… is worth overdoing.
Saturday, 21 June,2014
It was supposed to be fairly warm today, so I thought I’d go do a trail patrol at Purisima Redwoods open space preserve. On the trail by 7:15, I started by hiking out North Ridge trail. I have been on this trail before, but not for a while, and it is not maintained all the way to the end. I turned back when the poison oak became too much of a barrier.
Then the more traditional hike down Wittemore Gulch trail and back along Purisima creek. I’m looking for new trails and also something of a killer hike (20.1 miles, 5400 vertical feet: I succeeded!). So I went up Borden Hatch Mill trail and explored Bald Knob trail (above), which I have never done before.
There is a closed gate, but no keep-out sign, and a poorly maintained spur trail that goes to the top of Bald Knob. The name suggests grand panoramas, but it’s forested, and we see no more than the usual slots between the trees.
To see a distant view, we go back down, on south along Irish Ridge trail (below). Notice the poison oak asserting itself in the center foreground.
There is yet another trail branching off from Irish Ridge, namely Lobitos Creek trail, another 2 miles out and back, but I was beginning to think I had already committed myself to as much as I really wanted to do today. I’ll come back another time, park on Tunitas Creek road, and finish this particular adventure.
I have no idea what these flowers are, but they’re really elegant. Their seed pods are balls, sized somewhere between a big peppercorn and a small blueberry.
And who could resist a rich slurp of nectar!
On the way down Skyline toward home, I could see the fog blowing in off the ocean, brilliant in the sunlight, and soon to come boiling across the ridge to cover the bay with the usual summertime blanket.
Nice day, good to get out. Tomorrow I’m on a plane for Denver.
Dave's Blog 
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