TheQueen

It's Spring in the High Desert

Yes, technically it's spring, but today presents more like a fall day.  There is a high, thin, windblown cloud layer and cap clouds hide Owens Peak from view.

But in our flower bed there are lupines. Wildflower season has begun at the lower elevations.  The goldfield is particularly lush this year, and desert dandelions abound.  The contrast of purple phacelia and goldfield is startling. Maybe I'll even get a picture that shows it, some day.

Wednesday, May 14 - Pacific Crest Trail through the Tehachapi Windmill Farm

Today we get the opportunity to go with Sierra Club Jim as he recreates for us a traditional annual hike that other chapters hold once a year. We drive to Cal City and up Highway 58 to Cameron Road, and south for our rally point.

Tuesday, May 13 - Pacific Crest Trail North from Walker Pass

Today we take the PCT north to look at the flowers that still remain at the higher elevations. The trail takes off from Highway 178 at Walker Pass. This is one of my favorite hikes.

Sunday, May 11 - The Mother's Day Mountain

Today we attempted to climb Black Mountain. There are several Black Mountains, and this one is in the El Paso Range, near our home. We have climbed this as a Mother's Day climb before, one memorable time with B, friend B, and dog Chuck, probably about 10 years ago. That day, he came to grief.  This day, it was my turn.

Friday, April 4 - Flowers and Flowers

We are having a good wildflower year, and in the last couple of days, we have explored some beautiful spots, starting with a colorful variety of blooms glimpsed on the side of the Kernville road. Indian Wells Canyon is also beautiful. I think I'll just let the photographs speak for themselves.

Sunday, March 30 - Hunting for Charlotte's ...

Today we rise with the sun (well, sort of), and Ja makes Orange French Toast - cinnamon-raisin bread bathed in a mixture of orange juice and milk and toasted on the comal. Well-breakfasted, we climb into the Wrangler and, literally, head for the hills to look at wildflowers. We begin in Sand Canyon, where, a local paper tells us, a rare Charlotte's Phaecelia has been sighted. We drive up into the canyon and take the aqueduct road up, up to where the flowers paint the south-facing hillsides - yellow, a hint of blue here, a wash of white there. We park at the high point on the road, and enjoy the vista.

Saturday, March 29 - Acres of Poppies and a Shopping Trip

Today on our way down south to shop, we decided to stop at the Antelope Valley Poppy Preserve. The preserve's website says this is just about peak season. We arrived at 9 a.m. - sunny, very windy, and cold - and the poppies were still furled shut, protecting themselves from the wind.

And I discovered, as we exited the car, that I had forgotten my camera.  Horrors!  Luckily friend Ja had her camera, so you can thank her for these wonderful pictures. It proved too cold to do much walking around, so after lingering a while in the new visitor's center, we continued on our way to our shopping destinations.

Friday, March 14 - Flowers and Vegetables

Earlier this week we found a surprise near Onyx. Here, in a canyon off of Kelso Creek Road, the hills re painted with orange and blue and yellow. The air quality was terrible, but the colors were bright enough to shine through. We hiked across a field dotted with goatheads and many small flowers to the hillside resplendent with poppies.

Saturday, March 8 - Flowers and Vegetables

We went wildflower hunting in the Rademacher Hills yesterday, and found little more than phacelias and some small yellow flowers. It's early yet, but indications are that this will be an OK year, not great. In Death Valley the yellow flowers are blooming in some places, but the sometimes-luxurious bloom in the southern reaches of the valley are barren.

February 25, 2008 - Retired Miles Update

While we traveled I lost the thread of retired miles, so I'm backtracking today. Here's what I find. Counting only destination hikes, I managed to double my miles while we traveled. That doesn't include the many miles of walking around and around on the ship, the climbs up and down hill and various excursions around Ushuaia and Punta Arenas, climbing up and down Inca ruins in Peru or slogging through the mud along Rio Madre de Dios. Maybe I'll start wearing a pedometer??