Arizona has received a lot of rain this winter and spring, and there’s plenty to see outdoors.

The abundance of water has resulted in an explosion of wildlife and wildflowers throughout the county.

Perhaps most impressive are the beautiful poppy fields found in the Black Mountains and Golden Valley.

I took two day trips through the Golden Valley on old Hwy 66 and the orange poppy fields, yellow brittlebushes and purple lupines are the best.

Most recently, Becky Foster and I traveled down the Aztec Road in the Golden Valley and found vast poppy fields just off the road. You don’t need a 4×4 to see these flowers. The Azteca is a paved road for any vehicle.

it was beautiful.

The other day, while driving on Interstate 40 near Yucca, I could clearly see the poppy fields beside the Black Mountains.

Giant patches of poppies can also be found near Oatman, and the drive on old Highway 66 through Sitgreaves Pass is simply amazing.

On our drive to Lake Havasu we witnessed some wildflowers of different types that appear amazingly in a wet year.

Drive up to Meadview and you won’t believe how green it is!

In short, it’s the perfect time to get outside and explore the flora and fauna found in Mojave County.

One of the sights I’ve lost over the years is a pair of Gumbel quail running around. What this means is that we will be seeing far more quail than ever before.

More and more songbirds sing ritual mating calls. That means more songbirds this year.

Mother Nature can be a cruel woman when it comes to life in the desert. But she’s shown us the wonders of the desert, which has been flooded with life-giving rain in recent years.

thank you. Get in your car and drive to areas such as the Black Mountains and Golden Valley, which have been heavily affected by this year’s heavy rains.

And don’t forget to bring your camera. It may be years before we see these wildflowers again in Mojave County.