Shell Creek Wildflowers

I took another exploratory drive out Shell Creek Road in eastern San Luis Obispo county on Sunday March 17, and the luck of the Irish was with me as the weather was delightful and WILDFLOWERS WERE BLOOMING.  Ok, so it was not the splashy flower carpet of some past years, but the tidy tips and goldfields were starting to paint the valley floor and hillsides in a pale orange yellow.

I spent a few hours out there, and the photos below are a tease for what you will find if you look around carefully.  In addition to the yellow flowers, there were small groups of fiddleheads, paintbrush, lupine and even a few small thistle sage blooms.

And the picnic'ers, dog walkers, bike riders and hikers were all out enjoying the fine sunshine.  I did not see many other photographers, and I'm not sure how long this  bloom will last - maybe it is just starting, or maybe this is it for the year.  Hard to tell.

And here is a plug for the Santa Margarita Widlflower Festival to be held the weekend of March 23 and 24. You can get more information at:
http://visitsantamargarita.com/wildflowerFestival2013.html