Poppies of Hewlett Gulch: A Photographic Adventure in Northern Colorado

I had a neighbor (Kim) last year who works at a local nursery. Her back yard was strewn with beautifully unkempt gardens of flourishing fruits, vegetables and flowers. I told Kim I loved the vibe of all this vegetation, and she said it was a perfect time (late May) to visit the poppy fields at Hewlett Gulch Trailhead, about a half hour north of Fort Collins.

I owned a blue 1988 Mercedes 420sel at the time (miss that car), and I drove that beast up Highway 287 the west on CO-14 till I reached the trail.

I don’t know what I was expected, exactly. I guess in my mind I imagined fields of poppies a la “The Wizard of Oz.” I started down the trail and hiked about a mile before I came upon the first flowers.

Poppies, several yet to bloom, gaze out at the foothills in Hewlett Gulch Trail, Colorado.

After the first glorious display, I saw a “madness of poppies” [I love that phrase] every hundred yards. Some stood as solitary blooms in the shade. Others formed groups far off the trail, drenched in the sunshine.

It made for a beautiful day out in the wilderness (or out of the house and the city, at least).

I love photographing flowers, and I had just bought a Sony ACii with a 50mm lens. Both the camera and the focal length were new to me, and this was a wonderful way to test them out.

If you’d like to experience Hewlett Gulch and it’s poppies from afar, I produced this book of the adventure for you to turn through at home :)

Keep heading out to see the beauty of the world!

Best,

Mark