This is the first of a two part series of photographs taken at Joshua Tree National Park last spring. They were inspired by the work of David Muench and his book Desert Images.

It’s a beautiful, large format book weighing something like ten pounds. The text is written by Edward Abbey who wrote one of my favorite books Desert Solitaire – A Season in the Wilderness which chronicles his time as a park ranger in southeastern Utah. 

If you haven’t been to the California desert, this is the time to go.  The unusual deluge of rain that we’ve had in our state means that the long drought is finally over and the desert is coming alive with spring wildflowers.

Since these photos were taken last spring when we were still in a severe drought and a little later in the year (May) we had to really look to find pockets of desert blooms and we did; some not too far off from the road. But this year’s spring bloom should be pretty abundant with lots of desert dandelions, poppies, lupine, chia and primrose. I can’t wait to get back there again and see what’s bloomed from the desert floor. 

I really hope you do go explore the California desert and discover it’s magic for yourself. If you go now (!!) and you should, the days are warm and sunny, the air is clean and the cool nights are perfect for snuggling under the starry night sky. And if you’ve been lucky enough to get out to the desert and spotted some spring wildflowers yourself, please share in the comments below!