El Condor Pasa: The Pinnacles, East

Date: August 24, 2013
Place: Pinnacles National Park (east), Hollister, California
Coordinates: 36.4785, -121.1839
Length: 1.5 miles
Difficulty: moderate

Papa Quail was disappointed for not having seen the condors on our visit of The Pinnacles west side on our way to the Channel Islands NP, so he was easily convinced to visit the east side of the park on our way back from Los Angeles.
We drove up I-5 and exited at Coalinga: a small town west of the freeway. The land northwest of Coalinga is all farmland. We were alone on the road and were counting the minutes until we get to the park. When we were approximately 30 minutes from our destination, I noticed vultures circling the sky and stopped at the roadside. Papa Quail got out of the car with his big zoom lens and after a minute motioned us to get out as well.
For a good long while we sat there, craning our neck and staring at the birds through binoculars. there were a bunch of turkey vultures there, a couple of red-tailed hawks too, and among all of them - two California Condors. Bingo!

California Condor, adult

Mission accomplished. But no one suggested that we go home, so we went on into the park and hiked a nice loop trail there.

A bit less staggering but no less pretty, the pinnacle rocks of the east side. After checking in at the ranger stating we continued up the road and parked at the very last lot which is usually full but apparently not in August.

The first part of the trail is, in fact, shaded. Between all the oaks and pines out stood the bright-red madrone, its bark curling away in the heat.

Pacific Madrone (Arbutus menziesii)

After a bit of a climb (mostly shaded, thankfully), we entered a curved tunnel. Unlike the west side caves, the tunnel is leveled and convenient to walk through. There's no need for lights there either.

August, yes, but there was water trickling down the tunnel, alongside the trail.

And in that water - a surprise!

Got to look closely, though. The elder chika found it, and had to point it out to us grown-ups before we could see it too.

Red-legged Frog (Rana draytorii)

Emerging from the tunnel, we were facing a narrow staircase carved in the rock and leading up to the main trail. In past visits, we had to wait for descending hikers before going up ourselves. This time, there were hardly any people there (it WAS August, after all) and we had a clear way up to a little dammed lake: the Bear Gulch Reservoir.

Bear Gulch Reservoir

We managed to fined a shady spot by the water, out of the blazing sun.

The chikas didn't stay put for too long. The elder one quickly found the cousin of the tunnel frog:

And Papa Quail soon got active too - taking a series of photos of this lovely canyon wren who was busy dragonfly hunting very close to us:

Canyon Wren

And our common acquaintance, the scrub jay: 

Scrub Jay, foraging

Eventually I too got up and looked for good things to photographed. I didn't have to look for long. Everything there is as pretty as a magazine picture. Particularly the pines.

Cone-laden Gray Pine (Pinus Sabiniata) 

Standing alone or in small groups, these pines grow in some really impossible places, their roots buried in the volcanic rock with hardly any top soil to nourish of. 

Gray Pine (Pinus Sabiniata) 

All around there too, there are those pretty rock formations with the funny names.

I would have named it The Backpacker. 

Tougher than their  surrounding, these last to erode rocks give this park its unique personality and evidently, its name.

This one I would name The Mama and Her Quadruplets ...

Looking closer about me I noticed s srub, still blooming. 

Vinegarweed (Trichostema lanceolatum)

Not much else was in bloom. Intense color, though, was everywhere. 

Lichen

Our solitude was broken when two backpacks, a father and son, came up the trail. We chatted briefly and then they went on their way up the Chalone Peak. We too, got up and started looping our way back on the Rim Trail. I think I'll get my family backpacking this summer. I feel the chikas are up to it now.

Gray Pine (Pinus Sabiniata) 

The vegetation along the Rim Trail is mostly chaparral. Dense enough to deter any off-trail excursions. The post-blossom of the chamise, a common chaparral shrub, added to the reddish hues that are so prevalent there, this time of year.

Chamise (Adenostroma fasciculatum)

And in between the bushes the bright red flashes of the manzanita bark, a relative of the madrone tree.

Done peeling. Mexican Manzanita (Arctostaphylos pungens)

It is so pretty, I couldn't have enough of it.

Definitely not a shy tree. Pacific Madrone (Arbutus menziesii)

As we descended, the vegetation got thicker and thicker, until we found ourselves once more in the blessed shade.

Bushtit 

We arrived back at the parking lot, thus finishing the last hike of our 2013 SoCal tour with Grandma Quail.

Lesser Goldfinch, male

We drove out very slowly, not eager to part from this beautiful park after such a short visit. There were quite a few animals hanging about the ranger station, giving us a good excuse to stop for a while longer.

Condor's little brothers: Turkey Vultures having siesta

It was really hot there. You don't have to believe me. Just look at the deer.

Hot, Hot, Hot: an August Hike to Bear Canyon and Switzer Falls

Date: August 22, 2013
Place: Colby Canyon and Switzer Falls, Angeles National Forest, Los Angeles, California
Coordinates:  34.26633, -118.14570

Difficulty: moderate (strenuous when hot)Length: about 4.5 miles

Last time we've been to Los Angeles, our good friend there showed us around and took us hiking at Solstice Canyon. This time, he was going to take us into Angeles National Forest, to one of his favorite trails: the Gabrieleno Trail to Switzer Falls.
We met at the hotel where we stayed and drove in a convoy into the San Gabriel Mountains. It was a slow drive and our host stopped to show us the after effect of the fire that incinerated the area in 2009. That fire, started by arsonists, had claimed 3 human lives and consumed 650 square kilometers and was the largest in California's history until the Sierra fire of last summer had surpassed it.
Bear Canyon had survived that fire. Deep enough and wet enough, the vegetation there was spared. We parked at the staging area and started walking along the creek.

Blessed shade in a hot day: the trailhead. 

Even in mid-August, the creek was flowing. It was nice to walk in the shade where everywhere else was unbearably hot.

Ripples and Light

The heat didn't bother the lizards. They cherished it.

We met quite a few lizards along the trail. Some were gracious enough to let us photograph them.

 

Whenever I lifted my eyes and looked through the trees I could see the charred evidence of the fire. Such devastation, so close.

Near the water, though, the trees were vital-green, shrubs were blooming and birds were twitting. It was life as usual.

Poplars by the creek

I was actually surprised to see flowers this late in summer. They were right by the water, though.

Fleabane (Erigeron brewery)

The fleabane is local. The chicory is an immigrant.

Chicory (Chicorium intybus), and invasive species

The trail to the falls goes up the hillside, which meant leaving the soothing shade and get exposed to the blazing sun, enhanced by the albedo off the white rock. The vegetation changed too: we were now surrounded by agave, toyon and yucca.

Chaparral Yucca (Hesperoyucca whipplei)

One particularly pretty sight was the mountain mahogany, displaying its feather-like seeds in the blazing sunlight.

Mountain mahagony (Cercocarpus betuloides)

The feathered tails allow the seeds be carried in the wind. Until then they give their mother bush a very angelic look. 

Mountain mahagony (Cercocarpus betuloides)

And another seed display that caught my eye: 

Hollyleaf Redberry (Rhamnus ilicifolia)

In this case the seeds don't go anywhere with the wind, but are carried off by birds who eat the red fruit. 

There were also dead, blackened trees all around. We were happy to go down into the canyon and be back in the shade.

Raven on a charred tree branch

A short walk along the second canyon and we found ourselves by a little pool at the bottom of the lower of the Switzer Falls. We were delayed but a little, when Papa Quail noticed this canyon wren displaying on a nearby rock:

Canyon Wren

But even the wren couldn't hold us long.  A few minutes later we were sitting by the cool of the pool.

The bottom pool of the lower Switzer Falls. 

The chikas were quick to dip their feet in the water. Papa Quail and I followed our guide and climbed to the upper pool at the top of the fall, which was a bit of a risky business. Grandma Quail stayed and watched the chikas.

The top pool of the lower Switzer Falls. 

We didn't go on to the upper falls. That would have been too much for our heat-exhausted company.
It was high noon and very high heat. It took a great mental effort to get away from the cool of the pool and head back up the exposed hill. The chikas were rebellious, which added to the naturally-difficult conditions. We were very fortunate though, to have our friend guide us on that trail. He knew exactly where to stop and show us another fantastic feature of that trail: the Echo.

Sorry, no echo photo, but that's the magic spot.

We stopped on that spot and for a good long break, stood there, yelling, howling and making all kinds of vocal expressions at the opposite canyon wall. The echo was so clean and impressive that we did it for quite a while. The chikas (all of us, really) felt much better after that stop. We continued back to Colby Canyon and up the creek.

Bear Creek water flow

I just can't understand why anybody would want to hike in Nature while carrying a loud boom box with them. Luckily, those we've seen (and heard for a long while) on the trail were going the opposite direction.
We were drenched in sweat when we got back to the parking lot. The trail is beautiful. I would love to hike it again. Probably not in August, though. But Spring Break is coming soon ...

Many thanks to my friend, Green Thumb, for sharing with us the Nature treasures of Los Angeles County and for his wonderful company!

Many thanks also to members of the California Native Plants Society for their help in identifying plans!

A view of Colby Canyon

The Balconies of The Pinnacles National Park

Date: August 17, 2013
Place: Pinnacles National Park (west), Soledad, California
Coordinates: 36.4918, -121.2097
Length: 2.6 miles
Difficulty: Moderate to strenuous (involves rock scrambling and a narrow staircase).
Comment: Flashlights required if entering the caves.

Since we moved to California I had visited the Pinnacles National Monument several times. Recently, though, it has been promoted to a National Park. Last August, en-route to our revisit of the Channel Island NP with Grandma Quail, we had the chance to stop on the way and show her the latest addition to the glowing list of California National Parks.

The brand new visitor center on the west side. With the updated sign.

Visiting the Pinnacles in the height of summer isn't necessarily the wisest of ideas. Nestled in a mountain range once removed from the coast, it can get very, very hot there. Still, we went there and yes, it was very hot :-)

A Pinnacle

The park is named after the massive rock jags that are the remains of an inactive volcano, which was split in half and moved to its current position by the San Andreas Fault. These pinnacles of rock can be seen briefly from Hwy 101, but otherwise they are hidden in the mountain range.

More Pinnacles

Not quite the desert, The Pinnacles is fairly dry. By mid-August the annual plants were all brown and the bushes displayed a variety of colors ranging from rusty to dark green. The trees there are far apart  and each of them stands out in character.

Live Oak

Coming from the west and not planning to stay, we chose to hike the caves and balconies loop trail.

Map section scanned from Tom Harrison Maps' Pinnacles National Monument map. Our trail is labeled yellow. 

After walking for half a mile under the sun we entered boulder area. The creek narrowed into a canyon and the trail went over and between some very large boulders, many of which were decorated with colorful lichen growth:

Lichen on the rock

When we got to the loop we took the right trail, leading directly into and down the caves.

In a hole in the ground there lived ... bats. Sometimes.

These caves are not curved inside the rock. They were created when massive boulders fell on top of the canyon, roofing it. Except for the occasional skylight opening it is dark inside, and the trail can be tricky and slippery.

We took our time to carefully climb the narrow, dark trail.

Light at the end of the tunnel

Waiting for us, after emerging from the cave, were pretty red flowers that grew at the bottom of the stairs.

Hummingbird Trumpet (Epilobium canum)

The Hummingbird Trumpet wasn't the only red color there. The Poison Oak can get quite red too.

Poison Oak being festive

Very few plants were blooming at the time. And even those that did, were at the very end of it. Like this broomrape, a parasitic plant that instead of photosynthesizing, lives on and off roots of nearby plants.

Jepson's Broomrape (Orobanche californica ssp. jepsonii) 

There were many of the cushion-like bushes of the Eastern Mojave Buckwheat, some were even blooming still:

Eastern Mojave Buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum)

But most already wore the rusty-brown after bloom colors:

Eastern Mojave Buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum)

It was very hot and we stopped to rest for a while in the shade. The Clematis stayed in the sun and the light shone through its fluffy seed feathers. They looked like little cotton-ball clouds.

Pipestem (Clematis lasiantha)

After going through the caves and up the stairs we turned left and up to the Balconies Cliff Trail. The Balconies are the cliff levels of the mountain to the west. They tower pretty high over the canyon.

The trail doesn't go all the way up there. Just along the lower balcony.

The Balconies

Up there, just before going round the curve back south, I glances north to the valley beyond the canyon. It was the closest thing to a forest that we saw that day.

As we walked along the lower balcony I noticed the dark, vertical lines in the rock: the marks of seasonal water flow.

The Balconies

Looking at the map now, I noticed for the first time that many of these pinnacles have been named. I wish I could remember which ones are these. Regardless of their name, they are all unique and awe-inspiring. And yes, people do go there to climb them. (But not in the middle of August, apparently.)

Toogs? Osiris? 

After almost a mile of walking along the balcony, the trail descends back into the canyon, some distance before the entrance to the caves.

A view south from the Balconies

The reason the place was upgraded from a National Monument to a National Park is that this place was chosen as one of the sites to re-introduce the almost extinct California Condor. We have seen them there in previous visits, and were hoping to see them again on this one too.

Not quite condors: Turkey Vultures circling the sky. 

But the condors were someplace else that day. We did get to see other birds, though. Little, evasive, and noisy. Good thing Papa Quail has patience for them.

Wrentit

Nothing as exciting as a bobcat on that hike for us. Just a cute little chipmunk. They always make me smile.

Merriam's Chipmunk

Back near he parking lot I took the time to photograph a member of the tarweed family that really caught my attention in our SoCal trip. I like the way the disc florets stick out like eyes from between the ray florets.

Three-ray Tarweed (Deinandra lobbii)

Despite the heat, we had a very nice hike at the Pinnacles. From there we continued south to spend the night in Ventura, where on the morrow we would embark on our cruise to Santa Cruz Island. About a week later we would come all around and return to the Pinnacles from the east on our way back home.

Many thanks to members of the California Native Plants Society for their help in identifying plants!