2016 - our year in a series of pictures

This gallery is Bill's way of doing a Christmas letter to our friends.

A cold January morning when we visited the Sacramento Wildlife Refuge.
egret_water, mountains and sky_P1030254
egret water mountains and sky P1030254
In early February, we visited the Forest of Nicene Marks State Park near Aptos, CA. to see fetid adders tongue flowers. It was a great day trip. This photo of a milk maid (Cardamine Californica) is one of my favorites of the year.
milk maids_Cardamine californica_P1030400
milk maids Cardamine californica P1030400
We also saw redwood sorrel flowers.
Redwood sorrel_Oxalis oregana_P1030460
Redwood sorrel Oxalis oregana P1030460
A very interesting insect landed on this flower as Lesley was taking a picture.
redwood sorrel_oxalis organa_with insect_P1210680
redwood sorrel oxalis organa with insect P1210680
Finally, we found the fetid adders tongue flowers. They aren't very big and blend into the redwood forest floor debris quite well. Light levels were very low in the forest so getting decent pictures was challenging.
California fetid adderstongue_Scoliopus bigelovii_P1030485
California fetid adderstongue Scoliopus bigelovii P1030485
A week after the fetid adders tongue trip, I had a heart attack. The hospital fixed me up quickly but it took a long time for me to figure out what my physical limits were and how to raise those limits. The result was fewer outings and more picture taking around our yard and neighborhood. Our pipevine produced dozens of these tan colored flowers this year. Dutchman's pipe seems a good common name.
pipevine flower_P1030550
pipevine flower P1030550
I went for daily exercise walks in our neighborhood and often took a camera along. I'm grateful to all my neighbors for growing so many striking and beautiful flowers. This pea flower in deep shade was one of my favorites.
pea_closer_P1010937
pea closer P1010937
A day trip to Annadel State Park was our first outing after my heart attack. We had never seen these fragrant fritillaries before but by the end of the trip, we had seen hundreds.
fragrant fritillary_P1040030
fragrant fritillary P1040030
A friend told us about a spot near Annadel with dozens of checker lilies. Such a fine collection of flowers. Thanks, Jim.
checker lily_P1040108
checker lily P1040108
We were able to get a picture of the inside of the checker lily flower. Such unusual flower colors.
P1210931-checker-lily
P1210931 checker lily
We went on another outing to see St. Helena fawn lilies. This one had light shining through the petals and a shape like a skydiver or a falling star that pleased me.
St Helena fawn lily_P1220035
St.Helena fawn lily P1220035
Nearby, we saw some fragrant fritillaries.
scarlet frittilary_fritillaria recurva_P1220026
scarlet frittilary fritillaria recurva P1220026
Baby blue eyes were an unexpected treat on that trip.
baby blue eyes_P1210981
baby blue eyes P1210981
Coming home, we saw a number of canyon larkspur flowers.
canyon larkspur_delphinium nudicale_P1040330
canyon larkspur delphinium nudicale P1040330
In June, we heard about a different species of red delphinium off Coalinga Road. We went on a miserably hot day and didn't find the delphinium but we found plenty to make the trip worthwhile. These prickly poppies were unexpected.
prickly poppy_P1060496
prickly poppy P1060496
We saw several species of beautiful penstemons. This Grinnell's beardtongue was the most unusual for us.
Grinnell's beardtongue_Penstemon grinnellii_P1060518
Grinnell's beardtongue Penstemon grinnellii P1060518
Any day we see a calochortus is a good day. We don't see this species very often.
Large flowered star tulip_calochortus splendens_P1060464
Large flowered star tulip calochortus splendens P1060464
We stopped where a small creek washed over Coalinga Road and found this striking paintbrush plant.
slender indian paintbrush_Castilleja minor ssp spiralis_P1020569
slender indian paintbrush Castilleja minor ssp.spiralis P1020569
We also saw a dragonfly cruising along the creek. They don't always stick around very long so we put in some effort getting good pictures. Lesley had a short focal length lens on her camera but she kept creeping closer until she got close enough.
dragonfly_P1230466
dragonfly P1230466
There were several campgrounds and picnic areas that proved to have lovely flowers nearby. This woolly blue curls plant has flowers with soft cotton candy colors.
woolybluecurls_P1230472
woolybluecurls P1230472
Another stop produced a number of prettyface plants.
prettyface_P1060463
prettyface P1060463
The deer were aware of us but allowed us to get a few pictures.
deer_P1020562
deer P1020562
On another hot day, we went to Mount Tam in Marin County to see leopard lilies. We got there barely in time to see them in bloom.
Leopard lily_P1060658
Leopard lily P1060658
We had several excursions to Mount Diablo. On one fine day, we say three species of calochortus, starting with this yellow mariposa lily (Calochortus Luteus).
canyon larkspur_delphinium nudicale_P1050957
canyon larkspur delphinium nudicale P1050957
A Mount Diablo specialty and always a special treat to see.
Mount Diablo fairy lantern_P1050947
Mount Diablo fairy lantern P1050947
I'm not sure which of two species of white mariposa lily this was. The color and shape are so elegant.
white_mariposa lily_P1060044
white mariposa lily P1060044
We made a new friend on that trip. She pointed out this plant and IDed it for me. We shared the walk on the mary Bowerman Trail with her which made the day a richer experience for us.
Ruby Sand Spurry_Spergularia rubra_P1230078
Ruby Sand Spurry Spergularia rubra P1230078
Near the summit, we saw a patch of wind poppies. The developing seed pods are visible to the left and right of the flower.
wind poppy_P1060107
wind poppy P1060107
lewisia_P1060127
lewisia P1060127
Nice setting for a beetle.
clarkia affinis_with beetle_P1060177
clarkia affinis with beetle P1060177
we did go on one multi-day trip this year to Central California. We saw this butterfly along Nacimiento-Fergusson Road.
butterfly_P1010610
butterfly P1010610
We found a quite side road off Hwy 101 with abundant flowers including this red maid with insect. The pink color is a knockout for me.
red maid_with insect_P1050051
red maid with insect P1050051
We knew of a spot with chocolate lilies and wanted to visit it again. This year we were there at the right time to see thousands of chocolate lilies in bloom.
chocolate lily_P1040649
chocolate lily P1040649
We love to go all over California to see wildflowers, wildlife and scenery. However, some of the nicest things are a few miles from us like this intensely colored wind poppy. Sometimes having a friend who knows where to find things helps a lot.
wind poppy_P1050270
wind poppy P1050270
This jewelflower is my favorite wildflower. I may change my mind but for 2015 and 2016, it has been my very favorite.
Most beautiful jewelflower_closer_P1050176
Most beautiful jewelflower closer P1050176
On one trip with a friend, we saw a single green lynx spider. Armed with that visual memory, he located a group of these spiders with egg sacs.
green lynx spider_with egg sac_P1060689
green lynx spider with egg sac P1060689
Our friend took us to the spot a week later.
green lynx spider_parent and one baby_P1060687
green lynx spider parent and one baby P1060687
The baby spiders were hatching and hanging around with the parent keeping watch.
green lynx spider_egg sac, young spiders and parent_closest_P1060686
green lynx spider egg sac young spiders and parent closest P1060686
As our summer weather progresses, it gets hot and dry in natural areas. I was happy to see (watered) flowers in neighbors' yards that kept me entertained taking pictures. This columbine made me think of an octopus with tentacles hanging down.
yellow columbine_P1020787
yellow columbine P1020787
Lesley continues to be very involved in habitat restoration activities. Here, volunteers are working to plant native plants along Walnut Creek in Civic Park.
P1160627
From 160227 Grass planting
Lesley's projects often involve working with Walnut Creek and Contra Costa County staff and agencies like Flood Control and the Resource Conservation District. This group is putting sandbags into the bypass channel in Walnut Creek to divert flow into the natural creek channel.
P1160661
From 160805 sandbags in bypass
Lesley's every Tuesday group does a variety of habitat restoration tasks like removing invasives like Dittrichia.
P1160694
From 160816 Dittrichia at LR summit