Photo: Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve
A super bloom of golden poppies along the hills of Lake Elsinore in Southern California has caused an influx of tourists to the area, with onlookers waiting hours to see the flourishing florals up close.
But on Monday, one pair decided to beat the long lines and traffic jams, landing a helicopter smack in the middle of the Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve instead.
A photo of the landed helicopter was posted to the Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve’s Facebook page, though it has since been deleted.
Landing helicopters in the poppy reserve is illegal. Officials from the California State Parks did not immediately respond to PEOPLE, but deputy director of public affairs Gloria Sandoval told CNN Travel, “at this point, it’s under investigation.”
The Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve have been urging visitors to stay on the designated trails and tread lightly in order to protect the wildflower bloom from trampling.
Officers have also been handing out citations to people for parking outside the boundary and illegally entering the park through barbed-wire fencing and hurting the flowers.
“It only takes a few to wreck the habitat for years to come,” a representative for the Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve wrote on the organization’s official Twitter account, pointing out that still “there are areas in the reserve that haven’t recovered from trampling in 2017.”
People visit the ‘super bloom’ of wild poppies.Mario Tama/Getty Images
Monday’s helicopter incident comes a week after the city announced they were discontinuing shuttle services and shutting down ramps to the area.
Causing the closure was an “unbearable” weekend of gridlock traffic that city officials said “has been miserable and has caused unnecessary hardships for our entire community.”
“The situation has escalated beyond our available resources,” officials wrote onFacebook on March 17, explaining that the city pulled out every resource they could in order to keep crowds under control.
“Residents have been screaming at the people directing traffic,” Lake Elsinore Mayor Steve Manos wrote on his own post. “Met people from Sacramento. Estimated 50,000 visitors. Twice as many as last weekend. People lined up since 5:30 am. It’s insane.”
Wildflowers bloom among the charred remains of chaparral brush.David McNew/Getty Images
Since then, the city has come up with new plans to manage the crowds, working with Caltrans District 8 and the California Highway Patrol for help.
The bloom is expected to remain through April.
source: people.com
