California Superbloom
It's been a wet winter in California the past several months. Not record-setting like the winter of two years ago but still plenty. In the arid and semi-arid landscapes of Southern California there is now a superbloom: an abundance of wildflowers blossoming, particularly the brilliantly orange California Poppy.
Picture from nkbimages/Getty Images via Los Angeles Magazine
Sadly this beauty come at a price: the price of everyone trying to enjoy it. Two weekends ago the town of Lake Elsinore shut down access to some of the wildflower areas because of the "stampede" of nature seekers. Example coverage: LA Times article 17 Mar 2019. Since then the town has instituted a variety of road closures and required visitors to use a $10 shuttle. Example coverage: CBS Los Angeles story, 25 March 2019.
Access rules don't stop everybody, though. Visitors at the Antelope Valley Poppy Preserve have been climbing over and through fences, trampling the very flowers they're trying to appreciate. A few days ago someone illegally landed a helicopter in the park [San Jose Mercury News article, 25 March 2019] and flew away as rangers responded to investigate.
Picture from nkbimages/Getty Images via Los Angeles Magazine
Sadly this beauty come at a price: the price of everyone trying to enjoy it. Two weekends ago the town of Lake Elsinore shut down access to some of the wildflower areas because of the "stampede" of nature seekers. Example coverage: LA Times article 17 Mar 2019. Since then the town has instituted a variety of road closures and required visitors to use a $10 shuttle. Example coverage: CBS Los Angeles story, 25 March 2019.
Access rules don't stop everybody, though. Visitors at the Antelope Valley Poppy Preserve have been climbing over and through fences, trampling the very flowers they're trying to appreciate. A few days ago someone illegally landed a helicopter in the park [San Jose Mercury News article, 25 March 2019] and flew away as rangers responded to investigate.