Wildflower along Red Cathedral trail

Wildflower along Red Cathedral trail

This bud of Desert Five-Spot was one of only two wildflowers that I saw along Red Cathedral Trail. I was actually surprised to find any at all in this scenic, but otherwise very arid landscape. Death Valley National Park, California 2008.
Anya Jingle
on Feb 8, 2008 1:24 am
Image Type(s): Flora
Image ID: 379188

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BigJordan

BigJordan - Feb 8, 2008 2:22 am - Voted 10/10

Bellisimo!

This picture is very nice! Ah Death Valley! I love Death Valley. It must be amazing to see such nice flowers here!

Anya Jingle

Anya Jingle - Feb 8, 2008 3:07 am - Hasn't voted

Re: Bellisimo!

Thank you. The other signs of life that I saw around there were some sunflowers (Desert Gold), desert holly bushes and one lizard.

Bob Sihler

Bob Sihler - Feb 8, 2008 2:08 pm - Voted 10/10

Beautiful, and thank you!

Lovely shot of a truly beautiful flower (I was lucky to see open ones a few years ago in Panamint Valley). And thank you very much for adding all those nice pictures to the Red Cathedral page today. I have put several of them on the main page. I especially appreciate the summit view-- I was out of film, not hard to do in Death Valley, by the time I got there. I plan to hike it again this March.

Anya Jingle

Anya Jingle - Feb 8, 2008 8:18 pm - Hasn't voted

Re: Beautiful, and thank you!

Thank you Bob. Seeing this flower was like finding gold. I didn't expect to see any delicate life force this time around there.
Back in 2005 I was lucky to witness a "hundred year bloom" in Death Valley, but that was a very different wet year. I saw quite a few Desert Five Spots then.

I really enjoyed this area. Too bad we were late for early morning views like yours.

Have fun there in spring!

lcarreau

lcarreau - Feb 8, 2008 4:17 pm - Voted 10/10

Nice flower !!!

Isn't it early for flowers? (It is where
I live!) What kind of lizard did you see?
Was it the Desert Spiny? Guess they're
one of the first lizards to appear in Spring.
Did you take your dog with you? Does your
dog like to chase after the lizards???

Anya Jingle

Anya Jingle - Feb 8, 2008 8:29 pm - Hasn't voted

Re: Nice flower !!!

You like to ask a lot of questions, don't you? ;) Often plants grow and go into bloom early in the hot deserts at low elevations and rest during the times of heat. I often see wildflowers in Nevada and Arizona around Lake Mead as early as February especially the sunflower species.
My dog would not enjoy this area. He likes shade, trees, rocks, snow, meadows and creeks and there is nothing like that near Zabriskie Point. He doesn't pay attention to lizards or other little critters, but he likes to watch wild horses, deer and marmots and smell all the plants.
I don't know what kind of lizard it was. It ran across my way too fast. All I saw was that it was small. Judging by speed it might have been a whiptail, but it's just a wild guess.
Cheers!

lcarreau

lcarreau - Feb 9, 2008 11:02 am - Voted 10/10

Re: Nice flower !!!

Anya, you should be made an "ambassador"
for the Mojave Desert, if you haven't been
made one by now. I'm serious, you seem to have
some very valuable information on this
natural/national treasure. Thank you very much!!!

Anya Jingle

Anya Jingle - Feb 9, 2008 6:39 pm - Hasn't voted

Re: Nice flower !!!

Thanks Larry. I try to be the ambassador for all living things of the desert even though I'm not a professional botanist/zoologist. Cheers.

lcarreau

lcarreau - Feb 9, 2008 7:31 pm - Voted 10/10

Re: Nice flower !!!

That makes two of us.

tarol

tarol - Sep 17, 2008 4:23 pm - Voted 10/10

One of my favorite desert flowers

Great shot Anya!

Anya Jingle

Anya Jingle - Sep 30, 2008 1:33 am - Hasn't voted

Re: One of my favorite desert flowers

Thank you. They are so delicate. An amazing contrast to the harsh desert they must live in. It was nice to find one along the way.

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