The last so-called wildflower "Super Bloom" to occur in Death Valley National Park happened in 2005. The next one may very well be this year and is already in progress in parts of the park.
On October 18, 2015, Death Valley suffered a historic flood event. By early January, the first wildflowers started to bloom in the southern part of the park, much earlier and more profusely than typical years. More rain has helped build momentum by keeping the plants healthy and growing. On January 6, 0.2 inches of rain fell and on January 31, another storm brought 0.32 inches of rain, as measured at Furnace Creek. These three rain events, along with the current profusion of wildflowers, make it likely that this wildflower year in Death Valley could be the best since 2005. All photos in this post were taken this year (January and February 2016).
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