Orchids, Irises and Forget-Me-Nots: A Titan Spring in Mount Tamalpais

Date: March 4, 2013
Place: The Matt Davis trail, Mount Tamalpais State Park, Stinson Beach, California
Trailhead coordinates: 37.90385, -122.60437
Difficulty: strenuous

I still have quite a few desert-hiking posts in the pipeline, but I push this one to the top of the list, adding a call for my friends in Northern California:
Spring time is here!
It is not just the mustards and the poppies on the hillsides - everything is in bloom, everywhere!

Wildflowers!

Mount Tamalpais, a bit north of San Francisco is ablaze with wildflowers. Nearly two weeks ago the chikas had a day off from school. So I took them along with a friend of mine, who came all the way from over seas to witness the California spring spectacle, to a day hike in Mount Tamalpais State Park.

The Matt Davis trail stretches from the Pantoll Ranger Station all the way down to Stinson Beach. I have walked this trail several times before, mostly in one direction - downhill. It is best to go there with two vehicles and leave one at each end of the trail. Otherwise - be prepared to hike back up or make use of the very infrequent bus or the hard to get hold of taxi service at Stinson Beach.
We parked at the Pantoll Ranger Station, paid the fee and started down the Matt Davis trail. It starts easy, in an open, grassy area. There were many pink flowers along the trail, called Shooting Star.

Dodecatheon hendersonii

Soon enough, the trail enters deep into the shade of the woods.

We kept walking past pink flowers, which I thought to be more shooting stars, until my friend stopped by one of them and announced that hey were, in fact, orchids.
Orchids are the most celebrated flowers in cultivation. Seeing wild orchids in bloom in Nature is a great cause for celebration indeed!

Calypso bulbosa

Cynoglossum grande

A little further down the trail we saw Hound's tongue blossoms. First one or two, then entire patches of them.




The forest of Mount Tamalpais has lush undergrowth of moss and ferns. Fresh new growth shone in bright green anywhere the sun rays struck the forest floor.

Cardamine californica

After with the pinks and the blues we saw plenty of whites as well - Milk Maids flowers.




The high portion of the trail is fairly moderate but the little chika, who objected going on the hike in the first place, started acting up. I took her to the front and gave her the honor of leading the hike. We enjoyed the boughs bows over our trail.



And every now and then - the red flash of the California Madrone tree trunk.

Still on higher elevation, the trail leaves the forest and traverses an open area with riparian spaced trees and a great view of the ocean to the west.

When the trail re-enters the forest it suddenly turns really steep and takes the form of switch-backs with stairs. It is all downhill from there. And a very nice downhill it is :-)

Fern undergrowth

It was at the lower forest where we met the Dauglas Iris in full bloom:

Iris douglasiana

And the Checker Lily:

Fritillatia affinis

And also trees that were decorated with 'beards' of lichen.

Calystegia sp

The slope down to Stinson Beach continues beyond the lower forest and the trail there goes through an area of high bushes, shrubs and vining and climbing plants. Such as this morning glory on the left.









The trail also comes across a cute little brook.  That's the Table Rock Creek.

Eventually, just as the chikas' arguments about who shall lead the hike were about to drive me crazy we made it through the vegetation and into town. A few more yards northwest and we were having a quiet picnic at the glorious beach of Stinson Beach, under the sun.  

The beach at Stinson Beach

I could sit on the beach for a whole day, but the cold ocean breeze and the approaching sunset prompted us to move sooner than I'd hoped. I left the chikas with my friend to have some ice cream at the local market and took the local taxi service back to the Pantoll Ranger Station to bring down the car.

For anyone who loves wildflowers - now is the time to visit Mount Tamalpais State Park. Take a trail from top to bottom (or from bottom to top) and walk through several plant communities, each rich with many wildflowers that are just a joy to see!

Special thanks to my friend who identified all the flowers we saw!  

Sand all around: the Imperial Dunes

 

Date: December 27, 2012
Place: Osborne Park Rd. Imperial dunes, Brawley, California
Coordinates: 32.98347, -115.13269

32.9

After three days of hiking in Anza Borrego State Park we continued east into Imperial County. We passed the night in Brawley and in the morning we drove eastward on Hwy 78 toward the Colorado River. Our road crossed a HUGE area of inland sand dunes: the Algodones Dunes. This is the largest area of sand dunes in California and it is managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).

Many people visit these dunes for fun. The vast majority of them enjoy vehicular recreation of all sorts. They camp in large, transient RV camps, and ride the dunes. They print tire marks on the sand all day long and by night the wind erases them, cleaning the slate for yet another day of fun. The shifting nature of the sand allows people to enjoy an high-intensity activity that would be destructive on any other terrain.
All we wanted was to find a peaceful dune where the chikas could play in the sand. The Officer directed us to the Vista Point at Osborne Park Rd where we got off the car, took off our shoes and took a short walk southward on the dunes. The chikas and myself had a great time jumping and rolling in the sand. Then the Dune Buggies came and despite their protests, I hurried my girls off the dunes and away from the buggies' path.

In short, the dunes are a wonderful place for recreation, but if you are not a buggy rider, it might be better to find a more quiet sand dunes area, such as in Mojave Preserve. 

The waterways of Morro Bay

Date: Sunday, January 20, 2013
Place: Morro Bay State Park, Morro Bay, California

A blue day in Morro Bay

Occasionally we give our feet some rest and move about with the power of our arms. That January Sunday in Morro Bay was just gorgeous, so our friends and us wend down to the park's marina, rented family canoes, and spent nearly the whole day on the water.

Morro Rock

Our 'family' canoe was, in fact, a large duo canoe where two little folding seats were placed in the middle for the chikas. We sat in there, myself in the front, the elder chika behind me, the younger chika behind her and Papa Quail in the aft.
After a wobbly start and a stern warning to the chikas not to lean over the water and have our canoe capsize, we headed out northward toward Morro Rock, where the park's docent had told us we could see otters.
Nearly immediately we spotted this lovely kingfisher perched over the water.

Belted Kingfisher

On the rocks below the trees stood a great blue heron. Papa Quail, who was in dispute with the little chika on who should be using the paddle eventually yielded to my prompts and photographed the bird.   

Great blue heron

We had this sitting arrangement with the idea that Papa Quail would do most of the power rowing. In reality, his paddle was most of the time in the hands of the little chika, who was very zealous about rowing, but not very efficient. So, most of the time I did the rowing and Papa Quail got busy photographing the wildlife :-)

Common Loon

The tide was low and we had to work hard to avoid some sand bars that were very close to the surface. The west shore of Morro Bay featured a wide mud flat between the water and the sand dunes. 

Low tide at Morro Bay

 Numerous birds were scattered along the mud and next to it, in the water.We spent some time floating close to photograph some of them.

Marbled Godwit

At some point we beached on the west shore and sat down for a snack break. To get to the dunes we had to cross a section of flat, wet sand that sank deeply under our feet.
 I'm pleased to say that none of us was swallowed by quicksand.

The dunes themselves provided a great opportunity for our chikas and their friends to run around and get all their wiggles out before returning to the confinement of the canoes.

Dunes of Morro Bay peninsula

Eating in peace turned to be a bit of a challenge. The wind and the children blew sand on the food, and a very persistent gull insisted on getting a share of our food.

Western gull

We weren't the only ones pestered by hungry gulls. We were very excited when we spotted an otter. It was busy eating a shellfish.

Sea otter

And those cheeky gulls were pursuing it, occasionally attempting to snatch the booty from its paws.

Remember that scene from the movie 'Finding Nemo'?

The town's yacht marina is located at the north part of the bay. We had to carefully maneuver among them. It was easier for the waterfowl to do so.

Red-breasted merganser, male, breeding.

One of the floating rafts turned to be a good resting spot for sea lions. They were sleepy, yet quite noisy.

Sea lion bulls.

We beached again at the north part of the bay and sat down to bask in the sun and watch the children search for crabs. A small gaggle of geese floated by and Papa Quail got very excited - we had never before seen this kind!

Brant

After a short hour we returned to the canoes and rowed back to the park's marina. Not before saying goodbye to the group of cormorants that were basking on a nearby float.

Pelagic Cormorant and Brandt's cormorant (right)

What a wonderful, relaxing day that was! I definitely recommend this activity to families who visit Morro Bay. Hang on to your hats, though! We spent at least 20 minutes in retrieval of Papa Quail's hat that blew into the water.

Non of us fell into the bay, and the hat is ok.

There's a Black Hill we had to climb: At Morro Bay State Park

Date: January 19, 2013
Place: Morro Bay State Park, Morro Bay, California
Difficulty: Easy to strenuous.

Whenever we drive south on Hwy1 we go by Morro Rock, standing out on the ocean's background, on the north side of Morro Bay. On the weekend of Martin Luther King's Day we joined our friends for camping at Morro Bay State Park, on eastern shore of Morro Bay.
We arrived on Saturday afternoon and built our camp. Our friends, who were there since the day before, were hiking somewhere at the nearby Montana del Oro State Park and we looked for a nice, short trail to hike until sunset. We selected the Black Hill trail that begins right at the campground and leads to the summit of the 661ft high Black Hill. This is our destination, as seen from early on the trail. There was some grumbling among the chikas when I pointed it out to them, but they were quelled when I suggested climbing the much higher hills of Montana del Oro instead.

The Black Hill of Morro Bay State Park

The first part of the trail is flat and easy, meandering in low chaparral. The aromatic smell of sage and artemisia in the air was strong. I enjoy this coastal perfume very much.
There were quite a few pine trees along the way. One of them had some dead, fallen branches underneath. I liked the pretty spirals of its pine cones.

Dead pinecones encircled by new growth

As we started ascending, we got a very good view of the delta of Chorro Creek, all covered with rusty salt marsh vegetation.

The Morro Estuary

A little further inland the creek made a nice S curve in the vegetation.

Chorro Creek

We reached the road and crossed it. A bit further up the hill we came into a Eucalyptus grove where awaited us a most spectacular sight: a huge aggregation of Monarch Butterflies.
From afar, they looked just like some rusty leaves, shimmying.

Clusters of Monarch Butterflies.

A close look revealed many clusters of butterflies, hanging off the trees, fluttering vibrantly.

A cluster of Monarch Butterflies.

Eucalyptus trees are non-native in California, but the Monarchs love them. These aggregations can be found in many a Eucalyptus grove along the California coast, also in the Bay Area. But it was our first time to see them in such quantities. We were very impressed by the sight.

A close-up of a few butterflies

Eventually we managed to move away from the enchanting butterflies and continued uphill. At that point, the trail becomes steep and slippery. We had to aid the little chika who kept slipping on the loose gravel.
The climb was strenuous but the view on top was worth all the sweat!

Southwest: Morro Rock

Northwest: the delta of Chorro Creek - Morro Estuary

And between the summit rocks bloomed this pretty Hummingbird Sage:

Salvia spathacea

We hung around at the summit for some time, enjoying the view and the lovely weather. Meanwhile, the sun was descending and at we were about to go down, I thought to photograph it's gleam off the ocean and the bay. The sun itself is outside of the picture and the image colors are artificially darkened by the camera in response to the brightness. In reality, it was still very bright and blue, both sky and ocean.

Sun glaze on the water, Morro Bay and the Pacific Ocean beyond. 

On our way down I noticed that the Eucalyptus trees near the summit provided a gathering place for yet another winged animal - dozens of crows decorated their upper boughs. I couldn't quite get them all in the photograph so you'll have to believe me :-)  Unlike the butterflies, these birds were very vocal.

We backtracked the same trail, and on the way down I took the time to observe the surrounding a bit more carefully.
I took notice of the extensive 'beard' of lichen that decorated many of the trees:

Lichen 'beard' hanging off a pine tree

But I liked especially the developing baby pine cones.

The sun beat us to the horizon and we arrived back at the campsite just past sunset. The trail is about 2.5 miles and the hike took us, in leisure, about 3 hours.
The campground of Morro Bay State Part is well developed and clean. It is, however, very crowded without any trees or bushes to provide any sense of privacy. Also, there is no separation between tent campers and RV campers and we had to suffer the generator noise of the RV in the neighboring site. I admit I much prefer the more desolate National Forests campgrounds.
Our friends came back shortly after and we had a very nice evening together. In the morning, we enjoyed the warm sunshine just like these turkey vultures on a nearby tree: