poppies

I've been waiting for the poppies to bloom in Antelope Valley ever since I heard they bloom in March. It's about a 1.5 hrs north of Los Angeles, so luckily, the Antelope Valley Poppy Reserve website is updated with poppy bloom status. Last week, a new crop of blossoms were reported, so we took a little drive toward Lancaster with the parents Chung.
It's been a cold spring, so the poppies were a bit sparse. Photos from other seasons show the hills blanketed in orange, which must be strange to see because it is so dry and brown all around the reserve.


At the beginning of the trail, we were excited to see anything orange.
Owl's clover is purple, but there are a few rare albinos in the bunch.
This looks like a deer bed. But it's not. They say herds of antelope used to roam the valley, but none remain. It's the usual culprits - the railroad (too scared to cross) and greedy hunters (killed them all). Whelps, the Native Americans co-existed with them for generations. Thanks, white man.