Half Dome Pamoramas

I've been goofing around with some of the photos I took on my last Half Dome hike. I made a whole 360 degree panorama from the summit but I don't have a way to host it properly. My blog and flickr account are too basic to support the HTML for doing fancy scrolling and what not. I purposely kept my accounts simple because I didn't want to get too absorbed in maintaining stuff on a computer. But I discovered that I can post partial panoramas by limiting them to only a few photos. They wind up looking like a super wide angel photo. They're not perfect, but it seems to work ok. This is basically just an experiment in an attpemt better capture the images that I see with my eyes, but don't really translate completely into a conventional photo. If you click on them they will expand, and scroll if necessary. Post a comment if you like. Are these more compelling than the photos I posted on flickr?

Slate Creek & Ward Road

Watching the weather reports for the holiday weekend we didn’t see the temperatures reaching north of tolerable heat really. We’ve got a trip to the high country coming up so we wanted to go someplace that would give us some fairly stout uphill, but still be mostly in the shade. Last week when it was really hot we hiked at Sanborn which fit the bill nicely, but this week had cooled down quite a bit so we decided to go down to 400 feet at Portola State Park and hike up the Slate Creek trail to Ward Road which would take us up to the BART at Skyline. We could have saved some time and carbon credits by making this an inverse hike using one of the trailheads up on Skyline, but it’s always much nicer have a downhill return. And with Ward Road being mostly exposed on its top section you have to wonder how accurate weather reports can be. It is summer now. A nice cool alternative I was thinking about was to do the Peter’s Creek loop, but I’ll save that for later in the year.

It was sunny up on Skyline in the car, but we could see low coastal fog below. When we got to the headquarters complex at Portola, it was encouraging to see the “Campgrounds Full” signs displayed. At least this is still a popular place on the 4th of July. Hiking out on the Slate Creek trail we could hear lots of gleeful activity in the campground down below and the smoke odor was drifting up for about the first half mile or so, but after making the turn at the first junction we had left all that behind. It was a pleasant morning even though it was a little foggy. After an initial easy climb, this trail is virtually flat all the way to the trail camp allowing for a leisurely ramble perfect for savoring the forest. Sue was spotting lots of interesting and easy to miss plants. We saw some Spotted Coral Root which I am told is in the orchid family. We also found some Shinleaf which is a type of Wintergreen, California Milkwort, and some interesting fungi. It was so nice having the trail to ourselves all morning. An occupied campsite at the Slate Creek trail camp represented the only signs of other humans. The section beyond the trail camp that runs down by the creek bed has a fairy tail like quality with the thick overhead tree canopy providing a deeply refreshing cool breeze, carpets of sorrel, ferns, and other lush green ground cover, and a classic babbling rocky creek (check out the video below) . Old redwood stumps bear witness to some past logging which always prompts me to try to imagine what this place would look like if it were really pristine, but overall, I rate this trail as underappreciated. Not that I’m complaining about the peace and quiet.

When you reach the bend at the creek crossing the trail begins climbing. You still have lots of tree cover, but some sections are steep leading up to the junction with Ward Road. There are fairly good markings, but they are getting somewhat overgrown, so keep your eye out if unfamiliar. You don’t get a break after reaching Ward Road. Some sections of the road are even steeper than the single track you just left. We chose this hike because we wanted some altitude change, but after about a mile or so the trail levels out for awhile. There are a few redwoods along here, but most of the tall conifers you see are Douglas firs with lots of Christmas tree like offspring. Some buckeyes are still at the end of their bloom cycle and you can still pick up the fragrance. Soon you begin climbing again and begin to move out into much more open grassy terrain. This would be a difficult section in really hot sunshine. After passing through a gate you cross into Long Ridge OSP. On this section of Ward Road, I can now see that the Midpeninsula Open Space District has begun using the “swale” technique for water runoff in more places. They basically use a small bulldozer to gouge out huge trenches in the surface in an attempt to control erosion without having to come back every year to clean out the conventional water bars. It’s a lot less work, but I still think it does more damage to the trail than years of normal erosion would have done. I first noticed this technique on the Black Mountain Trail in Rancho San Antonio. I really hate the swails, but if it saves time and labor, I suppose it makes sense from a maintenance point of view. I was pleasantly surprised to find one sunny section of Ward Road where there are still some really nice white mariposa lilies blooming. I was especially glad to see they weren’t obliterated by the bulldozer when they cut the swales.

Up on the Skyline trail we found some nice spreading shady oaks along the ridge, and decided to rest there and have some lunch with a view out to Butano Ridge to the west. We were getting some nice breezes from the coast, so it really was not as warm as we expected. There were a lot of large turkey vultures flying around possibly indicating some sort of nearby predation, but we weren’t about to go looking for it. I got picture of one vulture sitting in a dead tree that was maybe even large enough to be mistaken for a condor if it stayed in that position. It even has a reddish colored head like a condor. We were seeing people up here closely to the trailheads along the highway, mostly mountain bikers, but hiking back down we were alone again until we got close to Portola HQ. The proverbial beaten track successfully avoided again we had a really nice day and still got some decent leg-burn in.

Click here to see my photos on flickr.
Click the play button on the image below to see a short video of Slate Creek.
(be sure to turn on your sound)

SOS hike (Berry Creek Watershed)

Last week when I did my hike to Mustang Peak, I had chosen the route only the night before. Otherwise, with some simple preparations, I could have used that hike as SOS weekend hike. Coe is a state park, but with our printer out of color ink, I did not have a sign to use. Lame excuse right? So anyway, this week four of us planned a hike at Big Basin for our SOS hike. After we had already met up with Dave and Diane, and we had left for an early start, and during the actual hike, we came up with some brillant and creative ideas, but too late to really use them. Too late for this hike anyway. But we did play around and get some photos and videos we can use by just using printed signs. It would have been nice to be better prepared, but we did our best with what we had to work with.

On the way there while we were still in the valley, it seemed really warm for 7:30 AM and I was de-layering in the car. But after we got up to skyline, the fog was lying there like a great grey blanket up on the ridge. Down in the basin we had overcast and cool temps all day and my layers came back out. The sun almost came out for awhile just as we reached Middle ridge on our return trip to park headquarters, but our hike was mostly in low light and cool temps. We didn’t expect to see much water flowing. Maddock creek was almost dead, but Kelly creek, and West Waddell creek both had marginal flow. At least enough volume to make nice gurgling noises over the rocks. I always love to savor the water noises. With the blockage on Skyline to the Sea, we used the Sunset trail to get up to Middle ridge, and used the little cutoff trail to get over to Skyline to the Sea. All the trails seem to be in good shape, but some of the wooden bridges along the falls loop are beginning to fall apart from age. None of these bridges would create a major hindrance if they were out, but could cause public trail closures if they get much worse. All the more reason to be advocating for the parks I suppose. Beginning early makes all the difference on these popular trails. We didn’t see any other hikers until we had reached the Berry Creek Falls area, and the people we ran into were backpackers who had camped the night before. As usually happens, we passed quite a few hikers headed out the other way as we were on our way back using the Sunset trail. Just in time for summer solstice there were yellowjackets around, and we got some stings. I got one partial sting, but I saw it and brushed it off before full penetration. Poor Diane got stung twice. Oh for summertime joys! Luckily, the camp store at headquarters carries some kind of commercial remedy for her to use. I forget the name of it.

The 3 falls along Berry creek are still looking good if flowing unspectacularly following another overall dry year. Still this hike is always a pleasure to the senses; a really great time. It’s interesting to study the rocks that are normally hidden behind the plummeting water at Berry Creek Fall. They are polished to a near gemstone quality finish in the areas where the water and debris have honed the surfaces to a fine luster. This is one feature of the fall you cannot even see unless the water is very low, or virtually stopped like in late summer. The redwood dominated groves, and the lush green understory, thick with fern species, sorrel, and lots of huckleberry never fail to evoke a fairytale like image. The trilliums and clintonia are all gone now, but there are still a few yellow and white violets and Ithuriel’s spears around, and azaleas are still blooming in places (Sue’s favorite). Sue has a very sensitive nose and she can pick up the scent of azaleas about a mile away. This route has always been one of my bay area favorites in any season. It’s a classic worthy of being saved.

Click here to see the photos on flickr.
(Added) Click here to see Dave's pictures on www.pixseal.com.
Click the play button below to see a short video of Silver Fall.
(be sure to turn on your sound for theriputic water sounds)

Mustang Peak

I hadn’t been to the Dowdy Ranch visitor’s center before. About 3 years ago Henry Coe state park opened the new day use area and ranger station in the far southeastern section of the park. Dowdy is open only on weekends between May and mid October, from 8:00 AM to sunset. You cannot self-register before 8:00 AM to get an early start because the gate is locked. I’ve been meaning to go on a hike there, but the longer drive usually puts me out. But I really felt like hiking some new (to me) trails this week, and with Coe again under threat of being closed, I thought this would be a good time before the summer heat kicks in, and hopefully not the last. So I made plans to visit Dowdy.

To get there, you have to use the unpaved Kaiser Aetna road which is accessed from Hwy 152, Pacheo Pass Hwy, just east of the junction with 156. I found the on-line driving directions to be right on the mark. No worries. The seven miles of dusty, twisty, road is not too rough, but it is just bumpy enough to be very slow. My poor car accumulated a thick coating of dust by the time I reached the parking lot. They’ve done a nice job on the new visitor’s center there. There are no campsites, but there are some covered picnic areas with a really nice view out over the washboard terrain at about 1600 feet. I went inside and paid my day use fee, and checked out some of the suggested hiking routes the rangers had marked on copied maps. But I had already decided to head for Mustang Peak. Somehow a name like Mustang Peak just sounds really cool, so I had to go. In keeping with Coe’s reputation, you begin high atop a ridge, and to get anywhere you begin by dropping down. So how do you know you’re at Coe? When it seems like it’s uphill in both directions, right? Kaiser Aetna road is too developed to be the best choice for hiking, so Max’s Corral trail was the only other choice for going that direction.

Unless you use the developed roads, this overall section of the park has relatively primitive trail markings. The familiar printed signs and posts are few. The trails are only marked along the way with colored plastic tape tied around tree branches, bushes, and stakes. Even some junctions are only marked with colored plastic tape. The tape markings are reassuring when you see them because all of the trails on my intended route are single tracks with some quite obscure sections. One good thing is the mostly open terrain which allows for good GPS satellite reception. Rolling up, down, and around this knarly serpentine landscape could get confusing if not for those markings. You would need to use some serious orienteering skills or rely on GPS to keep from getting confused.

Max’s Corral trail begins immediately downhill through grassy hills showing signs of historical ranching. Down you go through the partial tree cover loosing altitude all the way to the North Fork trail which runs along North Fork Pacheco creek. The creek is not running and is already down to scattered murky ponds, some of which are hosting tadpoles, and tiny frogs. You need to watch for the markers along this moderately interesting creek section to keep from loosing the trail. The junction with the Tie Down trail has a marker, but it’s not a crossover like shown on the map. It’s more of a Y. I already knew that for my route I was going to keep bearing right. Heading up the Tie Down trail you get your first view of Tie Down Peak. There is no trail to the summit but I suppose it wouldn’t take much to scramble to the top of this jagged rock outcrop, but at only 1480 feet, it hardly seems worth it to slog through tick infested high grass to get to it. Heck that’s not even as high as Dowdy. You could be sitting around on your derriere in the shade scarfing burgers and get equally captivating views.

Continuing on, Tie Down trail transitions into the Yellowjacket trail almost without notice. The junctions are marked only by colored tape (see my pictures). It would be easy to miss if you’re not really paying attention. I continued to just bear right knowing I had a track log to get me out of trouble. Soon I crossed another little creek and began climbing up to 1632 feet. Monitoring my GPS, I could see I was headed in the right direction, and was undoubtedly on Dutch’s trail, even thought I was not sure where the exact junctions were. I really enjoyed Dutch’s trail as it followed along the ridge top headed north. It had an almost familiar quality with its rolling profile and long range views reminiscent of the Westridge trail in Big Basin or Willow ridge trail on the other side of Coe. As I turned around and looked south, I could just make out Dowdy Ranch behind me on the far hillside, and looking north I had the first view to Mustang Peak. Further along I could see the large pond marked on the map, and the rabbit trail leading down there marked only by an easily unnoticed stone duck. At the junction with County Line road there was a real marker, and the road is good enough to drive on. This road provided a nice change in perspective with the views now mostly north and south.

When I reached Mustang Peak I could see there was a little spur trail leading up to the summit. It was nasty steep with thick vegetation, but no scrambling required. The skies had cleared quite a bit, and I enjoyed a nice panorama. I had not seen a sole since leaving Dowdy, and there are really no suggestions of human habitation out here. There aren’t any radio or TV towers, weather stations, microwave dishes, or any man made structures visible anywhere. Except for a few old roads carved into the ridgelines, and the occasional aircraft noise, there is only you. If you really enjoy having some isolation, this is it. So why hike to Mustang Peak? At 2263 feet, it’s probably not high enough to be a peak bagger’s goal. Some might say “because it’s there”! But really this is a hike for the true rambler. For me it’s the journey more than the destination that makes a hike worthwhile. You could get here by using boring roads, but that is not really hiking the way I like hiking. And of course the roads could be used for cycling or horseback, not that the single tracks are restricted. They’re not. The next human I saw was the same ranger I had been talking to before back at Dowdy. He said other visitors were there that day, but I was the first person there, and the last to leave. I wouldn't clasify this hike as a butt-kicker, but my GPS logged 16.9 miles and 4539 feet of total elevation gain, making it a pretty good country stroll. Definately a typical Coe hike.

Click here to see my photoset on flickr

Get Your Green On!

A new project is underway that is designed to have some fun while showing your support for State Parks. Save Our State Parks is a project of the California State Parks Foundation. The project is called Save Our Parks Weekend. The idea is to gather your friends and family together sometime between now and the weekend of the 20th and visit the California State Park of your choice. While you are there you should;

Download one of the available signs (beforehand)
Display a green ribbon
Wear green clothing
While displaying your sign, take pictures or videos of your group in the park
Upload your capture to the SOS website (coming soon)

They will post the results which are intended to show Sacramento that parks are important to you.

Last Chance (maybe)

Just speculating, but this weekend may be the last chance to see prime Mariposa Lilies, at least in the Bay Area. I’ve been seeing lots of them since getting back from Yosemite. The Mariposa Lilies that bloom around the Bay Area are much more colorful than the ones that I’ve seen in the Sierras. Even the white ones have brilliant color fading like air brush work inside in yellow and purple. There are also yellow and rose colored Mariposas to be found, and those types I have never seen in the Sierra. There are about 50 species all together. Last Saturday we were hiking at Sunol and there were many white Mariposas along the eastern end of the Maguire Peaks loop. The Saturday before that I even saw some yellow Mariposas blooming at Wilder Ranch. There were nice displays at Coe a few weeks ago too. If the sun comes out this weekend, that could make a fine opportunity to see one of the Bay Areas best seasonal specialties. It won’t be long before they start to fade out and go back to the earth. For me they are far more pleasing than any form of cultivation. Good places to see Mariposa Lilies; Henry Coe, Sunol, Ohlone Trail, Sierra Azul, Almaden Quicksilver, Rancho San Antonio, and many other places with grassy hills, open space, and sunshine. Oh, and if you haven't done so already, please stop over at the California State Parks Foundation and help them stop the park closures. Anyone can at least write a letter. Believe it will help!

Water Conservation Update

(the results are in)
Toward the end of last winter Sue and I began thinking a lot harder about water conservation. Three years in a row of dry conditions, and the draining of one of our largest local reservoirs for an urgent seismic retrofit project, made the specter of drought very real. And indeed state-wide the situation is dire. Both of us had been practicing energy and water conservation in our home(s) since even before we had met. This was one of the common links that Sue and I have always shared; our deep concerns about environmental causes. Since being married and sharing a common household we have been evolving our techniques for how to live greener, and to practice conservation. But considering the bleak outlook for our local water situation this winter, we refused to behave like sheep and ignore the situation like most people seem to be doing. We decided that we needed to go way beyond our usual efforts. But we needed a way to help save water without spending a lot of money for a fancy new water system.

You can read about our solution in a post I did last March entitled Low Tech Grey Water. One of the links in that post doesn’t work anymore, but the information there is still good. I also did a follow up entitled Water Conservation Tips and Update. To be honest, using a system like this is not much fun. Its tedious carting water around in buckets like a couple of dusty pilgrims. But we do it out of passion.

Recently we got our first water bill that would reflect the full impact of our efforts, so we can now place a precise number on our efforts in order to make them tangible. No more speculation. And that number it 58%. Meaning a 58% savings in total water usage compared to the same time frame last year. Not too shabby considering that we really thought we were saving water before.

It would be easy to think that all this effort is useless, or backward, or that its undignified and demeaning. In our society we seem to have a this tendency to view ourselves as modern contemporary individuals who would not stoop to such things, or accept a different standard of living than we have been taught to believe is our birthright. After all we own a computer, a cell phone, and a car-nav, why should we lower ourselves to manually bail water? I completely disagree with these kinds of sentiments, and I think our results prove that everyone can in fact make a difference if they choose to.

So how much impact will our efforts have in the grand scheme of things? The truth is; probably very little. Unless a lot of people start getting serious, the impact will continue to be very small. And honestly, even if everybody did their level best to save water in their homes, it would never be enough to save agriculture from severe impact. It is after all, agri-business that is by far the largest consumer of our states water. They will need to learn how to save a lot more, and how to protect the environment at the same time. Perhaps agriculture as a whole is really just a big polluter, and needs to be cut back. But in any case, I still think its worth it. I plan to demonstrate with my lifestyle exactly what drives my passion. We need to rein in unfettered agriculture, practice conservation, and tear down O’Shaughnessy Dam, and Restore Hetch Hetchy to its natural state. That’s the ticket.