Superbloom (2023) at Carrizo Plain National Monument
The Carrizo Plain National Monument is a remote place in the heart of California's Central Valley that comes to life with wildflowers during spring, occasionally showcasing a superbloom in ideal years (as it was the case in 2023). The monument was once a vast grassland. Today, it is, in the midst of agriculture and the oil industry, the last remnant of this landscape.
Oil and Blossoms: Gateway to the Wildflowers
The night before, we arrived at our motel in Taft, which is about as close as you can get if you're not camping within the Carrizo Plain itself. Luckily, the motel owner allowed us to check in a little later than expected, as the traffic was most horrendous. Apparently, the entire Bay Area trades their overpriced city domiciles for their weekend getaways on Fridays, and there was no way we could get there much before midnight. The motel was one of the cheapest we've ever stayed at (in the U.S.), yet it was not run down, shady, or dirty in any way. In fact, it was quite the opposite. Taft lies in the foothills at the southwestern edge of the San Joaquin Valley. Doesn’t that sound romantic?
What doesn’t seem so appealing is that this little town is located in one of the unhealthiest places in California and even the US - Kern County. While many know that Los Angeles often struggles with poor air quality, the largest city in Kern County, Bakersfield, regularly wins the prize for particle pollution caused by a combination of unfortunate topography and the oil industry. To be honest, I felt a little unsettled just thinking about spending the night there. I quickly realized how ridiculous and ignorant that thought was. After all, we only spent one night at this place. People actually live there and have to breathe that air day after day, or even years after years. What should they say?
I apologize that this is not just a happy article about the beautiful super bloom. We’ll come to the pretty part very quickly. I would like to show a more complete picture. And traveling is not solely about enjoying the beautiful and hiding from the ugly. It's humbling to witness so closely what it takes to make oil available for our human applications: How the industry alters the landscape and pollutes the air. Yet, it is educational to see — and smell — firsthand how oil finds its way out of the earth. And how close the beautiful and the ugly can be.
Embracing rotten eggs
The next morning, we started our day early, excited for the flowers and everything else that we may find! The drive from Taft over Fellows to the Carrizo Plain is an adventure in itself. Here, one witnesses the massive transformation of the landscape from the ever-nodding, rotten-egg-smelling oil drilling sites to a peaceful and pristine place that truly feels like wilderness. Weirdly enough, the rhythmically nodding heads of the oil rigs had something meditating to me. The active drilling sites slowly faded away the closer we got to the Carrizo Plain. While there are still a few historic oil derricks on the edge of the Plains that hint at the activities of the time, the further into the monument you go, the more it seems like none of it ever existed.
In a Nutshell: Cultural History
The Carrizo Plain National Monument in the heart of California is such a remarkable landscape: it is the largest single native grassland in the state of California and a vast expanse of historic significance and natural beauty.
The rich history dates back centuries. Native Americans, including the Chumash and Yokuts, once called this land home and depended on the fertile soil and abundant wildlife for sustenance. Later, in the mid-1800s, European settlers arrived in the area and introduced farming and ranching. In the early 20th century, the discovery of oil deposits beneath the surface triggered a boom in the oil industry. Oil wells and towers lined the landscape, which is today still happening outside the National Monument, bringing prosperity but also significant environmental problems.
Fortunately, the Carrizo Plain National Monument was designated by President Bill Clinton under the Antiquities Act on January 12, 2001. This placed a significant portion of the Carrizo Plain under protection to preserve its unique natural and cultural resources.
Giant Lupines and Yellow Carpets
The drive led us through winding roads, where one could only wonder what would be behind the next curve. The gentle hills with some yellow and purple patches were a first taste of what would await behind them. At what appeared to be like an old homestead, we discovered some beautiful, giant and very healthy looking lupines, perfectly ‘arranged’ at the foot of gentle hills covered in lush grass and yellow flowers.
The hills create the most perfect scenery to display the different shades of yellow, purple and orange flowers!
The colors guided us through this beautiful landscape. Soon after we entered the road meandering through the hillsides, we stopped fascinated by purple lupines and yellow flowers that dominated the landscape.
We delved deeper into the plain and while the wildflowers were the main reason for us to come here, there was something else we wanted to see up-close:
The San Andreas Fault: Exploring the Inconspicuous Power
The geologic feature that probably every San Franciscan and most Californians fear the most. The fault was made famous by the great earthquake of 1906 that destroyed much of San Francisco. The fault is capable of producing an earthquake of destructive magnitude of more than 8.0 on the Richter scale.
There are many places in California where you can "visit" the fault, one of which is Carrizo Plain National Monument. Walking across the fault, indeed walking along it, one may even feel somewhat unimpressed in relation to the legitimate fears that this geological feature, so inconspicuous to the human eye, can cause.
We stretched our legs on the hiking trail along the fault line where one can also learn more about it, as the trail is equipped with information boards. Many small lizards crossed our path as we explored the trail along the fault line. The smaller and more colorful wildflowers in this area of the plain were already mostly overgrown by fiddle-necks at this time in late April, which stretched their heads far above most wildflowers.
Let me present you: The San Andreas Fault
We continued driving towards Soda Lake. The cars swirled large clouds of sand through the air. The road was actually a pretty well-built gravel road that didn't have too many potholes or large rocks, yet extremely dusty. Our way was accompanied by incredibly large yellow-glowing flower fields interrupted picturesquely from time to time by purple lupines. From the distance, we could already see that the flower fields also spread out around the salty lake.
Soda Lake: Snow on the Beach?
Soda Lake is usually dried up in summer, but was full of water on this spring day. It stands as the largest remaining natural alkali wetland in southern California, nestled uniquely within the coastal mountains as the only closed basin. True to its name, this natural wonder undergoes a process where salts are concentrated as water evaporates, resulting in striking white deposits of sulfates and carbonates, resembling the appearance of baking soda.
The area around the lake was busy, but it was still possible to find quieter spots. The lake is so salty that it seems as if the beach was covered with snow. Even more fascinating is that many flowers sprout from the salty sand. A very surreal scenery. We found a great spot near the lake where we just sat for a while and enjoyed the spectacle.
When Nature Paints Its Own Masterpiece
After that, we just let ourselves be guided by what we saw from afar: The colorful slopes that looked like someone had painted a picture of an imaginary landscape. Shades of yellow, purple, orange and green blended together perfectly. A road led directly toward these hills, letting us get closer and closer to them.
When we got to the hills, we decided to take a chance and drive up one of the rugged roads into them. I had read that some people got stuck there when the roads were wet, but now the weather was perfectly sunny and the ground was as dry as can be. Still, the drive was an adventure. The road was very uneven and had large holes in places, combined with steep inclines that were a challenge for the car. The risk was worth it, however, because we were able to admire the colorful slopes up close while seeing hardly any other people.
We crossed the hills, hoping that the roads wouldn’t get any worse. They didn’t and so we were able to leave this magical place on the other side of the hills, leading us back to the very different scenery of the ever-nodding oil rigs.
Know Before You Go
Bloom is only happening in spring between March and April. The exact period is different from year to year. Same holds true for the amount of flowers popping up.
Related to the former point: The landscape is constantly changing in spring when some places are in full bloom while at others the flowers are just starting off or already fading, depending on the type of flower and the orientation of the hills towards the sun.
While we were certainly not the only people visiting, and some very popular places like the area around Soda Lake got even pretty crowded, I felt like this still rather is one of the more hidden treasures. Which may also be because of the remoteness of this location.
The roads inside the monument are dirt roads. Most of them are doable with most vehicles. If you really want to explore the hillsides and feel comfortable driving real rugged roads, you will be better off with a SUV with a high clearance, which is very important if you want to minimize the risk of damaging the underbody of the vehicle. When the soil is wet, it is advisable to stay off these rugged roads in general. The risk of being stuck in the mud is real and this is certainly not the place you want to be in trouble!
If you’re interested in more wildflower-adventures, feel free to take a look at my article on the Antelope Valley Poppy Reserve as well!
