Carizzo plains National monument

Carizzo plains National monument is an amazing hidden gem in California especially in the wildflower season. The wildflower season varies every year, so it is hard to time your visit exactly right. Due to the heavy rains last year, this year was expected to be a bumper wildflower season. I finally got a chance to visit the plans the last week of April. Carizzo is a saucer shaped plain between two ranges the Temblor range and the Caliente range. It is about 50 miles long and 20 miles wide. 

I was especially looking forward to the wildflowers, given all the amazing shots I had seen on instagram. However long story short, I think I missed “peak bloom” by about 2 weeks. By the time I got there most of the wildflowers in high country were done. The shot I was looking for with multiple bright patches of yellow and purple on the Temblor range was not going to happen this year. However I did find a couple of hillocks with small vestiges of cover. 

I rented a Jeep 4x4 and headed out from the SF bay area on a Friday afternoon. Most of the roads in the Carizzo plans require a 4x4 especially if there have been any rains. I made the mistake of taking 101S since it is a shorter route. It took me about 5.5 hrs to make it Carizzo plains. There were construction stoppages & delays all along 101S. I was afraid I was going to miss sunset on Friday evening. On the way back I decided to take I-5 and make it back in 4 hrs. No more 101S for me.

Even though the wildflowers of high country were gone there was still plenty of wildflower action on the valley floor beside soda lake. The area around the Soda over overlook and vista point was still full of wildflowers. Even though I missed out on the wildflowers, I was treated to some raging sunsets on both the days

Soda lake overlook, Carizzo plains national monument

The other interesting spot was along Panorama road, the left side of Panorama road has full views of soda lake and is covered with flowers as far as the eye can see.

Soda lake, Panorama road, Carizzo plains national monument

I also drove up the 4x4 road to the top of Caliente peak. The drive and views from the top are amazing, although the drive is a little hairy. However sunrise shots at Carizzzo are pretty tricky. The sun rises from behind the Temblor range, so by the time you see some light the sun is already fairly high in the sky. I would like to shoot from the Caliente side and see if I can find some good sunrise spots on my next visit.  By far the most fun I had was driving the Elkhorn road on the Temblor range. This is a 4x4 road that runs the length of the plains. It takes about 3-4 to drive the full length of the road. The views are amazing and it is a fun drive!

The other mistake I did was staying in a hotel in Taft, CA outside the plains. It took about 1.5 hrs to drive from Panaorama road to Taft. The distances are not much but because of the dirt roads and the winding roads on Temblor range it takes a long time. Sunset was around 8.30pm and sunrise was around 6am. Adding the 1.5hrs drive on each side does not leave much time for sleep. Next time I will camp in the Carizzo plains itself - there are two campsites on the plains. I didn’t get much of a chance to check them out. 

Sunrize behind the Temblor range, Carizzo plains national monument

Overall it is a fun trip even though I missed the peak wildflower season. Looking forward to visiting again for wildflower season next year.