It’s been nearly 8 years since Larry and I drove to La Conner for the annual Skagit Valley Tulip Festival. I’d remembered the best fields for photos, the ones with the old barns and outbuildings, with rows of tulips arranged for the best sunlit shots. With my brain on auto-pilot I drove to my favorite field and it wasn’t there! What the heck, I remember that barn, those trees! What I didn’t remember is that every 5 years they plant different fields giving the old ones a rest.

After several stops at different fields, some better than others, I came upon a new favorite and spent a few hours photographing the lovely field.

Pink Tulip Field
Yellow Tulip Reflection
Tulip – One in Thousands
Tulip Bud and Bloom

These beautiful fields of tulips are grown strictly for their bulbs. Tulip bulbs are BIG business, so much so that the blooms are thrown in the compost pile and not sold as flowers. The exact time of pruning the bloom is crucial for the quality of the bulb. They’d already started pruning when we were there the end of March, about 2 weeks ahead of schedule due to the warmer spring weather.

Pruning Tulips
Tulip Truck

When we left I made a mental note to come back to this field next year earlier in the morning when the sun will be in perfect position for the best photos. Then I was told this is the 5th year for this field. Maybe next year there will be another field with perfect light?

On the way home I spotted an empty field (one put to rest for 5 years) with about 100 trumpeter swans foraging before continuing north for the summer.

And just for fun this furry cow in someone’s backyard. I believe it’s some type of highland horned cow?

Highland Cow

Thanks for reading.
Nancy Cherry Eifert