In 2002, when I first started learning about the wildlife in the surrounding areas (I had been practically chained to a computer till then), I asked about the best place to see wildflowers - “Figueroa Mountain” was the answer. I have been going there each year since 2002, usually much earlier than April. On Saturday, eventually found the time and energy to visit for the first time in 2007. Although the flowers were not as profuse as last year, there were still many varieties to photograph.

(The road to Figueroa Mountain, still covered in fog - click for larger picture)

When I arrived, the early morning fog had not yet burned off; so I decided to hang around the 4.9 mile marker where a Lewis’ Woodpecker had reportedly been sighted. As I got out of the car to walk along the road, a beautiful rusty bird flew from just inside the fence to a nearby oak. I did not have either my bird lens or binos with me, so was unable to get a good look at the bird. Decided to photograph oaks again, using a 28-300mm lens. As I walked down the road I saw a pair of Western Kingbirds in an adjacent field. I was able to take a picture with the 300mm lens. I thought they were Cassin’s Kingbirds because of the apparent dark gray under the chin, but apparently Cassin’s do not stray this far inland, and Western Kingbirds are flying through the area in great numbers on migration.

(Western Kingbird)

After the fog had burned off - it seems literally to dissolve into the sky - I started up the road to Figueroa Mountain. There were a few flowers here and there to photograph up until the nine mile marker, where there is always a good display of Goldfields on a wide sloped field. There are pathways in this field, where one can get a closer view of a variety of other flowers. While I was carefully meandering along the paths to photograph the poppies that were opening up to the cloudy sunlight, I saw a few Lark Sparrows. With the 300mm lens, managed to photograph a bird on a lichen covered rock and again when it flew into the flowers.

(Lark Sparrow - click image for larger picture)

Further up the mountain, was the best display of Coastal Wallflowers I had seen on any of the previous trips I had flower-tracked up the mountain. Once again the 300mm came in handy to capture a Western Tiger Swallowtail sipping from a Coastal Wallflower. This display was near the Tunnell Ranch Road, on the other side of a field full of Wild Onion.

(Field of Wallflowers - click on image for larger picture)

(Western Tiger Swallowtail - click on image for larger picture)

Further along the road, there was another wide expanse of Goldfields, including other flowers such as Linanthus, Buttercups and Tidy Tips. A bouquet of fresh-looking California Poppies hugged a rock surrounded by small, low-growing Linanthus and Goldfields.

(California Poppies - click on image for larger picture)

Traveling over the top and down the other side of the mountain, Bush Poppies were brilliant yellow and numerous. Almost back to level road, pale-cream Clematis trailed over the green shrubbery opposite a Sycamore tree with abundant clusters of flowers. Bright-pink Phlox were scattered here and there, and further down the road in the shade was a vast expanse of Fiesta flowers. One could spend more than one day photographing the wide variety of flowers on this mountain - and it would be advisable to take a bird lens as well.

(Bush Poppies - click on image for larger picture)

Links

• Beautifully framed and posed Figueroa flowers by Lara Hartley (she has a very nice story about her Figueroa trip in a Victorville newspaper)

• Magnificent landscapes by Callie Bowdish