Visiting the Poppies

The poppies that are sprouting all over Southern California this Spring of 2019 have been causing quite the stir. This mass bloom is the result of what is called a “Super Bloom”; an event where an increase of rainfall during the Winter/Fall seasons cause a high volume of flowers to bloom during the Spring. Two years prior, a similar super bloom happened, but unlike that one, this years Super Bloom has been setting a slightly different tone.

As some may or may not know, if the poppies habitat is disturbed (walking on them, picking them, etc.) they will have a less likely chance of blooming again. However, many have taken little to no consideration about this. This, combined with the fact that the super bloom is already a rare occurrence, is why there has been so much controversy surrounding the poppies during this year’s bloom. Visitors have been walking on the poppies, making new trails, and they have been picking them, which prevents them from pollinating and spreading their seed for future blooms. The poppies are in and of themselves, a very beautiful sight, and I can say from experience, that visiting the poppy fields in Antelope Valley was both an awe inspiring, and disheartening experience all at once.

I made the drive to Antelope Valley, which is in Lancaster, from my hometown of Hesperia; a small arid town native to the High Desert. The drive took about an hour and half. The GPS told me to take the back routes, avoiding any freeway traffic, and I was not disappointed. Although the majority of the drive was on poorly managed two-way roads surrounded by the baroness of the desert, it was actually one of the most calming drives I have ever done. There is something soothing about the desert. It isn’t as eye catching as the greenery of vegetation, and is arguably no where near as beautiful, but the open expansiveness of the desert is oddly relaxing. Maybe this is due to me growing up in a desert, so my opinion may be biased, but needless to say the drive to Antelope Valley was very enjoyable.

When I was about thirty miles out from the poppy fields, I could see in the distance a hue of pink on the side of the mountains. Turns out, it was the poppy fields. That was my first exposure to the eye catching beauty of the poppies. There was so many of them, that they could be seen thirty miles away, so immediately, my excitement began to bubble up. I was eager, because this a was a great opportunity to great some wonderful photos, and experience a very beautiful aspect of nature.

As a got closer to the fields, the scope of just how many flowers there were began to focus. I have never seen so many wild flowers gathered up all in one place. It was truly remarkable. Yet, for about as many flowers there were just as many people. I quickly realized that I was not the only one wanting to experience this phenomenon. Although the poppy fields of Antelope Valley were crowded, it was nowhere near as bad as the notorious Lake Elsinore. With that aside, I parked my car and began to walk into the fields for a much desired exposure to the famous poppy fields.

As soon as I began to walk on the trails, I was shocked to see how many people were just carelessly walking all over the poppies. There were designated trails in the fields, but it seemed no one cared to walk on those trails and would rather just walk through the flowers themselves. This did not take away from the beauty of the poppies, but it definitely took away from the experience. Mass crowds, stepping all over the flowers was one the last things I was hoping to the see when coming out to this site. Seeing the poppies is not something I regret, but seeing how the crowds of people presented themselves in the fields is really what caused my to feel so disheartened. I hope that people will realize the beauty that nature has to offer and, in turn, respect it, so future generations can experience that beauty as well.