Flowers of Sun

Sunflowers in Bloom - Pope Farm Conservancy.
8/16/2017          dwm photo

It's a highlight of summer around Madison - the blooming of the Sunflowers at the Pope Farm Conservancy.

I lost track of their progress this year.  The wet spring delayed planting a bit and the first time I heard about the acres of flowers was in a Facebook post asking for help weeding the young flowers.  (No, I didn't.)

Then here they were in all their glory, attracting carloads of fans from miles around.

Two small parking lots easily handle the crowd at the park, but not during sunflower season.

Acres of Sunflowers. (dwm)

By the time I thought about getting out to see the flowers, it was the second half of their peak and the forecast was against me.

Wednesday morning was forecast to be partly cloudy, so I planned a stop on my way to work.

Clouds swept across the sky then vanished before more drifted past a rising sun.  As I got out of my car, the sun seemed to be fighting through the curtain of clouds.

The Pope Farm barn.  (dwm)

This year the patch of sunflowers is on top of the hill.  The flowers are facing east.  From the hill, you can see Lake Mendota several miles away.

The Sunflowers may be past peak, but not by much.

The Conservancy is a living and breathing farm and active place for families and students from around Dane County.

It's available all year.  Trails are used by walkers, joggers, and in the winter skiers take to the mowed paths.

Here comes the Sun.
(dwm)

During the twenty minutes I walked around the field of flowers, the clouds eventually cleared and the sun came out.

This year paths were cut into the crop which created good views up close and at different angles than I've seen in the past.

Angles are everything when it comes to photos.  From the correct spot it becomes possible to focus in on something in the distance with a fuzzy focal point close to the camera.

Or from a different angle (like the photo at left), I could frame two sunny faces with rows neatly stacked behind them.

Some of the Sunflower field at Pope Farm.  (dwm)

If I didn't need to get to work, I could have stayed an hour.  As it was, I left with 120 shots.

Madison has a lot of great features.  I've blogged about a bunch of them.  The arrival of Pope Farm Conservancy's most popular crop is one of the most special.

Just don't blink.  The peak season lasts only about a week.  This year's peak season is expected to wrap up today, so if you want to see this year's crop of Sunflowers, I suggest you get there quick.