photo series ~ 04/08-08/26/14 ~ Pinnacles National Park - west

April 8, 2014 to August 26, 2014

Pinnacles National Park - west entrance

posted 09/02/14 - My weekly Tuesday Pinnacles practice visits have come to an end.  It's been quite a journey and an utterly unique experience that began essentially 6 months ago when I visited Pinnacles on February 25, 2014.  This vantage point from the westside parking lot doesn't highlight the seasonal changes as dramatically as some of my other photo series (posted here or in my archives), however it is the longest continuous run I have at 21 weeks.  They were not my primary purpose, but it was easy to do and I liked seeing the changes over time.  It never rained on me once in this record-breaking drought year.  I surprised my finicky self, so dedicated to this project that I even went out hiking in 105°F weather.  Good golly, that was hot, hot, hot!  Now that it's done, maybe I'll get around to backposting more of my photos?  

photo series ~ 05/06-08/12/14 ~ Pinnacles National Park - west

May 6, 2014 to August 12, 2014

Pinnacles National Park - west entrance

Another seasonal photo series tester that I was playing around with.  These were taken 1 week apart for a total of 15 weeks. There were a handful of weeks in the middle where everything appeared to remain unchanged.  I wasn't consistent about taking this vantage point in the morning or in the afternoon, hence the random shadows.  I'd like to try this again, starting earlier in the spring when grasses are still green.  And, if I can find the right software, I'd like to center the photos around the big red rock in the distance.  Does anyone have suggestions?

ps 09/02/14 - I posted this earlier, and then removed it.  I had plans to stabilize it, thanks to Neil Kelley's suggestion.  Unfortunately, I couldn't make heads or tails out of the freeware with the plugin that he suggested.  Sorry, Neil!

habitat ~ 04/10/14 ~ Pinnacles National Park - west

Pinnacles National Park - west entrance

April 10, 2014

I suggested to Ken @ Nature of a Man that we should start the "10th Day Club", because so far this year we've gone out to Stevens Creek on February 10, Midpen Preserve on March 10, and now Pinnacles on April 10.  There was some talk about meeting closer to Yosemite this spring, too.  So, maybe we'll get something arranged for Saturday, May 10 for CA nature bloggers?  Is there any interest?

This time we had Ken's CNPS friends, another Ken, Stella, Steven, and Joe in tow.  I had a lovely time and enjoyed observing how seriously curious native plant folks do their thing with jeweler's loupes and plant keys.  Their back and forth exchange of opinions was awesome!  Plus, they're proficient hikers.  I'll admit I was a little nervous about being able to keep up, both in terms of plants and hiking, because they came with a reputation.  They're no namby-pamby garden strolling group.  Fortunately, my 7 miles a day walk with weights rehab after my bike accident is paying off with better hiking stamina.  It's unfortunate so many nature lovers I know physically can't manage a decent hike; too many waited until after retirement to start the fun stuff and discovered their bodies refused to cooperate.  Gotta keep your body moving all along.  I still have a lot to learn and hope to retain my curiosity for a long time to come.  Considering I'm pretty shy about joining organized groups, I've really enjoyed these casual get-togethers to go places and appreciate nature.  Thanks, again, Ken!

It felt ever so slightly cooler at 88.0 °F and became somewhat hazy as the day wore on compared to 2 days before when the air remained crystal clear.  I've already been to Pinnacles 5 times this year, something I've never done before.  I love seeing the season progress, even if this year's extreme drought can hardly be called typical.  Compare this late dusting of spring green to the still swathed in winter reds and relatively bare February 25, 2014 visit.  Even at one month ago, the green was barely poking through on March 9, 2014.  There seems to be a ton of yellow flowers out right now, even dominating my favorite lilac, spring wildflowers' color co-chair.  Given the variety of flowers that have started blooming, I'm beginning to have hope for the coming months after a seemingly slow start.

habitat ~ 02/25/14 ~ Pinnacles National Park

Pinnacles National Park

February 25, 2014

Researching location labels for Nature ID has had an unforeseen benefit in that I'm now more appreciative of local parks.  I used to take them for granted.  Their ownership and management are not always the same entity and can change over time.  Pinnacles changed from a National Monument to a National Park on January 10, 2013 when President Barack Obama signed an act into law.  (Is this a different legal process than when he signed a proclamation on April 20, 2012 changing former Fort Ord Public Lands into a National Monument? I'm mildly curious to know how all this works.)  Eh, I've been griping about the lack of progress I see around me, e.g., this recent Hatton Canyon habitat post, yet I haven't given enough credit to the changes that have been made.

So, I've added a new location label for Pinnacles National Park.  I'm still undecided if I'll update my past National Monument labels.  For the record, they include:
west entrance location (habitat + IDs)
east entrance location (habitat + IDs)
all Pinnacles habitat
west habitat
east habitat

giant slalom section of the "butterfly highway"

I decided on this last-minute trip to Pinnacles hoping to find 2 specific butterflies before the week's heavy rains hit.  One was the margined white, which is not included in the Pinnacles Butterfly Checklist.  I queried Paul Johnson (it's his list) and Art Shapiro (my go-to CA butterfly expert) about why it might be missing, because there are plenty of milkmaids (host plant) at Pinnacles.  Paul's been looking for over a decade, but he admitted he's had doubts around some look-alike checkered and cabbages he's seen.  Art challenged me to go find them myself.  OK!  Considering I spotted margined at 2 very different locations in the past few weeks, I figured the sooner I get out to Pinnacles, the better chance I have at finding them, if they are there.  Nope.  It's dry.  Very dry.  Very few milkmaids are up yet.  And very few butterflies are out.  Without any clear photographic evidence, I spotted a red admiral, a couple mystery Vanessa ladies, a handful of echo blues, and...

large rocks covered with Dudleya (host plant) and Sedum

... a couple Sonoran blues.  Woohooo!  It's thanks to Ken @ Nature of a Man who sent me a recent picture of one to ID that I even remembered I've been wanting to get a picture of my own ever since Chris Grinter commented on my Dudleya post from 3 years ago.  I was so close to getting a good shot, but then I was afraid of falling off the rock.  You understand.

standard west entrance shot from the parking lot

As I debated whether I wanted to try another trail where I know more stonecrops grow, I marveled at the incredible palette Pinnacles provides even in this record dry winter we've had.  The iron red color of the buckwheats is starting to float my boat.  Given my relative lack of success, I wasn't so gung ho on butterflies anymore.  Plus, I was still feeling kinda icky and was a bit parched and craving the sight of water.  There are plenty of strenuous trails but no connecting roads through the park.  So, in an unusual move for me, I decided to drive over to the east entrance and hike to the reservoir. 

Bitterwater Road

The bleached out grey, died, dead was oppressive, and yet fascinating at the same time because it's so extreme.  I feel badly for the cows and the farmers.  Anyone else hoarding butter in their freezer like I am?  It's going to be worth its weight in gold.

Bear Gulch Reservoir

Ahhh.  It was so worth the long day of driving and hiking through the ick to get here, to this spot, to watch the shadows from the late afternoon sun, and to contemplate life.

habitat ~ 02/20/12 ~ Pinnacles National Monument - west

Pinnacles National Monument - west entrance
February 20, 2012

Every year we seem to head to Pinnacles a little earlier. I was impressed with the surprisingly bold winter colors. The soft green of the gray pines was offset by the deep red of the dried buckwheats and the bright orange of the willow stalks. All these colors were continued on the multicolored breccia rocks, which were also often covered with colorful lichen, mosses, and stonecrops. I joked with Andy that if I were a painter, I wouldn't need too many different tubes of paint to do plants and rocks.

Speaking of rocks, the geology of Pinnacles is incredible. Based on the unique rocks and the infamous San Andreas Fault, geologists believe Pinnacles originated 195 miles southeast of its current location. The new west entrance visitor center has an interpretive sign that stated Pinnacles continues to move northward at a rate of almost 2 inches a year, about the same rate as human fingernail growth. Wild.

This is my standard shot from the parking lot that I include in every habitat post for Pinnacles west entrance. I like being able to visually compare seasonal and yearly variations. I tried so hard to get a picture without children in it, but I would have waited a long time. We have never seen so many kids at the park. They all seemed to be about grades 2-6. There must have been some kind program for the holiday weekend, because many of them had Junior Ranger books.

Only a few flowers were starting to show themselves. There were lots of CA milkmaids, patches of padres' shootingstars, and tiny fiddlenecks. I spotted a single blue butterfly and a couple small brown butterflies, but I was unable to get close enough for positive IDs. There are seven species of lycaenids that have been recorded for February, so my seeing them was not too unusual.

Goodbye, Pinnacles. We'll probably see you again real soon for a camping excursion from the east entrance! It still amazes me that these incredible, massive rock structures are hidden behind rolling hills. I'm guessing most people who drive Highway 101 never even know of their existence.

ps - I'm including this last pic with the barn, because it was just around the bend from where I saw a barn owl. Is this its home?

common yarrow ~ 12/10/11 ~ Los Padres Dam

common yarrow
Achillea millefolium
Asteraceae

posted 12/29/11 - When I started this blog 2 1/2 years ago, I focused on colorful, sunny flowers and animals that were already familiar to me. It's been a real joy learning more about my local natural world. My learning curve was a sharp incline at first and then it flattened out, partially due to blogging fatigue and partially due to my hesitancy to show off how much I don't know.

Without flowers, I'm often at a loss as to what a plant is. It's time for me to start looking at leaves. Once again, thanks to Flickr and Nature of a Man blogger randomtruth, I received help for the ID of this very common plant.

The white blooms in the last picture might be a type of naked buckwheat (Eriogonum nudum), but really I have no idea. I had several pictures of this buckwheat, but none of them turned out very well since my point-and-shoot couldn't find a focal point. Once again, I should have looked for the leaves to be able to make a better determination.