Carlsbad Superbloom Tour
Thanks to our unusually wet winter, SoCal is now bonkers with wildflowers. The Carlsbad area near my home is awash in bright yellow with purple accents, as you'll see. Though not a "superbloom" in the techical sense, that's what everyone's calling it, and so will I. Per NASA's Earth Observatory, the true superblooms of orange poppies in our eastern deserts are even visible from space:
This afternoon, I rode 19 mi with over 1,000 ft of climbing just to immerse myself in the local color. Up first was an explosion of yellow in a public open space about 4 mi up the Coast Highway. I often pass it on coast rides to the north. The next 5 shots were from the single-track around this large field.
As Jerry Lee Lewis might have put it, there's a whole lotta yellow goin' on here. The Coast Highway runs between the end of this trail and the sea cliffs overlooking the Pacific in the distance.
The yellow flowers were nearly seat-high in most places but head-high in some.
To the right of this part of the trail is a public vegetable garden known locally as the Tomato Patch.
Sorry, don't have flower names for you. The dominant yellow flowers are daisy-like with occasional white variants mixed in. The purples vaguely resemble Queen Ann's lace.
UPDATE: Per the PictureThis plant ID app, the yellows are crown daisies, and the purples, sea lavender.
Unfortunately, all that yellow comes with a catch: The crown daisy is an invasive species here. And it's winning. Stay tuned for
The Daisies That Devoured Carlsbad!
The pale yellows and pinks of the ice plant flowers on the slope on the right would normally have been a nice show but just couldn't compete visually.
On a tip from my wife, I then headed south and east to Saxony Creek and its steep canyon across Bataquitos Lagoon from our house.
Granted, the canyon walls are MUCH greener than usual now. But compared to the first stop, the wildflower colors were just so-so.
Since I was already in the canyon, climbed to the top just for the fun ride back down. My daily rides are paying off — much easier than when I first rode up this 6% to 10% grade at PAS 1/9 four months ago.
The route home took me back to the northbound Coast Highway, where the next 2 shots were taken.
The sea lavender seems to like roadsides and fence lines.
Below the road was another yellow explosion, this time on either side of the railroad tracks. Time to hit the rail service road for one last immersion.
Another crown daisy takeover. The two-mile service road to Poinsettia Station could one day become part of the continuous "rail trail" planned for coastal San Diego County. For now, it's posted "NO TRESPASSING" — not that anyone pays any attention. From the station, it was another 3 miles home.
