A Saturday with no obligations! I head off to the Ventana Wilderness with no particular destination in mind …
The parking lot for the trailhead at Los Padres Dam is gated for some reason these days, so it’s necessary to park down the hill at the Forest Service Station. Read the rest of this entry »
7 Comments | 
Carmel River, Fungus, On Foot, Plants, Santa Lucias, Wildflowers | Tagged: Big Pines Trail, Cachagua, California newt, Cardamine californica, Carmel River Trail, Cynoglossum grande, Danish Creek, Gray squirrel, Helvella, Los Padres Dam, Los Padres National Forest, mountain lion, Ramaria, Rattlesnake Trail, tick, Ventana Wilderness | 
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Posted by xasauan
Pine Ridge Trail near Bad Gulch
The high winds at the end of November brought down an immense number of trees in the Santa Lucia mountains, leaving many trails looking more or less like this. Hundreds of trees, in fact, have fallen on the Pine Ridge Trail between Big Sur Station and Sykes (the most heavily traveled section of trail in the Ventana Wilderness). Read the rest of this entry »
Leave a Comment » | Big Sur, On Foot, Santa Lucias | Tagged: Big Sur, November 2011 wind, Pine Ridge Trail, Sykes, Trail Maintenance | Permalink
Posted by xasauan
We’ve remarked before on the glacial pace at which newly acquired public lands are opened to the public in these parts, so we’re glad the Forest Service has taken the first step toward genuinely opening the Brazil Ranch, purchased almost a decade ago. That step has been to open a trail from the entrance road to the top of Serra Hill, and a trail poison oak infested bush whack from the road to a point overlooking Bixby Bridge. In our tradition of checking out newly opened areas and trails, we went and took a look. Read the rest of this entry »
6 Comments | Big Sur, On Foot, Plants, Santa Lucias, Wildflowers | Tagged: Bixby Bridge, Bixby Mountain, Brazil Ranch, Pico Blanco, Post Summit, Prominence Point, Serra Hill, Uncle Sam Mountain | Permalink
Posted by xasauan
Leaving the Highway. View to the south. Read the rest of this entry »
8 Comments | Big Sur, On Foot, Santa Lucias | Tagged: Boronda, Coast Highway, Coast Ridge, Cone Peak, Mt. Manuel, Pacific Gopher Snake, Timber Top | Permalink
Posted by xasauan
There’s no sign, but the Little Sur Trail begins at this easily recognized gate on the Old Coast Rd. Just take the Old Coast Rd. north, a little under 4 miles, from its south end at Andrew Molera State Park. Read the rest of this entry »
4 Comments | Big Sur, Fungus, Insects, On Foot, Plants, Santa Lucias, Wildflowers | Permalink
Posted by xasauan
Soberanes Point as drawn by Rosa Laura Soberanes about 1888. Rosa was one of the twelve Soberanes children who grew up on the ranch that now comprises much of Garrapata State Park.
With Garrapata State Park on the closure list, we thought we’d post some photos of the wildflowers in the popular Soberanes Creek/Rocky Ridge portion of the park. We didn’t take these today (most of them were taken last Spring), but a lot of the same things – and a lot of things not pictured here – are currently in bloom. Read the rest of this entry »
1 Comment | Big Sur, History, On Foot, Plants, Santa Lucias, Wildflowers | Permalink
Posted by xasauan
Here’s a little of what we saw today …
Chinese Houses (Collinsia heterophylla) Read the rest of this entry »
4 Comments | Insects, On Foot, Plants, Santa Lucias, Wildflowers | Tagged: Carmel Valley, Garland Regional Park | Permalink
Posted by xasauan
While, as far as we’re concerned, every day is trails day, if not head-off-the-trail-and-see-what’s-happening-in-the-trackless-woods-day, this year’s official National Trails Day will be Saturday, June 4. To celebrate, the Ventana Wilderness Alliance, REI Marina and the California State Parks will be offering us all an easy way to help keep the trails in good condition. Sign-up opens at Big Sur Station at 9:00 am, with trail work projects available for “all ages.” They supply tools and refreshments. All you need are gloves, water, a hat, and closed-toe shoes (you weren’t really going to do trail work in sandals, were you?). See the VWA website for more information.
As there aren’t many endeavors in which a few hours toil can yield such satisfying results, this whole “Trails Day” thing is, basically, a sneaky way to get you hooked on the pleasures of this type of work – with the hope that you’ll then volunteer for more lengthy stints on the VWA’s backcountry trail crews. There’s certainly no doubting that the trails need more help than they’re getting.
So here, in honor of Trails Day and to inspire you to get out on the trails and get (or stay) involved in maintaining them, we present some scenes from the trailsides of Monterey County …
Tufted poppies along the Skinner Ridge Trail – Ventana Wilderness Read the rest of this entry »
2 Comments | Big Sur, On Foot, Santa Lucias | Permalink
Posted by xasauan
The Mesa at Garland Regional Park
Hard to remember the last day without rain. With the sun finally shining, we take a look at what’s up at Garland.
Read the rest of this entry »
1 Comment | Carmel River, On Foot, Plants, Santa Lucias, Wildflowers | Tagged: Garland Regional Park, wildflowers | Permalink
Posted by xasauan
The East Molera Trail begins with a moderate climb through live oak woodlands… Read the rest of this entry »
2 Comments | Big Sur, Insects, On Foot, Plants, Santa Lucias, Wildflowers | Tagged: Andrew Molera State Park, Big Sur, Big Sur wildflowers, Pico Blanco, Post Summit | Permalink
Posted by xasauan
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