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California poppies at Pacific Grove CA
Angi English photo
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Antelope Valley Poppy Reserve.
Anita Ritenour photo
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Montaña de Oro State Park lupins
Joyce Cory photo
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Picasa
Point Lobos State Park
Dzung Tran photo
By Jeff Crider
Take Wildflower Tours on the Way Home - Winter rains have created conditions for brilliant displays of wildflowers in state parks throughout California, Oregon and Washington
Thanks to the return of heavy winter rains, wildflowers will be blooming in many California State Parks by the time Canadians make their way back to British Columbia and Alberta.
“After four years of drought, we expect to see lots of green grassy hillsides and plentiful wildflower displays this spring,” said Debbie Sipe, executive director of the California Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds, which hosts Camp-California.com, the travel planning website. Sipe noted that campgrounds are located near most state parks and serve as excellent base camps for snowbirds with time to take a scenic drive home.
Clusters of California poppies and other wildflowers are often spotted along some of California’s most scenic highways, such as State Route 1 between Morro Bay and Carmel and State Route 49, which traverses the Sierra Nevada foothills as it passes through historic mining towns.
Many of California’s state parks also provide excellent opportunities for spring wildflower viewing. Here are some of the best locations, going from south to north, according to state officials:
Southern California Low Desert
– Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, east of San Diego via Highways 78 and 79. For the latest wildflower reports, visit http://theabf.org/wildflowers.
Southern California High Desert
– Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve, 24 kilometres west of Lancaster, generally features its greatest blooming period in March and April, depending on rain. http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=627
Central California Coast
– Montaña de Oro State Park, 11.3 kilometres south of Los Osos on Pecho Valley Road, can feature hills covered with poppies, lupines, sticky monkey flowers, wild radish and mustard.
– Andrew Molera State Park, 34 kilometers south of Carmel on Highway 1, features a variety of springtime flowers.
– Garrapata State Park, 11 kilometers south of Rio Road in Carmel, features the Soberanes Canyon ridge trail that winds through meadows, a riparian zone, a lovely redwood grove and an exposed coastal ridge. On certain sections of this trail visitors may feel that they’re swimming through flowers, which can include Shooting Stars, Johnny Jump Ups, Blue Dicks, Golden Buttercup, Elegant Clarkia, Goldfields, Douglas Iris, Checkerbloom, Star Zygadine, Fushia-flowered Gooseberry, Trillium, Tidy Tips, Footsteps of Spring and a fantastic variety of Bush Lupine. Visitors can also encounter the more common Monkey Flower, Seaside Painted Cups, Coyote Brush, Lizard Tail Yarrow, Mock Heather and Poppies. Visitors are advised that this is not a particularly easy hike. The first few kilometres are relatively flat and easy, but the ridge can only be reached by a steep climb.
– Point Lobos State Park, 4.8 kilometers south of Carmel on Highway 1, features a fairly easy hike with coastal bluff flowers.
– Henry W. Coe State Park, in the mountains south and east of San Jose, is a wonderful place to see spring wildflowers. Early in the year visitors may see white milkmaids, blue hounds tongue, or yellow buttercups. As spring progresses, the flowers become more numerous with goldfields, owls clover, butter and eggs, columbine, delphinium, and many more. Visitors might even get lucky and see the tiny purple mouse ears. For more information, visit www.coepark.org.
Central California / Sierra Nevada Foothills
– Daffodil Hill in Vocano is not a state park, but the historic ranch is a beautiful spot to see large concentrations of daffodils in the spring. It is about 22.5 kilometers west of Sutter Creek using Old Ridge and Ridge Roads.
San Francisco Bay Area
– Mount Tamalpais State Park, North of San Francisco's Golden Gate, features spectacular and easily accessed wildflowers each spring. Visitors can get to the park from Highway 101 take Highway 1 to the Stinson Beach exit and follow signs up the mountain.
– Olompali State Historic Park, 4.8 kilometers north of Novato on U.S. 101, also features spectacular and easily accessed wildflowers each spring. The park entrance is accessible only to southbound traffic from Highway 101.
North Central and Northeast California
– McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park, 17.7 kilometers northeast of Burney on Highway 89, features a variety of wildflowers in the spring.
– Castle Crags State Park, 9.6 kilometers south of Dunsmuir on I-5, has a variety of wildflowers in the spring.
– Woodson Bridge State Recreation Area, 9.6 kilometers east of Corning and I-5 on South Avenue, has a variety of spring wildflowers.
Where to see Wildflowers in the Pacific Northwest
Some of the best locations to see wildflowers in the Pacific Northwest are in the Columbia River Gorge, a spectacular 137-kilometer river canyon east of Portland that features 800 species of wildflowers, 15 of which are found no where else on Earth, according to GorgeFriends.org, an online travel resource produced by Friends of the Columbia Gorge.
Popular wildflower viewing locations in the Columbia River Gorge area include the Tom McCall Nature Preserve and Badger Creek Wilderness. Some of the better-known wildflower hiking trails in the Gorge area include the Mosier Plateau Trail near the town of Mosier, roughly an hour and a half drive east of Portland (http://trails.gorgefriends.org/trail/mosier-plateau/). Other popular locations include Columbia Hills State Park, which is not quite a two-hour drive east of Portland. For other suggestions as well as the latest reports on wildflower blooms, visit www.oregonwildflowers.org.
Some of the most scenic wildflower drives in Washington are in and around the lower elevations of North Cascades, Mount Rainier and Olympic National Parks. The Methow Valley on the east side of North Cascades National Park is a popular spot for wildflower viewing in late April and early May. If you decide to head west, be sure to visit the Hoh Rain Forest in Olympic National Park, which is one of the wettest locations in the world. For more trip ideas, visit the website of the Washington Trails Association at www.wta.org.
Camping Resources:
www.Camp-California.com, www.GoCampingAmerica.com, www.Recreation.Gov, www.thousandtrails.com