Wildflowers at 6,000ft

We've been holding off on hiking Grey Rock because we wanted to wait for it to be green and filled with wildflowers. It's starting to get hot in the lower elevations, but after having some great rain the past few weeks to encourage the wildflowers to grow we knew it was time to check this one off the list. We've done Grey Rock before, almost exactly 3 years ago, but it doesn't appear that there were nearly as many wildflowers that time. I think we hit the jackpot of wildflowers on this hike with the beginning of the hike being peak bloom and the top a little early. But the start and the summit are drastically different elevations by over 2,000ft, so there's no way to time the entire hike for perfect blooms. Nonetheless, we timed this hike great and we were both happy to see so many and so many different varieties of wildflowers on this hike.

The warmer weather is getting us excited about our July hiking elopement. Up until now, none of the hikes this year have felt very summery. But with the weather in the mid-70s and the sweat pouring down our backs the entire hike, it's finally summer. It's just a matter of time before we're hiking for more of a purpose than just seeking out a summit. We just need to stay in shape and make sure we don't break any bones.

This is the first hike I've taken my new camera on. I'm happy with the results, but I thought the differences between the new camera and my old one would be a lot more noticeable. I'm certainly still learning this camera, so I'm sure as I learn all the features I'll be able to compare to my older photos and see a more stark difference in quality. I guess I'll just have to keep shooting with it and make sure I really know how to make the best out of it.