Winter Rain Turns Spring Green

I cannot say that I have ever seen a Spring as strong and important as this. Winter was full of rain and storms and passages. On February 21st my father passed peacefully at home, and the clouds in the Coachella Valley gathered that day and it rained, and brought life to the dry desert.
Three weeks later a green cast spilled across the rolling hills and rocky peaks and Spring in California was more vibrant than ever.
Traveling from the Central Coast to the Coachella Valley Desert, the landscape is a luminescent shade of green and yellow. The dark, introspective colors of winter have given way to the bright, fresh saturated colors of a new season.
March 17th,  St. Patrick's Day, would have been my father's 100th birthday. It was celebrated by friends and family, and the blossoming of plants jumping at the chance to sprout again.
Here are a series of images gathered to celebrate the continual cycle we experience.
All images can be opened full screen.

Clouds, Coachella Valley, February 21, 2017

March 17, 2013

Snow-capped Rocky Butte, Cambria 2017

Moonset, Piedras Blancas

Storm Clouds Above Green Valley Road, Cambria

Horseplay, Hearst Ranch

Shades of March Green

Coachella Valley Bloom

Alternative Green, La Quinta, California

December 2013, The Living Desert Museum

Rough Seas and Stormy Days

Recent weeks can only be described in terms of rough seas and stormy days. Continuous rain and winds from the North and South have mixed the color of the waters into a muddy chocolate coffee brew while the California coast manages the swells as best it can. And then Spring will come, all bright and green and new.

Morro Rock, Saturday January 21st.

The Breakwater

Shadows Between Storms, Estero Bay

Approaching Storm #3, Cambria Coast

All Whitewater, Cambria Coast

Edge to Edge, Santa Rosa Creek

Freshwater Swimmers

Latte

Double Latte

Ten Feet Tall

Light South Winds and Chocolate 

Breakfast Coffee

Rain, Finally, Rain. The Central Coast gets a good soaking.

After three years of a prolonged drought California's Central Coast is experiencing a rainy Winter.
Here are some images from the first week of January.
All images can be opened for a larger view.

Morning Sunrise, San Simeon

Painted Sky, Hearst Castle

Hearst Castle below storm clouds

Sunset Strip, Moonstone Beach, Cambria

Santa Rosa Creek, Full to the Brim

Santa Rosa Creek, Flood Stage

San Simeon Creek

The Well Field on San Simeon Creek

Personal Space

Early morning exercise along the Venice boardwalk in West Los Angeles, a place for the introverts and extroverts to share the fresh air and get some me time.
10.5 million people now live in Los Angeles County alone, 22.4 million in Southern California from Ventura to San Diego.
After thirty plus years on the Central Coast I spent time in a town I hardly recognize, with friends and long lost classmates. It was a joy to see them all.
An unusual assignment I gave myself was to photograph the people finding some personal space.
At first I was a bit overwhelmed,  now I see the beauty and grace in all of it, definitely a well choreographed morning ritual with a wonderful feeling of individuality and tolerance and willingness to share.
That's a good thing these days.
Enjoy.