Russell Johnson Arizona landscape artist

Spring Poppies near Bartlett Lake, AZ

A wet winter in the desert equals a chance for spring blooms. We ventured down to Bartlett Lake early March to take in this year’s “super bloom.” Just a couple weeks prior, this area saw a foot of snow and now Bartlett Lake was filling up quickly from snow melt in the mountain country. The drive from Scottsdale to Bartlett Lake was gorgeous. The hills were orange with poppies popping! We decided to picnic at Rattlesnake Cove and go for a little hike. The poppies were not as abundant here, just a few small patches. Other flowers made an appearance here in purples, yellows, and reds. After the kids cooled off at the beach, we decided to get some photos of those orange hills we saw on the way. We were not disappointed with the contrast of spiny cholla, saguaro, and other spikey plants amongst the delicate orange poppies. Okay, I thought to myself, maybe I can be inspired to paint the desert now. Since then, I’ve made four oil paintings from this trip. Stay tuned for a future blog about that. Here are a few favorite photos from the trip:

Russell Johnson Arizona landscape artist
Green spring in the desert
Russell Johnson Arizona landscape artist
Suguaro
Russell Johnson Arizona landscape artist
Poppies
Russell Johnson Arizona landscape artist
Spring flowers
Russell Johnson Arizona landscape artist
Poppy bloom on hillside
Russell Johnson Arizona landscape artist
Cholla and Poppies near Bartlett Lake, AZ
Russell Johnson landscape artist
Desert Poppies near Bartlett Lake

Thank You!