Fresno in springtime

California in the springtime: full of flowers, tree blossoms, and plenty of sunlight – again, nothing like western mass. at the present time. No despite yesterday being the official first day of spring, we received another 1/2 inch of snow and with winds as strong as they are, the snow will never melt.

Spring will come though, but in the meantime this article on the Blossom Trail that I found in the LA Times will have to suffice. The author and her family were able to take a leisurely bike ride down this magical trail. Below is a piece from “Blossom Trail: Fresno County road trip plum gorgeous” :

We drove several stretches of the 62-mile Blossom Trail on March 1. The self-guided route, which officially opens Feb. 1, showcases this agricultural area’s flowering plum, almond, apricot, peach, nectarine, apple and citrus trees. We stopped first in Sanger for the Blossom Days Festival, its yearly nod to the ritual. The feeling was one of lazy fun. We sat on a curb on 7th Street and dined on plates of barbecue beef and potato salad while petals from nearby trees dropped like gentle rain. Kids gathered them into piles and threw them in the air.

We had come to blossom country to take the annual drive, which covers an area about from Sanger on the north, Reedley on the south, California 99 to the east and Orange Cove to the west (including the part of the trail filled with orange trees). Some trees were just beginning to bud. Others were already bountiful.

Along one length of the trail, we glimpsed the snowy tops of distant mountains, which I first mistook for a long line of clouds. Early March, we found, was a great time to catch the serene scenes.

Peace also reigned at Pine Flat Lake, where we made camp at Island Park, one of several camping areas at this lake, run by the Army Corps of Engineers. The lake is about 18 miles from the Blossom Trail, a drive that took us more than half an hour. If visiting both sites, drive the trail on the way up from L.A. or on the way back home.

To finish the article and for more travel articles, visit Las Angeles Times