Seeing California’s spring wildflowers has long been on my bucket list. With the long drought quenched by soaking rains the past few months, this year’s bloom promised to be a big one. I am most fortunate to have friends in SoCal willing to take me to see the show at Walker Canyon, Lake Elsinore and wow, what a mind-blowing event it was. The tiny people on the far ridge above give you an idea of how vast the coverage was, 180 degrees of mountain vistas covered with California poppies (Eschscholzia californica) and several other wildflowers.
Below is a slideshow to enjoy–
Eliza Waters 
Just the pictures are fabulous. I can’t imagine what it must be like to walk through it!
Thank you, Lisa. It was the most amazing experience!
Wow. Just stunning.
That’s what we kept saying over and over, ‘Stunning!’ 🙂
Beautiful! The purple and yellow together is amazing!
Thank you, it really was incredible!
Beautiful scene, Eliza.
Thank you, it was quite breath-taking.
It is breathtaking, Eliza! Thanks for sharing these.
Thanks, Sandy, my pleasure!
That is phenomenal! I had no idea…
Thank you, Peter. Apparently, the whole state is expecting record blooms as spring moves from south to north. I’m happy that I got to see a part of it.
Gorgeous!
Thank you, Jim. It was remarkable!
Wow, these are beautiful Eliza.
Thank you, Andrea. It was an amazing sight, for sure.
Oh Eliza, how magnificent! You must have felt like you were in heaven surrounded by all that color and beauty! So happy for you!
Thank you, Cindy! It really was heavenly. 🙂
Stunning photos, colors, and landscape! This year the flu has kept me back, but I will try to go there next year.
Thank you, Hien! I really lucked out this year, apparently not every year is so stunning. It is dependent on the dry and wet cycles. I hope you get to see it someday. I would have loved to follow the bloom north through April.
Gorgeous! Glad you got to see it.
Thank you, Ellen. It was such a treat!
Beautiful images Eliza, what an amazing treat to see this! 😀💖🌺 xxx
Thank you, Xenia. It was spectacular!
so happy seeing
your shared
blossoms, Eliza 🙂
Thank you, David!
From the distance shot, it looks to me like ‘orange lichen’…amazing that those are all Poppies…..must have been so incredible to see that vista!
Miles and miles of poppies – it was so incredible!
Lovely photos of both near and far. Dramatic landscape made even more so by the intense colours of the carpets of flowers – what a sight to see.
Thank you, Carol. I took hundreds of photos, I couldn’t help myself. Beauty as far as the eye could see!
I think your selection from the hundreds is brilliant!
Thank you kindly. 🙂
Looks amazing Eliza! Thanks for sharing 🌻🌸🌺🌾
Thank you, Karen, my pleasure!
WOW!!!! That’s all I can say…….
😀 Yep, pretty much sums it up!
Isn’t Mother Nature amazing, such amazing colours.
She surely is! 🙂
What a splendid sight!
Thanks, it was a dream come true! 🙂
How lovely to have a dream come true!
Yes!
Ooh pretty.
Thank you, Jill. Such a sight it was!
…..and not missing snowy, cold, central MA at all…..😹🤣
Not at all! 😉
WOW! That’s gorgeous! Glad you got to experience it.
Thank you, yes, it was definitely something I will always remember!
Stunning! What marvellous event to experience.
Thank you, Allison, it was. Miles and miles of flowers– hard to imagine, let alone convey in photos. I’m so happy I got to see it in person!
Gorgeous Eliza! This was an experience I’m sure!
Thanks! boy, I was definitely in heaven seeing all those wildflowers!
And they were poppies. Poppies! Amazing!
Yes!
Stunning, Eliza. Thanks for sharing.
It must have been a real treat to walk through that mass of colour in real life.
Thank you, Vicki, it was. As you know, photos just can’t do it justice, try as we may.
You did a fantastic job of capturing the superbloom phenomenon, Eliza! I didn’t do nearly as well with the 2017 event but then I think this one may be more spectacular too.
Thank you, Kris. I read that this is a 10-15 year event… so glad I made it out to see it!
Just beautiful, Eliza! Thank you for sharing.
Thank you, Betty!
Wow! 😍 That must have been absolutely amazing to see! Lovely, Eliza! ❤
Thank you, Julie. It was phenomenal!
Just as magical as I imagined!!! I definitely need to go there now 🙂 Thank you so much for sharing your fabulous photos!!!
My pleasure, Maria. Antelope Valley Preserve might be closer to you (off I-15) and is due to bloom in April. Not in the mountains, but it is a lovely spot.
Thank you for the tip Eliza!
Bloom apparently has started on the east side. https://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=627
Yes! I saw those amazing photos!!
Glorious! Amazing what a little rain can do. Thanks for sharing the spectacle of color which must have been truly stunning in person.
Thank you, Peter. Truly a sight to see!
It is wonderful to see Californian Poppies ablaze in their natural habitat for they are popular garden flowers in South Africa.
Thank you, Anne. ‘Ablaze’ describes it precisely!
Must be marvelous live.
It truly was!
Stunning!! 😮
Thank you, Samuel, that’s just the word we kept repeating!
Reblogged this on LIVING THE DREAM.
Thanks for reblogging!
SIMPLY MAGIC ELIZA, CHINA
china.alexandria@livingthedream.blog
Thanks so much!
Beautiful! I’ve been to California many times and didn’t realise. Thank you.
Thanks, Steve. Those brown hills hide a great treasure!
Super-beautiful, Eliza! Mother Nature is bringing on Spring!
Yes, indeed, bring it on! 🙂
That’s wonderful, thank you for sharing.
Thank you, Christina, my pleasure.
My master gardener group up North shared some pictures with me, too, of this year’s spectacular bloom! This is wonderful Eliza – what a way to celebrate Spring! I always drool over Annie’s Annuals catalogs. I hope to grow some wildflowers here in Florida one day. Need to prep and I think seed in Fall not Spring. One day hope to have a nice patch. Just love those poppies! And blue-eyes. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you, Kathy. It was a beyond anything I could have imagined. Only desert blooms like this! We also saw the Painted Lady spring migration – so many butterflies. My friends tell me it is still going on after 2 weeks. There must be millions of them! Nature amazes me.
Ooohh, that is so beautiful! I had no idea they bloomed in such numbers! It must have made for a wonderful trip!! 🙂
It was definitely the highlight, something I’d wanted to see for years. Flowers as far as the eye could see and probably beyond that. ❤
Wow, gorgeous! I have always wanted to be in the CA desert for a superbloom. One day!
Thanks, Marsi. I hope you can see it one day, it was a thrill to see!
Wow! That is so beautiful. I love Californian poppies.
Thank you, Ali. It was an amazing experience.
Whoa! So beautiful! ❤️
Thank you, Irene. It really was spectacular!
Wow! … just, wow! 😀
Yeah, you got that right! 🙂
Amazing, what a sight, lucky you.
Thank you, Liz. Yes, I feel blessed to have seen the super bloom. Quite the event.
I saw this on the news and was blown away. But, your photos are so much better and up close and personal. Thank you for taking us along on this amazing adventure because I’m pretty sure I won’t get to see it in person.
Thank you, Judy. I was so fortunate to be able to see a super bloom as they don’t happen all that often. It was truly a gift to see, and early enough that the crowds weren’t too bad. Once it hits the news, it is mobbed.
Gorgeous Eliza! ‘Poppy Heaven’ … how did I not know about this before? What a wonderful display. You have captured it beautifully!
Thank you very much, Denise. Hundreds of acres all painted in bright colors – it was truly a sight to see. I lucked out seeing it this particular year. Drought, then rain = super bloom!
A bumper crop this year!
Yes, indeed! Does Colorado have similar wildflower blooms?
Oh yes! We have lupine, columbine, (indian, pink, yellow) paintbrush, larkspur, fireweed, mule’s ears, elephant heads and more. Some bloom right around my house but the best displays are found up high in the mountain basins. I’ve tried hiking with my heavy equipment … not easy in the elevation and then by the time I get there the light is harsh and I need to start back! So … we bought a used jeep! I should be able to add more wildflower pics to my portfolio this year!
Ooh, sounds wonderful. Can’t wait to see what you capture! ❤
Awesome, Eliza. And what a wonderful bucket list item – you gave me an idea…..Did you recognize all the wildflowers? I don’t think I do.
I made Genus guesses with most of them, there were a couple that had me stumped and I haven’t yet researched to see if I can ID them. I’m so glad I got to see them before the crowds descended. Apparently 100,000 people tried to see them on Sunday (the town has a population of 60K). Absolutely insane!
Wow! Yes, definitely mind-blowing. How wonderful to see this blast of colour in the middle of winter! 🙂
Thank you, Cathy. It was extraordinary – so glad I got to see it in person!
Wow, those are stunning! What amazing colours!
Thanks so much!