While heading east out into wide open desert spaces recently, I spotted an area with a lot of flowers in bloom. Chasing flowers wasn't my primary goal, but I had some free time and my camera at the ready, so what the heck! A quick stop wouldn't hurt anything.
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| Beaver tail cactus (taken from my yard) |
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| Looking straight down at a barrel cactus covered in yellow fruit. |
Close-up of Chia. The seeds inside these spiky seedpods are edible and have a pleasant minty flavor. They have been called a "superfood" because of their nutritional properties. They were an important foodsource for Native Americans.
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| Desert Sand Verbena |
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| Evening primrose |
The elusive Desert Lily. For whatever reason, they seem to be getting harder to find. I've been told that at one time, they were much more common. They grow from bulbs, and with enough rainfall, they flower in the same area year after year. I wasn't expecting to see so many wildflowers, and the Desert Lilies were icing on the cake! OK, time to leave the flowers and continue on the journey.
Here's the desert mystery part of my post. On this same drive, I came across these strange red doors. I was zipping along the highway and spotted them out of the corner of my eye. Had I just seen what I thought I had seen?? A quick U-turn for a photo was in order! What are they for and why are they here? Your guess is as good as mine.
And yet another desert mystery. Not far from the red doors, but on the opposite side of the highway, is this old fuselage. Very odd.
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| Ocotillo blooms under a feather boa cloud. |
Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you enjoyed the mystery of the red doors!
...I would brake for the red door and fuselage too. The flowers are showstoppers.
ReplyDeleteWhat a feast for the eyes....I thought that about all the blooms, but man the red doors are the icing on the cake!
ReplyDeleteMan, two mysteries. I think the desert is full of mysteries. I think I've mentioned that I spent several days bouncing around the deserts and landscapes between Bakersfield, CA and Topock in a four wheel drive with several engineers with Bechtel researching potential pipeline routes. I saw lots of interesting things but the Bechtel guys were all business, all day, except for the steaks and scotch at night.
ReplyDeleteDearest Peter,
ReplyDeleteThose red (steel) doors are quite a standing mistery!
Also the wingless fuselage raises lots of questions.
But your flower images look heavenly—what a delight to run into such beauty.
Never saw the Chia flower—yep its seeds are well known.
Hugs,
Mariette
Oooo, I love a good mystery! The red doors look like something out of a science fiction movie. Perhaps the doors and plane are actually part of a movie set.
ReplyDeleteI've never seen Chia like that - good to know and the red doors are so very very cool, reminds me of something you'd see in a horror movie.
ReplyDeleteMy guess is a photo shoot for the fragrance - Red door by Elizabeth Arden - and they left them there :-)
ReplyDeleteThe desert flowers are so pretty.
Wow! What beautiful flowers in the desert! And the Red Doors are intriguing as well the air plane ~ such mysteries ~ great series of photos ~ thanks,
ReplyDeleteWishing you good health, laughter and love in your days,
A ShutterBug Explores,
aka (A Creative Harbor)
The red doors look like they belong in an episode of The Twilight Zone. Or Doctor Who. I lately learned of chia seeds as a great thickener for smoothies.
ReplyDeleteThe desert blooms are gorgeous! Fascinating to see how chia grows. The red doors are a curiosity for sure!
ReplyDeleteYou know I love flowers - gorgeous. As for the red doors, I can just see some guy saying let's go dump these old doors out in the desert. Then he decides to "make a mystery".
ReplyDeleteI love wildflower pics! It's interesting to see wildflowers from another region very different from the forests where I hike.
ReplyDeleteThose cactus flowers are gorgeous! ♥ I put chia seeds in yogurt and make chia pudding. Healthy and delicious. ☺ Those doors are a mystery - maybe related to Red Door Perfume, as someone mentioned earlier? My mother wore that. Could the fuselage be an old movie prop?
ReplyDeleteVery, very beautiful flowers! I have industrial chia - it tastes of nothing, sadly...
ReplyDeleteWow on the red doors (the one of our 14-party house is a sadly dark red, btw). A bit scary what you found - area 51#2?
I enjoyed this post very much, especially seeing those wonderful flowers. I eat chia everyday and had no idea! Thanks so much! Aloha!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful captures. A different perspective from you
ReplyDeleteI suspect Kubrick's ghost is active in that region. Perhaps a combination of 2001, Dr. Strangelove, and Spartacus? The actors would be replaced with Chia pets. I think I need a nap.
ReplyDeleteWow, the colour and clarity in your photos is just amazing. Such beauty in the desert. The red doors in the middle of nowhere strike me as someone's art installation.
ReplyDeleteThese are wonderful!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing, well done.
Maybe that fuselage is waiting for a new homeowner. I've read where some aviation enthusiasts convert these into living spaces.
ReplyDeleteOn a little trail near here, there is a single door. It's a curiosity for sure. The flowers are exceptional. You desert continues to provide you with beauty and subjects.
ReplyDeleteOne of the things that has always taken me by surprise when I've ventured into the desert southwest is that amount of blooming vegetation. Many years ago I did a month long dory boat ride down the Grand Canyon and came back with hundreds of photos of various cacti and flower blooms that I hadn't expected when I set out on the journey.
ReplyDeleteAmazing place, Flowers looks beautiful.
ReplyDeleteThere's a sub Reddit on those red doors, but no one there knew why they were there, either. The flowers are a big "wow". You really know how to find interesting things.
ReplyDeleteI'm fascinated by flowering desert plants. I never could get a cactus to bloom.
ReplyDeleteNow I'm off to Google red doors in the desert...
"I have questions" was my first thought. Thanks for the information about the desert flowers! No idea what to make of the red doors. An art project? Aliens? People suddenly missing their red doors because they got sucked into the desert?
ReplyDeleteDesert flowers are so amazing, and few ever see them. I'm not a fan of chia seeds.
ReplyDeleteIs someone going to do a movie scene there or something? When I saw "red doors" I see red. We have a notorious slumlord in our area, whose rentals all have red doors.
ReplyDeleteThere are always artists attracted to the desert and then you have to go a little big. By the way, beautiful cactus flowers. This is not how they do in the living room.
ReplyDeleteA marvellous post, Peter. Your images of the desert flowers are stunning. I'm not sure where you were headed but these would have made my day!
ReplyDeleteYou have shown some flowers before. But I think the quantity and variety of your flowers today are surprisingly beautiful.
ReplyDeleteThose red doors look like some kind of art installation or something to me.
I think those doors are portals to "other worlds" (LOL, been watching too much sci-fi). And thank you for putting a "face" to chia.
ReplyDeleteWorth a Thousand Words
All those flowers are beautiful. The desert lily is a special treat for the eyes. As for the red doors, how odd. It must be someone's art project.
ReplyDeleteThe vibrant wildflowers are absolutely stunning and so wonderfully captured in your photos. The red doors are such an intriguing mystery—I'm tempted to believe they might be part of some hidden art installation or maybe even a remnant of an old film set.
ReplyDeleteThe fuselage adds another layer of curiosity.
Your post beautifully blends the natural splendor of the desert with these fascinating enigmas.
Thanks for sharing this delightful adventure!
Gosh, there are so many gorgeous blooming flowers in the desert!! Lovely shots, Peter. The secret of the red doors... who guess
ReplyDeleteI love walking and seeing your special locations.
What a really lovely series of flower photographs. The desert always surprises.
ReplyDeleteAnd offers an occasional mystery.
I would definitely have made that U-turn, too.
Wow, what a beautiful set of photos! The wildflowers are so vibrant (my first time seeing where chia seeds come from!), and the red doors and the old fuselage add a real touch of mystery to the scene. Have you ever been able to find out more about these desert mysteries?
ReplyDeletethe desert flora is amazing (first time that I see magical chia seeds before their life on shelves). red doors - my guess - an art exhibition ( I am always shocked at what passes as art). and cherry on top - fuselage.
ReplyDeleteIt amazing what can grow out in the dessert. You got some great pictures.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful!
ReplyDeleteWow..those flowers in the dessert is a complete treat for the eyes..thanks for sharing dear :-)
ReplyDeleteThe Art Diary