Our 15-passenger vans enter the area through this locked gate.

Ranger Jennifer Atkins and Park Naturalist Cheryl Bartlett introduce their guests to a shaded canyon with numerous Iris munzii plants.

Iris munzii grows thick and tall in dappled shade along the grassy streambank, under blue oak and buckeye trees.

It's two weeks past the peak bloom, but there are still plenty of Iris munzii flowers to photograph.

Many plants have buds, open flowers, and fertilized seed capsules - all on a single stalk.

Naturalist Cheryl Bartlett provided this Iris munzii photo taken in the same area in 1999 (Natl Park Service database).

Stalks with four or five flowers in all stages of development are found all along the stream (Natl Park Service database).

Photographers had been warned that abundant poison oak might make close-ups of some iris risky.

A young diamondback rattlesnake appears on cue to add a touch of drama to the afternoon.