Wavamai or Palomar Mountain

The Luiseños Indians called this area Wavamai. When the Spanish arrived, they named the area “Palomar” (place of the pigeons). Renaming the mountain was the least of the ill-effects wrought by the Spanish on the Luiseños. The disruption of their way of life and European diseases devastated the Luiseño population. But not completely. Today gambling casinos extract the long overdue payment to the Luiseños for past wrongs. (I know. I know. I just like to look at it as some sort of poetic justice.)
A visit from Boston-area Scott and Don provided the perfect excuse to escape the city and hike the Palomar Mountain area. Palomar Mountain is home to the world-famous Palomar Observatory at its 6,100 foot peak. Hot in summer and snow-capped in winter, spring is a great time to explore the area.
We hiked the Thunder Spring-Chimney Flats loop which starts at Doane Pond and climbs through some nice oak-shaded woods. Last October’s fire reached this area and a portion of our hike was through stark remains of burnt oak and pine trees. An abandoned apple orchard was nonetheless blooming. The four-mile hike was a perfect mountain stroll. On this hot weekend (the valley below was in the 90’s) the mountain air was only 75.

Wildflowers in Anza-Borrego Desert - Part 2

The brittlebush creates splashes of color on hillsides all over the desert. Descending via Montezuma Valley Road (highway S22), we saw brittlebush all along the road. These wildflowers were also numerous along the Palm Canyon Trail (especially the alternate trail) and Little Surprise Canyon Trail.
Besides heat, these caterpillars are a reason why wildflowers disappear.
If I were a botanist I could tell you the name of this unidentified field of white flowers glowing in the late afternoon light at Little Surprise Canyon.
Closeup of a brittlebush bloom.
Broom-rape, a parasitic wildflower.
Closeup of a desert chicory bloom with its etched petals.
Closeup of a desert poppy bloom.

Wildflowers in Anza-Borrego Desert

While a bit past its prime, the spring wildflower blooms were still plentiful in Anza-Borrego this week. The hike to Palm Canyon, an easy 3-mile roundtrip, gives you a waterfall, a stream, and a palm grove (in the wild!) of California fan palm (the only palm tree native to California). And, of course, many species of wildflowers. In this photo, the yellow are brittlebush and the large cactus on the left is an ocotillo. Here is a sampling of some blooming cactus for you.
Barrel Cactus
Beavertail Cactus
Teddy-Bear cactus (also known as “jumping cactus”)
A trio of plants: Brittlebush in the foreground, Beavertail cactus, and the lower portion of an Ocotillo. Finally, here is a stately ocotillo with its crimson blooms waving high and majestic. More wildflower photos to come.

Hiking to Hanakapiai Falls in Kauai

The Kalalau Trail on the north shore of Kauai (Hawaii) is a hiker's dream. Backpacking is required to complete the entire 11-mile (one way) hike, but day hikers also have several choices. Our goal was the 4-mile trek to Hanakapiai Falls, a challenging 8-mile roundtrip hike in good conditions. In rainy December, it becomes a treacherous slip and slide of chocolate ooze. Still, the vistas on the first 2-mile leg along the legendary Na Pali Coast are phenomenal.

We started at the end of the road at Ke'e Beach, the trailhead for the Kalalau Trail. The path climbs steeply for a mile, then descends a mile to Hanakapiai Beach. Just before reaching the rocks and sands of the beach, numerous signs warn against swimming in the dangerous rip currents and urge you to notice tidal wave warnings or receding water.

The trail to Hanakapiai Falls then follows the Hanakapiai (what else?) Stream up the valley, crossing the stream numerous times. My boots were soaked because I forded the stream by walking through the water; there were no other possible crossings.
We were rewarded with a gorgeous 300-foot waterfall and swimming hole. The mist of the falls and the mist of the rain made a surreal atmosphere. Or, perhaps in the haze of an oxygen-deprived brain I let my mind wander.
The return trip was made difficult because my muscles didn't like going down. Each step taxed my poor knees. Still, I live for this hike.

Above Malibu and Montecito

Last weekend we took a mini road trip. Day One was to Westwood to visit son Kellen at UCLA, where we watched the UCLA basketball team win another one. The next morning leaving Westwood, we drove west on Wilshire Blvd. and picked up the somewhat hidden ramp that leads down to the coast and hooks up with the Pacific Coast Highway (known in these parts as PCH, or simply Highway 1). From Santa Monica, PCH hugs the coastline in a lazy loop out towards Point Dume, a landmark in Malibu. Around Point Dume the Santa Monica Mountains go straight down to the ocean, leaving a small bit of land for the road. Here, several roads lead up the many canyons into the mountains, giving day hikers ocean vistas. On a clear day, the view is spectacular.
We drove through Malibu to Encinal Canyon Road. Our destination was a day hike that would give us great views, be not too arduous and 2 or 3 hours long. We consulted John McKinney’s Walking Southern California: A Day Hiker’s Guide to choose this Malibu area hike. The road snakes up a canyon and at about 4 miles we turned into the Charmlee Natural Area, a nature preserve run by the city of Malibu. The Ocean Vista Trail is an apt-named series of trails that traverse meadows, shady oak groves, and a fabulous bluff offering inspiring views of the Pacific, Catalina Island, and the Channel Islands off the coast of Ventura and Santa Barbara. The trails are fairly level. We saw no other hikers and briefly shared the trail with a lone woman on horseback. The steady breeze and Santa Ana temperatures gave us a sparkling day that felt like summer.
We continued up Pacific Coast Highway past Point Mugu to Oxnard, Ventura, and headed to Santa Barbara, where we used to live while Paul was in graduate school at UCSB. My heart tugs at the immediacy of the coastal beauty here: the islands are in your face right off the coast (as shown in the photo below) and the mountains are so near that they seem much higher than their 3,000-plus foot peaks.
The day following our Malibu trek, we took to the mountains above Santa Barbara (dubbed the “front range”). From Montecito, we started at the Cold Spring trailhead and took the McMenemy Trail fork to Montecito Overlook (majestic, indeed). From Montecito Overlook you can see (northwest) up the coast to Goleta and beyond. Looking south you see Santa Cruz Island, one of the Channel Islands that dot the coast off Santa Barbara. Looking southeast gives you more coastline towards Ventura and its range of mountains.

Iron Mountain Hike

The previously hiked Mt. Woodson (2894 ft.) is a sister hike to San Diego County's Iron Mountain (2696 ft.), known for its "rough terrain, spring wildflower shows, diverse plant communities, rattlesnakes, hot summer days, and large boulders." (Poway Trails Guide.) But in November there are no spring wildflowers, hot days (warm, but not hot), nor rattlesnakes. Iron Mountain is an easier hike, being both shorter (6 miles instead of 8) and less of an elevation gain. Its views, especially looking east towards Cuyamaca Peak (6512 ft.) are spectacular. The following photo shows our destination: Iron Mountain taken from about half-way up the trail.
This next shot shows our starting point: Highway 67 and Poway Road.
Vegetation along the hike is fairly uniform. It is still in recovery from the devastating 2003 Cedar Fire so new growth is all about the same age and size. Here is a prickly pear cactus with fruit.
Finally, we reach the summit, where a picnic bench affords a luxurious lunch spot.

Next Entry: Moonset at Moonlight Beach

Turkey Day

When Thanksgiving rolls around, we typically start preparing for the Thanksgiving feast about a week ahead. Buy the turkey, decide on the recipes and menu, and plan our day-by-day attack. In this case “we” means my brother Scott, who many years visits us from the Boston area for Thanksgiving, and I. Both of us are eating in accordance with The China Study, but we will chuck vegan for the day on Thanksgiving. Interspersed with the shopping, chopping, shredding, grinding, blending (and other pulverizing-type verbs found on my food processor machine) are time slots for hiking and enjoying the warm San Diego November. A favorite hike this year was the approximately 7 to 8 mile round trip hike to Mt. Woodson Peak from Lake Poway. This trail, located in the Mount Woodson Wilderness Area in northeastern San Diego County, is fairly rugged terrain, steep at parts, and provides beautiful views. The chaparral-type vegetation (manzanita, wild sage, yucca plants, oak trees) gives way to pine trees at the Mt. Woodson peak, the perfect spot for the mid-hike lunch and rest.

This year we provided support for my daughter Sara who ran the Silver Strand Half-Marathon on November 19th. Its ending point at the Imperial Beach Pier is a wonderful place to observe water life: surfers, sea birds, gulls, and occasionally dolphin!
On Thanksgiving Day we hosted the cousins, grandmothers, sisters-in-law, and brothers of the local Anderson clan. I was so excited to get the Cousins Shot (oft sought-after, but seldom manifested photo of all the cousins together in one place). Happy Thanksgiving!

Next Entry: Iron Mountain Hike