Mojave National Preserve - Amboy Area

Desert Wildflowers

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April 1, 2013 Alex reports: Our group of truck Campers was doing the Mojave Road Trail over 3 days, starting on 3/15/2013 in Fort Mojave going west. Here’s some of the flowers we saw along the way. The weather was great during the entire adventure, the above plants were seen between Needle Hiway and Ca.95 on the Mojave Road Trail. Many of the flower and plant were seen along the entire trail in many sections.

March 21, 2013 DUSA reports: Wildflowers near Goffs, Ca on old Rt 66

March 21, 2013 DUSA reports: Wildflowers along Amboy road in the Sheep pass area. The dry like is dry, not much around Amboy Crater.

March 8, 2013 DUSA reports: Some rain has fallen in the park and the Amboy area today.

Jan 24, 2013 DUSA reports: Cold then hot and now a 60 % chance of rain tonight and Friday

Dec. 18, 2012 DUSA reports: Rain today in the Mojave Preserve

Aug 27, 2012 DUSA reports: The Mojave National Preserve - in the Lanfair Valley area - rain with flash flooding, resulted in destruction of roads in many places. Black Canyon, Cedar Canyon, and Lanfair Roads have been closed. Some Lanfair Valley residents have noodled their way out, but we hear others still can't get out. The latest unconfirmed word is that the County of San Bernardino will not begin repairs in earnest until the 14th of September.

Aug 23, 2012 DUSA reports: Big rain storm hit the Mojave National Preserve, many roads damaged. The Creosote Bushes are very green and some with blooms.

Photo taken 8/23/2012

Aug 1, 2012 DUSA reports: Some rain fell in the park last week near Goffs, some rain still in the forecast.

May 11, 2012 Eric reports: I was in MNP the week of May 1, in the Mid Hills, New York Mts., and Lanfair Valley. There are scant blooms of many things, as Alex reported, plus a lot of apricot mallow everywhere, though it is rather stunted. The only carpet display I found was this one, in Watson Wash a couple miles south of Rock Spring. On the bajada west of the wash, the chia were so thick that the air filled with their astringent scent when you walked through them. Areas affected by the 2005 Hackberry Fire Complex are covered with filaree (non-native) which tints the ground pink in the morning, especially in the Mid Hills.

Cacti, on the other hand, are doing well. Claret cup (mound cactus) is starting a vigorous bloom in most places, with hedgehog close behind. Beavertail and pancake cactus have set lots of buds that should open in the next few weeks.

May 10, 2012 Alex reports: This winter was unusually dry and I nearly gave up hopes to catch Mojave blooming this spring. Finally, the area got some rain late in April, I went on a weeklong tour next week, and was rewarded. Traveled from Granite Pass east to Lanfair valley: no "carpet bloom" this time, but here and there nearly every species of flower was present. Creosote was cautiously starting to turn yellow, a few branches covering in flowers on some bushes. Some yellow, blue, and pink flowering shrub was scattered around in small clusters. Tiny flowers, clocks and something else, were not abundant, but omnipresent. Found some daisies, desert asters, canterbury bell, goldeneye, and something I could not identify; some variety of rabbitbrush looked like bright yellow domes.

Among cacti, most actively blooming was hedgehog, while beavertail had fewer flowers; mound cactus, where present, was all covered in buds, some had already opened bright red flowers. Well ahead of other plants, mistletoe had lots of ripe red and pink berries. Escaping from heat, I stayed at higher elevation most of the time. Down in the valley, it was really hot and dry, almost no flowers al all - except for fascinating, dark green in bare sand, beds of sacred datura, that were showing off gorgeous white flowers. I have never seen these before; first spotted them on the roadside and thought - they were planted, then found many more in the wild. Dry winter or not, the spring had sprung, and there were flowers.

Apr 18, 2012 DUSA reports: A few cactus are in bloom there are wildflowers but you have to search for them.

Mar. 2, 2012 DUSA reports: The area is very dry and there's very little in bloom. The Amboy area and Sheephole pass both have nothing at this time.

Feb. 19, 2012 DUSA reports: Crazy Cactus Exhibition opened Sat (2/18) at the Kelso Depot. This is an environmental art youth project displaying sculpture and photography organized by Main St Murals and runs until May 19th.

Feb. 16, 2012 DUSA reports: Some rain fell along old 66 near Amboy and southern part of the MNP yesterday.

Jan 23, 2012 DUSA reports: Botanical Illustration of Desert Flora - Mar 30 thru Apr 1, 2012 Desert Studies Center - Zzyzx, CA. Instructor: Donald Davidson - Learn how to draw artistic and realistic flowering plants in a manner designed to understand the form, function, and identification of native plants. Practice in pencil, pen, and watercolor.

Jan 23, 2012 DUSA reports: Some rain in the southern part of the park and around Amboy.