Shell Creek Road - March 25, 2008

Posted below are pictures taken at Shell Creek Road on March 25, 2008. I got there just before sunset, so I didn't have much time to take pictures. I went back here on Saturday, March 29, 2008 as well, but it was fairly cloudy and misty. I will post those pictures later on, too.

Shell Creek Road is located off of Highway 58 West, about 19 miles east of Santa Margarita, CA.

Shell Creek Road Pictures

Carrizo Plain National Monument - March 25, 2008

thatAfter the mess with my driver's license was cleared up (see my other blog for all the info on this if you want a good laugh or want to read a good "omg" story), I took a drive up to Carrizo Plain National Monument and then down Highway 58 West to Shell Creek Road, because I had heard this was a good spot for wildflowers (trust me, it was! - I will post pics from that area tomorrow). Carrizo Plain did not disappoint! It was alive with color. There were vast fields of yellow (Goldfields and Hillside Daisies), and purple (Wild Heliotrope, Wild Hyacinth, Filaree, Red Maids and Owl's Clover), as well as patches of blue (Baby Blue Eyes). The plain looked like someone had driven over in an airplane and threw paint down on the earth.

The birds have also returned to the plain. I saw Western Meadowlarks, Horned Larks, Red Tailed Hawks, Sparrows and Mourning Doves, to name a few. I also spotted a few Pronghorn at dusk when I was driving back.

I posted some pictures below. Enjoy!

Links to check out:

Carrizo Plain National Monument
Wikipedia: Carrizo Plain
Carrizo Plain - a 3D Tour
Sierra Club: Carrizo Plain

Goldfields in bloom in Carrizo Plain National Monument

The Temblor Range

unknown yellow flowers

Hillside Daisies

Wild Hyacinth (Blue Dicks)

Tidy Tips

Red Maids

Wild Heliotrope (Phacelia)

Owl's Clover

Goldfields

Filaree

Baby Blue Eyes

California Poppy

Cushion Crypantha

Horned Lark

Mourning Dove

Western Kingbird

Western Meadowlark

Death Valley National Park - 3/15/08

I went to Death Valley National Park last Saturday. It started out as a nice day, but it got really cloudy and windy as the afternoon wore on. I got to visit a few spots that I didn't get to visit before: Scotty's Castle, Ubehebe Crater and The Racetrack. I just wish it had been sunnier. I mean, it was cold at Ubehebe Crater!!!

The wildflowers were out in bloom alongside the road from Stovepipe Wells to Furnace Creek, as well as alongside the road to Beatty, NV. I saw many different types: Desert Sunflower, Wild Heliotrope, Parachute Plant, Desert Star and Yellow Cups. It was pretty windy and cloudy so the pictures didn't come out as well as I had hoped. But there is always next time ;)

I posted pictures below.


Links to check out:

Death Valley National Park
Places of Interest in Death Valley
Death Valley Wildflower Reports

Bakersfield to Death Valley - Round Trip

Mesquite Dunes

Animal tracks on the dunes

Devil's Cornfield

Scotty's Castle

The Racetrack Playa

A rock on teh Racetrack Playa

Ubehebe Crater

Artist's Palette

Badwater

Badwater - the lowest point in North America

the "bad water" at Badwater

Devil's Golf Course

Devil's Golf Course - up close

Zabriske Point at dusk

Wildflowers in Death Valley

Yellow Cups

Wild Heliotrope

Parachute Plant

Parachute Plant

Fillaree

Desert Sunflower

Desert Star

Desert Five Spot

Creosote Bush with a Plasterer Bee

Hedgehog Cactus

Wildflowers on Granite Road outside of Bakersfield

I took a drive not too long ago on Granite Road. There are lots of wildflowers out there....Fiddleneck, Popcorn Flower, Miner's Lettuce, Wild Hyacinth, Red Maids, and more! Th hills are orange with Fiddleneck. It was kind of cloudy that day so I didn't get a whole lot of pictures.

Granite Road