Wildflowers of Sequoia and Yosemite

Click on any photo for a larger view.

It's been about 6 weeks since June and I got back from our trip to Sequoia and Yosemite National Parks and I'm still working through the images from that trip.  There was such a variety of things to see and photograph in those two parks, plus Bodie and Mono Lake that I've been overwhelmed.   I shared some photos from that trip at work today, which motivated me to get busy and start publishing some of the photos.

We were surprised by the number and variety of wildflowers that were in bloom in mid-June.   It was exciting to see many flowers that we don't have in the east.   It's also a challenge to identify them without a good wildflower book for the Sierra Mountain area of California.   I have published 26 photos in my Photo Gallery under Nature, Sierra Wildflowers   I've been able to identify several of them, but not all.   If you can help me identify others please drop me a note and give me a hint.  I'm especially curious about the yellow and white flowers on the left.  They almost look like someone hand painted them with a white top half and a yellow bottom half.  

Since I've started photographing nature, and especially wildflowers, June and I have both been amazed and the beauty and detail we have been missing all these years.   A few years ago we would have walked past these and said something like "those are nice", without really looking at them or remembering them later.  Now we stop and look closely at God's creation.   Like these Yawning Penstemon (I think that's what they are).

When you get up and look at them they look like they have folded arms and are balding on top.  Some flowers are very tiny and you have to get right up on them to appreciate them.  

I have to share this last photo with you.   Isn't it beautiful and isn't it a great photo of a wildflower?  June took this while patiently waiting on me to finish up shooting something else close by.  I'm very proud of her photo.   It's even more impressive because she took it with a Canon Powershot compact digital camera.

I hope you can appreciate what God has done with these little beauties when you explore the Sierra Wildflowers Gallery.