Pinnacles

Hello, all.

I write this from Moss Landing, on the Monterey Bay.  We were here once before, that is, before the time-consuming backtracking that resulted in the (unanticipated) purchase of a house.  Before leaving the KOA Petaluma campground, I stopped to say goodbye to all the animals in the petting zoo:

The goats like to be rubbed between their ears:

This sheep thinks she is human, and loves back massages:

One of the three donkeys is in the pen while its hooves mend.  He/she? prefers food to attention:

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All the goats are very curious and crave any attention they can get:

The peacock's tail feathers grew quite long while we were here, in preparation for spring and to attract females:

After arriving at Moss Landing, Lee and I made a trip with friend Kathy to Pinnacles National Monument, south of Hollister.  It is inland from Monterey, and therefore dryer.  I had never heard of the Pinnacles, so this was quite the adventure for me.  The place is known for California condors, but more on that later. Why the name "Pinnacles"?  Perhaps the first two photos, taken by Lee, will explain:

Of special interest is that this area sits on the San Andreas fault.  It was once part of a massive volcano, and the pinnacles are harder rock that has not eroded over time.  The other half of the volcano is 200 miles south, just north Los Angeles.  Why?  Because the land on the east side of the San Andreas fault has remained relatively stationary, while the land on the west side of the fault is sliding slowly northward. 

Here are more Pinnacles photos.  Beautiful!

We hiked a two mile loop trail.  In the photo below, Kathy and Lee are ahead of me:

I love the speckled shade of oak forests:

More red rocks:

A pedestrian tunnel ahead!

Lichen adds color (here in red, orange, yellow, dark brown and green):

I would not want to walk under these rocks in the event of a large quake.  It is best not to think of such things while walking the trail, but instead to focus on positive thoughts, furnished by the surrounding beauty:

The trail leads through a cave going mostly uphill, where flashlights and good walking shoes are required.  It was a little too dark for photos.  Once we emerged, we found rock climbers at several locations, including a group of boy scouts working towards their climbing badges.  The woman in the photo below is more than halfway up. 

Almost there:

 

And repelling down, which looked like the best part:

We walked around, over, and under more boulders:

We finally arrived at a small reservoir with what looked like a dam built by hand:

More interesting rocks:

 More rock climbers:

Lee took this photo:

And now, a little bit of the park's botany.  First, the Indian paintbrush.  Can you believe this photo was taken with my iPhone??

Kathy found this one, and I am so glad she did!  It appears to be a western shooting-star (Dodecatheon pulchellum), although according to my wildflower book it is not normally found in California.  Perhaps it is a closely related species?  It is tiny, but so perfectly formed.

Kathy pointed out some very healthy and happy poison oak.  I am glad she did, or I would not have noticed.

There were bromeliads growing on trees, but these growing between the rocks looked especially healthy, although not yet in bloom.  (The bromeliads are the light green "stars" on the dark green growth):

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Finally, birds, all seen in the park.  Lee took the following photos, using his super-duper lens.  First, the California quail, the California state bird:

The western scrub jay:

A common nuthatch (common in Pennsylvania as well):

Golden-crowned sparrow:

Yellow-billed magpie (we saw black-billed magpies in Montana and Wyoming):

Acorn woodpeckers (there were dozens!)  This is the bird, by the way, that rotates acorns in the holes it drills in large trees.  We saw a few such trees in the area.

Lee wasn't sure what bird this when he took the photo, but it appears to be a western bluebird!

I mentioned the California condor earlier in the blog.  I had so hoped to see one or more, but it was not to be.  ~sigh~  Lee took photographs of several birds in flight that we thought might be condors, but upon closer observation at home (by zooming in) I decided they were turkey vultures.  You can tell a turkey vulture because the white is at the back of the wing.  On a California condor, the white is at the front of the wing, and the bird is twice as large.  I have read that some people mistake them for airplanes, they are so large!  Some day I do hope to see one, they are so rare.  The turkey vulture, on the other hand, is common in both California and Pennsylvania.

 

Signing off for now, 

Eileen