Monday, April 21, 2014

Skagit Valley Tulips


We made one trip to the Skagit Valley the beginning of April to see the daffodil fields in bloom.  The Skagit Valley lies halfway between Seattle and the Canadian border and is home to the bulb growers, whose fields of daffodils and tulips are a feast for the eyes.  I've already posted the pictures from the first excursion, but at that time the tulips were only just starting and so we made another excursion to the area nearer the end of April when the daffodils were finished but the tulips blooming.

The end of April and beginning of May a tulip festival is held in the area and the traffic and the crowds are horrific, especially on the weekends.  We went on a Monday, hoping to avoid the crowds, but by noon there were too many people for our liking and we went to Washington Park for a few hours, returning at about 5:00 when the crowds had thinned and we were better able to enjoy the display gardens.  These pictures are all from that trip, a trip we make nearly every year.

We went early in the morning and went first to the fields where we photographed the endless rows of tulips, including a field where the flowers had been removed in order to prepare the bulbs for sale.  Finished at the fields went to the display gardens at Roozengaarde's, one of the bulb growers.  The garden there have thousands of tulips planted and for a small entrance fee we were able to spend as much time there as we wanted and to come back later in the day.

The Fields






















































Roozengaarde's





































































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