Friday, February 27, 2009

Road trip day 1

We went south . . . and found spring.

The tiny flowers above were the only precursors to spring I could find at our house.  In real life each one is about the size of the head of a pin.  All of the trees (and thankfully the remaining blackberries) still slumber in dormancy.

The farther south we came, the more the trees are in bloom.  This is just south of Sacramento.
  


The farther south we came, the more the trees are in bloom.  This is just south of Sacramento.
 And here is how it looked another couple of hours south from there.
We won't see trees bloom like this at home for a month or more.  Our "Pear Blossom Festival" is in mid-April.

We passed  mile after mile of orchards in bloom traveling down I-5 south from Stockton.  Some stretch east into the valley nearly as far as the eye can see.
But tonight we are staying at the Harris Ranch exit.  The stench of stockyards is by far overpowering spring.

Wednesday, February 11, 2009