Pigeon Point Light Station State Historic Park, Pescadero, CA, 3/4/2010
The wildflowers are beautiful along the California coast in spring. This area of the coast is famous for the Pigeon Point Lighthouse. On this day I was searching for a location with a view of yellow mustard flowers and the Pacific coast in the background. I didn't find such a spot, but noticed this hillside of yellow oxalis just below the Cabrillo Highway (CA 1). Yellow oxalis (Oxalis luteola) is native to South Africa, but grows very well in California where it is considered an invasive species. This coastal region of California was once part of Rancho Punta del Año Nuevo, a 17,753 acre Mexican land grant, given in 1842 by Governor Juan B. Alvarado to Simeon Castro, an alcalde or municipal magistrate.
