Looking for flowers

I spent the better part of three days driving around central Arizona looking for a place where Arizona poppies bloom. In the process I learned that they’re called mal de ojo (sore eye) since their golden yellow petals frame a deep orange or red center. Google will tell you that such blooms happen every year, but with our scant rain, we’re lucky to see them every two or even three. When they do bloom, like they are this spring, it will make you rethink everything you thought you knew about the Arizona desert.

I eventually found an OZ-worthy poppy field that ran between some hills near Saguaro Lake, and it was absolutely worth all the all my driving around. I don’t have much to say about these photos. I had a great time wandering through the dry washes looking for decent compositions, and I like how the lush poppies create such a contrast to the not-quite-ready-to-wake-up mesquite and catclaw. I hope you get a chance to see them for yourself.