Baja Buddies: the Boojum Tree & Cacti

Thanksgiving this year was spent road-tripping through Baja California, with botany on the brain. What’s new? Two plants really stuck out, dotting the landscape along most of our route. Looking back at photos, they really felt like buddies, plant buddies of the Baja. Who are they? The Boojum and ever present cacti! Starting from Tecate, and...

Continue reading


California’s Flaming-Trumpet, Collomia rawsoniana

In this week’s edition of Floral Friday, I explore an incredibly beautiful but shy and elusive flower from the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. It’s not news that California has an exceptionally rich array of flora, including some exceptionally rare and unique plant species. If you’ve read some of my other posts, I enjoy highlighting...

Continue reading


Floral Friday: Ramshaw Meadows sand verbena, Abronia alpina

If you know a little bit about plants and have heard of Verbena plants, then you’d probably be imagining a coastal dune vibe or a desert ecosystem. Well, this verbena can ONLY be found in two meadows in the alpine of California’s Sierra Nevada Mountains. Whhaaaaat? Nestled in California’s Tulare County, the elusive Abronia alpina...

Continue reading


Floral Friday: Spanish Needle Onion, Allium shevockii

Flat tire. Car towed. Rental Car. Four new tires. Thai food. Car camping at the trailhead. Starting the trail one day late. All these were unexpected happenings at the start of our adventure to find this species and other fascinating and “new to us” plants over two days in the Owens Peak Wilderness. Life gave...

Continue reading


Tidy Tips, an overlooked California superbloom superstar

The news of California’s superbloom has probably reached your newsfeeds, or at least one of them. Blazing bright orange poppies, tall purple stalks of lupines, and endless patches of bright yellow dots have been covering hillsides through central and southern California. Of course, shades of deep pink, bright white, lush green, golden hues and everything...

Continue reading


California’s Forgotten Corner? It’s a Naturalist’s Paradise

Ever put much thought into the most southeast corner of California? Most people when thinking about California think about the towering redwood forests of Northern CA or think of the dynamic beaches and cliffs of the central coast. Perhaps you’re thinking of the mighty Sierra mountains, the vast expanses of the central valley, or the...

Continue reading


Featured Creatures of November ’22

Another month has passed on our one and only planet, so following this new type of post from its initial launch last month, I present the creatures I featured on my nature-focused Instagram within the month of November in 2022. This month we explored tidepools in two different settings over a total of six nights....

Continue reading