Heartbreaking Beauty of the Utah Desert

We were surprised to find a little patch of Manzanita at the higher elevations. This plant is really common in the Angeles National Forest north of Los Angeles.

I can’t find a name for this one. Looks like a lily, perhaps, but it’s not in any of my books.

Matt and I went (once again) to the southeast corner of Utah for a weekend of camping and outdoor enjoyment. We finally got our new truck completely situated the way we want it for going waaaay out into the sticks on bumpy 4x4 roads. I think we saw a total of five or six other people the entire weekend.

Dwarf Evening Primrose — This is by far the largest flower I saw. Each bloom is about 2" in diameter. The entire plant is a mound about 12" around.

The first week of May is, as far as I can guess, the prime time for desert wildflower spotting. The weather is just getting warm, about 75° during the day, and there are still a few patches of old snow in the shadiest spots.

Scarlet Gilia

The thing I love most about desert wildflowers is their tiny size relative to the vast expanse of landscape. If you don't keep your eyes open, it's easy to just glance right over them. They grow close to the ground, typically not very close to one another, and the blooms are rarely over a half-inch in diameter.

Our campsite (and our new truck!). The higherelevations are really green at the moment — big thunderstorms passed through last week. Everything will be brown again shortly.