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| >> January 21, 2013 >>> Pinnacles National Monument Park  We went to another lesser known gem for a few days after Christmas. Pinnacles is the site of a gargantuan ancient volcano in California's Central Valley, and named for its red rock formations and spires. On January 10, it was designated a national park, the newest in the NPS system, so we were among the last visitors to Pinnacles National Monument.It's a beautiful place but I'm not sure if it's got enough for full national park status? Ehh, they didn't ask me. It's mostly a climbing and hiking area and there are no roads that connect the east and west sides of the park. We used the eastern entrance to get to the campground, which is very nice, large and spread out.  We'd had a lovely drive down Highway 25, often cited as one of the best scenic roads in the state for motorcycling, so you can imagine how nice it was with its gentle curves and views of the countryside. We arrived late and it was cold and overcast, but there were quite a few other folks there braving the elements.The next day we drove along the park road catching views of the pinnacles and spires around us, and we decided to try one of the cave hikes. Pinnacles is known for its talus caves and a huge Townsend's big-eared bat colony. Bear Gulch cave is sometimes closed when the bats are hibernating but was open this time of year, so off we went. It was far from crowded and we didn't come across many people along the way. Most of those we met or passed on the trail were Japanese tourists. Again, it's a beautiful place, but I wouldn't have expected it to be a top California destination in Japanese guidebooks.   It was a bit drizzly but we set out on the well-maintained trail, passing a group of rapelling climbers on a cliff face, and lots of impossible rock formations and moss-covered boulders.It had rained a lot the week before so there were some puddles and slippery rocks to climb over here and there, but it was very do-able even though we were just wearing sneakers. This is another no-dogs trail, so Trixie stayed safe and snug back in the van, and we didn't have to worry about her footing along with our own.  In a few places, the trail narrows and you have to squeeze between towering, balancing boulders or duck under low rock overhangs. In a few awkward spots, you have to do both. When we entered the cave itself, it was dark-dark - flashlights are required - and we began to climb up a combination of graded trail and cement steps.There are waterfalls inside the cave that make a tremendous roar but they aren't as big as they sound: most of the sound is exaggerated by echoes. But we did get sprayed with mist in places and splatted with huge drips in others, all the while swinging our flashlights around. We had to keep watching ahead, above, right and left, making sure we didn't bonk ourselves in the head and to watch for others coming back down the single-file trail, and of course ever looking for where to take the next step.  My flash didn't work but I boosted the brightness in this shot to show the cascading waterfalls that we heard and felt more than saw. It was quite an adventure, and we loved it.The other thing Pinnacles is known for is that it's one of the release spots for hand-raised California condors. They're ugly scavengers with a face only a mother could love, but they're the largest land bird in North America with a wingspan averaging ten feet, and absolutely majestic in flight. There were only 22 left in the wild in 1987, so it was decided to capture those to start a breeding program to help them come back. And it's working: now there are about 400 total, including over 200 in the wild.  The campground has a condor viewing spot with telescopes but we hadn't seen any until we started to pack up to head home, when we spotted a couple huge birds atop trees in the campground, stretching their wings. Although we weren't sure they were condors, we assumed they were from their size, and we considered our visit complete.On the way out of the park, we spotted a large group of very large birds. We see a lot of wild turkeys and these looked bigger than turkeys, but we didn't dare chance spooking them by getting out of the van to get a better look. While I don't know if condors gather in groups on the ground like this or not, I'd like to think that's what they were.. they really did look bigger than turkeys. >> January 21, 2013 >>> Closer to home  Those following me on Instagram or Twitter know about my neighborhood peacocks but I don't think I've mentioned them here yet. There are a couple dozen of them that live a few streets over from me, close enough to see them regularly, but far enough that their poop or loud twilight squawking aren't problems. They don't belong to anyone, but various folks on the two parallel streets they live on put out food for them. They're a fun sight on dog walkies when we go in that direction.Occasionally one or several of them will roam down here into my complex. It's kind of disconcerting to open your door to three-foot tall birds, but you get used to it.   It's especially fun when new babies come along. These guys were maybe 8" tall when I snapped them, and covered with more fluffy down than feathers. They were already big enough to fly up to fencetops and from there to their night-time trees when their momma honked at them to follow her. The babies grow fast, but the magnificent male tail feathers aren't grown and ready to fan until they're two or three years old.One of this year's peachicks is white, and I'm hoping he's male: a quick search for white peacock images will show you why. They're simply spectacular creatures.  We've continued to visit our various local campgrounds now and then, and always enjoy seeing wildlife. This ground squirrel graciously posed for me a few inches from my feet.Around here we see a lot of squirrels, raccoons, skunks, wild turkeys, the occasional ugly possum, and deer. Mountain lions, coyotes, and foxes are also around, but rarely seen.   The campground at Del Valle Regional Park above Livermore almost always has deer that come out at dusk. It's hard to get close enough to get good pics of them, but I get lucky once in a while.Late one night I heard them outside the van so I stepped out and discovered 20 or so munching the grass in the dark. I stayed as still and quiet as I could, and apparently they didn't think I was a threat. I watched them from a few feet away for about 15 minutes until they wandered off - it was just magical. >> January 20, 2013 >>> Bonus recipe: fun & easy camp omelettes Zip storage bags aren't meant for cooking so make these at your own risk. We've done them several times with no ill effects, but I wouldn't suggest making them on a daily basis. Use freezer bags rather than regular sandwich bags as they're heavier and will stand up to the heat just fine. For each omelette, break two eggs into a quart size zip freezer bag, zip them closed, and smoosh around until the eggs are blended. Add some cheese, chopped onions, bacon bits, sausage pieces, mushrooms, salsa - whatever you'd like in your omelette - and zip closed again. Place bags in boiling water for about 10 minutes. You can see the egg consistency on top of the omelettes to gauge doneness. When you unzip the bags, the omelettes roll cleanly out onto plates. They'd be great fun for kids, and there's no cleanup! >> January 19, 2013 >>> Catching up, again: Lassen Volcanic NP  Once again I'm late posting but am finally catching up, largely thanks to a few of you who have asked for updates, so thanks for that incentive! The last couple of trips were fantastic, and I think worth waiting for.Last June we went to Lassen Volcanic National Park in Northern California, one of the lesser known jewels of our national park system. It's got dramatic peaks, serene forests dotted with lovely alpine lakes, clean mountain air and super-starry night skies, landscapes to die for, active geothermal features, and what's considered an active volcano as its centerpiece. Driving into the park from its southwest entrance, we were treated to stunning views of Lassen Peak as the road gradually climbed up to 8,500 feet, just 2,000 feet shy of the summit.   Lassen doesn't have much of a summer season, and there were still patches of snow on the ground as we wove through the park and its kooky-titled areas of interest like Sulphur Works, Bumpass Hell, and Cold Boiling Lake. A bright sunny day made for comfortable driving, even a bit warm, and Trixie the papillon decided to freshen up by splatting into the hard-packed dirty roadside snow when we took her out to explore it. One of the prettiest sights along the way is Lake Helen, where minerals combine with melting ice to give it the most gorgeous stripes of turquoise, various blues, grays and whites. Not far past that is the trailhead for the summit which we passed right on by, not being mountain climber types.We also skipped the Bumpass Hell trail this time, but I've done it before and highly recommend it. It's not an overly long or difficult hike, but well worth it to see the bubbling mud pots, sulphur pools, and other tweaky things that seem like science fiction, along with beautiful scenery along the way, of course.  We moseyed along, stopping here and there to gasp at the scenery, and eventually arrived at our campsite at Summit Lake. We were on the lake side of the campground, with only a small deserted parking lot between us and the pure peace and calm of the tree-lined deep blue lake. It was the campground's first open day of the season but luckily there was no snow there since it's at a bit lower altitude than where we'd been. It did get quite chilly when night fell but a roaring campfire and our cozy van made it more than bearable.Years ago I did a backpacking trek here with a friend. We took off from this spot and hiked a loop trail for a week or so, passing and camping by a half dozen other lakes, each of which was just as pretty. It was a wonderful trip but my backcountry days are in the past - I'm all about comfort now.  The next day these two refurbished old cars were parked at the lake, making us appreciate our comfortable ride even more. If I draw down the color, they look like any of the visitor center old-time black & white photos of intrepid park visitors back in the day, but these two looked really snappy with their red paint jobs, so I've kept them as is.  In fact, color was everywhere. Moss and lichen was a gorgeous and "unnatural" day-glo neon green, and all around the campground were these tiny pink flowers that almost formed a pink carpet when viewed from afar. I never did find out what they were or if they're unique to the area, but we saw them in various places around the park. As we drove further along the park road, we came across green meadows with crystal clear streams cutting through them, carrying the snowmelt to wherever it was headed. Coming around the other side of Lassen Peak, we stopped at the appropriately named Devastated Area to walk the self-guided trail with markers explaining the volcanic part of Lassen Volcanic NP. The mountain began erupting steam and lava in 1914, culminating in a gigantic Mount St. Helens type blast in May 1915 that blew off great chunks of its top, creating new craters, and causing a pyroclastic flow that literally devastated the entire area. It spewed ash and gas 30,000 feet high that could be seen from 150 miles away, and huge cabin-size boulders were dropped that stayed too hot to touch for days afterward. Thanks to warnings and the remote location, nobody was killed, but it remains one of the most awe-inspiring events of the 20th century, and it could happen again. Farther along the park's main road, we came to the (again) appropriately named Chaos Jumbles at the foot of a relatively young group of lava domes called Chaos Crags. Eruptions 300 years ago sent an avalanche of rock down their flanks at 100 miles per hour, flattening the forest and damming a river to form Manzanita Lake, our second night's destination. The rocks aren't big, at least those near the road, but they stretch for more than a mile.. another spot you wouldn't want to be when/if things heat up again, and another spot that takes your breath away.Interestingly, Lassen Park is one of the few places in the world that contains all four types of volcanoes: plug dome, shield, cinder cone, and strato (for the geologically inclined).   Manzanita Lake is near the northwest entrance to the park and more developed than most of it, which means it has a store and gas station, showers, laundry, and quite a large campground. We had a nice spot with friendly neighbors, but we weren't right on the lake like we'd been at Summit. We walked over to check it out and were glad we did as it was just lovely. We were able to get quite close to a flock of Canadian geese until a ranger shooed us away, since Trixie was with us and we were in a no dogs area. We went to the nighttime ranger talk which was cute, as they usually are, and we learned more about the various critters that live in the area. The next day we left the park and headed west into Redding, and then back home.Although this was just a two-night trip, it was one of the best we've had yet. I'd been to Lassen several times before but it's one of those places I can always go back to. It's got more cool things to see than many national parks, and its beauty is unmatched. It's also next door to the area Ishi lived, the "last wild Indian" in the US, who was found in 1911 after hiding out 40 years. He spent the rest of his life teaching UC Berkeley & UC San Francisco anthropologists what his life and people were about. Not surprisingly, Mount Lassen was sacred to them. Ishi is a familiar name to anyone who attended 4th grade in California, and his is a fascinating story  to revisit or to introduce yourself to if you don't know about him. |
entries latest october/november 2013 ~ brannan island, pinnacles march 2013 ~ capitol reef, arches, moab, donner march 2013 ~ virgin river gorge, zion, bryce, anasazi january 2013 ~ pinnacles, peacocks, omelettes, lassen june 2012 ~ burney falls, death valley, turkeys may 2011 ~ delta, eucalyptus, redwoods march/april 2011 ~ diablo, morgan hill, delta, chabot february 2011 ~ sundial, shasta, river road, delta, olema january 2011 ~ columbia, chabot, diablo, preparations much more to come, hopefully low frills I'm not set up for comments, blogrolls, profiles and the like, but please follow and/or talk to me on Twitter. I'm also on Facebook but it's pretty much focused on my Big Brother site Hamsterwatch, and anyway, I prefer the short attention span aspect of Twitter follow me on Instagram where most of my travel pics show up in a timelier manner than they do here  about me I believe the essence of a person is what counts, and that comes out through words, actions, and creations, not vital stats. Also, since I'll be on my own out there on the open road, I'm not real keen on making myself too visible. Suffice to say I'm a crotchety, intuitive, decrepid old lady who's equally appreciative of life's basics and its complexity. I like unicorns, rainbows and long walks on the beach reality tv, documentaries & unique movies of all types, memorable fiction, being awestruck, and nature's majesty. I do financial transcription work as well as running websites of my own and for a few clients. Serial killers fascinate me. I have an adorable little papillon dog but I only make her wear clothes on special occasions. Or when it's very cold. Good Sam RV Parks: Top rated parks across the country. Listings on over 2,100 RV parks! |
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