Goldfields on the Carrizo Plain

Lasthenia

Goldfields usually bloom from early March to early May on the Carrizo Plain, with the best color from late March into mid-April.

early March – early May Best: late March into mid-April Out of season

The show usually starts around early March. Check back closer to the season.

Based on reports from iNaturalist naturalists. 129 flowering reports from San Luis Obispo County shape this curve. The shaded band marks the best weeks; the dashed line is this week.

Where to see them

In a wet year the Carrizo goes yellow to the horizon — the bloom you can see from space. The monument's dirt roads are impassable when wet, so time the drive after things dry out.

Carrizo Plain National Monument (Soda Lake Road)
Temblor Range viewpoints inside the monument

We name public reserves, parks, and roads only — never exact pins, never private land.

Nearby on the calendar

Tidy tips on the Carrizo Plain — best late March into mid-April

Updated August 14, 2026. Bloom timing varies with the year's weather — the curve shows the usual rhythm, and in-season updates sharpen it.