Robert Schwemmer's video: Carrizo Plain National Monument Spring Bloom 2023

Carrizo Plain National Monument Spring Bloom 2023 Carrizo Plain National Monument is one of California's best kept secrets, only a few hours from Los Angeles. The Carrizo Plain made the news during its wildflower super bloom in the Spring of 2019, otherwise few know about its natural beauty and historic roots. It is a great destination for visitors to explore nature, the environment changes drastically in appearance during the different seasons. In December, the plain’s vegetation takes on earth tones contrasted by the white glistening bed of white salt of Soda Lake after it dries out in the summer months. The lake is 3,000 acres, the largest remaining natural alkali wetland in southern California and the only closed basin within the coastal mountains. There are historic remains of dry-land grain farming homesteads and farming equipment as well as ranching activities. The Monument is managed by the Bureau of Land Management along with other partners. The plain is home to diverse communities of wildlife and plant species, is an area culturally important to Native Americans such as the Chumash, and is traversed by the San Andreas fault, which has created and moved mountain ranges, carved valleys and is marked by a subtle alignment of ridges, ravines and pools. Chuck Graham, a freelance writer and photographer, has been photographing Carrizo Plain National Monument for the last 15 years throughout all the seasons. His stunning photography has captured the beauty of the many natural resources of this special place. His book, “Carrizo Plain – Where the Mountains Meet the Grasslands” is now available to coincide with the 20-year anniversary of the National Monument in January 2021. To learn more, visit https://chuckgrahamphoto.com/order-book For my drone friends, I was flying the Mavic 3 Classic