Skywatch--condors

When Hubby and I reached the high point of the high peaks trail we were thrilled to be rewarded for our efforts by five condors! We had hoped to see them but even on this trail it is not a certainty.
The condors are the largest bird in north America. They had been nearly driven to extinction when the last 22 were captured in 1987 and taken to the San Diego Wild Animal Park and Los Angeles Zoo for a captive breeding program. They began to be released back into the wild in 1991. There are now 321 living condors. (Wikipedia)

You can tell a juvenile from a mature condor by the color of its head. The head of a juvenile is grey while a mature condor has a red head.

Pinnacles, Big Sur, Piru, Grand Canyon, Zion and Baja California now have populations of Condors. Information on the Pinnacles population can be found here.

They are very social birds. I can't read the tags on this pair to see if it is the pair that the researchers think may be in a breading mood.

Unfortunately, not all people enjoy the condors. In the last month two have been found shot but alive. Both were taken to the LA Zoo for rehabilitation. More information can be found here.

Go to Skywatch Friday for more great sky photos.

Pinnacles part III

The next morning we decided to go for a drive along state route 25. It is idyllic country side with rolling green hills, oaks and wild flowers.

What would a rural setting be without a windmill.

In the afternoon we walked along the old Pinnacles trail. This trail goes thorough a canyon with a creek flowing through. A nice riparian habitat.

The flowers were the ones you would expect in this kind of environment.

They say the fiesta flower got its common name because women would use it decorate their party dresses.

I spotted this hanging garden on the way back. We didn't go as far as we had intended. Since it was labeled as an easy hike with little elevation gain we didn't ware boots. We hadn't thought about the fact that a trail along a stream is bound to have many stream crossings.

My world--west central California

Several posts before and after this one go into detail about our recent camping trip to the mountains and coast of central California. Here are a few highlights for those who just want a taste of the area.
Some of the beautiful red cliffs at Pinnacles with Buck brush in foreground.

The endangered California condor, more pictures of these soon.

The spectacular Big Sur coast.

Morro Bay and Morro rock.

Some of the many water fowl in Morro Bay

Roadside flowers on the way to Carrizo Plain.

Carrizo Plain. This has been another drought year and the rangers say the bloom is poor. Many species did not bloom this year. Just think of what it would be like in a good year.

For a more in depth look at this area, please see posts before and after this one.

Pinnacles part II

On our first full day at Pinnacles we decided to hike from the campground and go for five miles total. The trail was level most or the way. We wanted to save ourselves for the high peaks trail on our last day.

Soon after leaving the campground I spotted these little gems.

On a side trail we found theses relatives of the tomato.

Back on the main trail there were several nice patches of Goldfields. Later in the trip we found much more impressive examples.

Everybody loves the California poppy.

Ceanothus is often called wild lilac. Other varieties of ceanothus have a more lilac color. We did see a few of these that were a pale lilac but most were white. They had a faint lilac scent.

We turned up into Bear Gulch for some riparian flowers, here it was shady and cool under the sycamore. The buckeye were just leafing out so we didn't see their spectacular flowers.

This lovely little flower was growing on the slope above the stream.

I had to scramble up the slope to get these guys, they were above the creek out in the open.

Here is where we turned back. According to Hubby's GPS it was just a little over five miles. Added to the two miles exploring around the campground and visitor's center, it was a good day.

Pinnacles National Monument part I

Hubby and I first went to Pinnacles a year ago and we have been back twice. It is a very interesting place with great scenery, unusual birds, beautiful flora and interesting geology.

This post will start with the geology. I'm not a geologist but as a native Californian I know something of earthquakes. Pinnacles lies on the San Andreas Fault. The rock formations are the remains of an ancient volcano that straddled the fault. The rest of the volcano is nearly 200 miles to the southeast. This part is slowly sliding north.

This view is take from the highway on the east side of the monument. The campground is on the east side and while you can hike to the west no road crosses the monument. It would take at least an hour and a half to drive to the west entrance.

The formations are very popular with climbers and it is a great place for hikers like me.

I took this shot because it looked like other formations that I knew to be volcanic in origin.

My next post will show some of the wildflowers we saw and a lovely stream.

In search of wild flowers

Skywatch Friday





On March 22 Hubby and I headed out to go camping and to find some wildflowers. The tail end of a storm was just passing through and it made for some great photos.



In those areas not under cultivation and irrigation, California's central valley and foothills are dry and brown most of the year but in spring it can be green velvet. This shot was taken at an overlook on I-5. Much of the valley did not get enough rain this year to turn green but here it was lovely.

Our first stop was the campground at Pinnacles National Monument where the clouds still lingered. On this trip we visited Morro Bay and Carrizo Plain National Monument as well. We saw lots of wild flowers, bird life and examples of California's seismic activity and volcanoes. I took lots of pictures and will share the best over the next few weeks.

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