snakes were out in abundance this time, a creature that was notably absent from my previous visits. I came across 5 snakes...3 rattlesnakes and 2 gopher snakes... on this trip. The snakes I found lying in the road I moved to the side of the road by pushing them with a stick, since I didn't want them to get run over. I also came across a Desert Tarantula in the same situation and carefully moved it over to the side of the road as well. After spending a few hours up there, I headed home, but stopped by the Tule Elk State Reserve on the way back, wanting to take a few pictures, but unfortunately, they were too far away from the fence to make out. Maybe another time.


Moon thru the trees