The Beauty of Tulips
Spring time is a glorious time no matter where you live. I love the rebirth and reawakening of nature, the flowers, the green buds and even the birds chirping as they nest in the woods near our home. It probably comes as no surprise to you that I'm a nature lover, in fact it is the main inspiration for a lot of my jewelry designs. Below is a photo to whet your appetite and can see some of my jewelry designs here,
We happen to live in Washington, which is a particularly beautiful state in the United States. Our region is also referred to as the Pacific NorthWest and we have the Puget Sound, Olympic and Cascade mountain ranges, Pacific ocean, rain forests and normal forests and some fun cities like Seattle as well as lots of smaller towns. It is an area people come to vacation in as it has a huge variety of sightseeing and fun activities for all the family.
We've lived here for over ten years now and as each spring time has rolled around it was at the back of my mind to get up to see the tulips fields in Skagit Valley, about an hour north of Seattle. Sporting activities of our girls often took up weekends or the weather wasn't cooperating (quite common here, and yes, it does rain quite a lot!).
My parents arrived recently for a visit, so with some careful monitoring of weather.com as well as the official Skagit Valley Festival site, http://www.tulipfestival.org/, I monitored the bloom times and the weather and we planned our trip. The general timing for the Tulip Festival is for the month of April, but if we are having an early spring, it is wise to check on the bloom times in the website above.
Wow! We were not disappointed. I'd researched which tulip farm was going to best meet our viewing needs. We opted for Tulip Town at Skagit Valley Bulb Farm. http://tuliptown.com/. It is located midway between Mount Vernon and La Conner which are both super cute towns to visit if you have any spare time after your visit to one of the tulip farms.
Forgive the over abundance of photos (and this is after paring down my options) and feel free to pin any of them. They are too special to not be enjoyed by everyone. I also did not edit these photos as I sometimes do. All these photos were taken on my iPhone 6s, which I love. It was a spectacular day and the scenery did not disappoint, nor did the photos need any editing. Oh, and my parents loved the day even if it meant leaving at 7 am to get there and have time to enjoy ourselves without feeling rushed.
Replica of Dutch Windmill that was on the original DeGoede family farm in the Netherlands. The famly moved to Mount Vernon in 1957 and established their bulb growing farm, the Skagit Valley Bulb Farm.
Landscaped gardens with well labeled bulb varieties for easy ordering.
The landscaping was beautiful around the windmill.
Some of the tulips in the field were not actually blooming which actually means that the season for viewing is extended. I especially love the classic red barns in this scene.
Stunning red and white tinged tulips with yellows behind.
The richest purple tulips next to lovely pinks.
I loved the slight red tinged edges and interior of this tulip variety.
Perfect detailing that is awe inspiring.
Inside the display barn, artist Jennifer Bowman (http://jenniferbowman.com/) had created murals of the Netherlands and the Pacific NorthWest which were the backdrop for landscaping showcasing specific tulips that are available in the bulb catalog. Seen here is a classic Puget Sound scene with a tugboat and forested islands.
Skagit Valley scene by artist Jennifer Bowman showing tulip fields and the Northern Cascade Mountain Range which is actually visible from the tulip farm.
If you've not yet visited Washington state, I hope that this blog has given you the incentive to visit during the spring so that you can see these tulips in person. They are spectacular and I hope you've enjoyed reading this. If it's an additional incentive to visit this area at this time of the year, and you are a flower lover like me, the rhododendrons and azaleas are also spectacular and flower a bit after the tulips. As I said earlier, pin away for all these images or share with your Facebook friends, beauty like this is meant to be shared.
