Back on June 15th I wondered whether the unusually wet early-summer weather might provide us with a better-than-average summer wildflower season. In short, the answer turned out to be no. I’d rate the bloom as about average this year. But an average flower year in the Yosemite high country is still very nice! I made the image above—including corn lily, lupine, paintbrush, yampa, cow parsnip, and fireweed—near the Glacier Point Road on August 1st. Let’s hope for a wet winter and an exceptional wildflower season next year.
While Yosemite had an average flower year, I noticed lupines had a great year in the Bay Area! Perhaps as a result of a few dry seasons, lupines in Marin and Sonoma Counties (perhaps others as well…) put on quite a display this year. I have a few shots of them here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/21315215@N04/3707639248/in/set-72157614786378611/. Not sure if my theory is true or not – just an observation.
Thanks for the blog update and I agree – let the downpours commence!
The 2009-2010 year is supposed to be an El Niño year–let's keep our fingers crossed! Was up at Tioga Pass/Tuolumne this weekend and its starting to look much like autumn.