habitat ~ 08/22/14 ~ Asilomar State Beach & Conference Grounds

Asilomar State Beach & Conference Grounds

August 23, 2014

When I was younger, I had no interest in history.  None, whatsoever.  Now that I'm getting older, I'm finding I'm becoming interested in the changes that happen through time.  From a local events website I discovered free summer tours were being offered at Asilomar.  It was just last November when I was lamenting how I didn't appreciate this gem that's on the other side of town from where I live.  So, a friend and I did the State Parks tour Friday afternoon.  It was very informative about the history of the YWCA here (1914-1935), the impressive female architect Julia Morgan and subsequent architects, and the formation of this State Park (you can read the whole story here).  We also heard about the pitch canker that's infesting the Monterey pine trees and how the "restoration" of the Asilomar Dunes Natural Preserve (shown above) became a solution to the moving sands.  How will these dunes look in another 100 years?

Easter 2014 in the Highlands

decorated beer cans for hiding

brightest flowers (irises) that caught my eye

Bird Island of Point Lobos

hidden egg

my favorite spring garden view

Easter landed late on the calendar this year.  Tulips are long gone, and irises are making quite a showing in gardens all around.  The blues and purples reign right now: pride of Madeira, CA lilac, greater periwinkle, and a variety of other garden flowers.  Does anyone know what the purple flowers behind the hidden egg are?  Andy and I didn't dye any eggs this year.  And, there wasn't actually a beer hunt after the egg hunt, but I was happy to see some folks made the effort to decorate cans.  It's one of those things where it's more fun to talk about than to actually do. Plus, the ages of the participatory kids ran too young to do a proper beer hide, and there were enough young teens who felt the shaked-can joke was getting old.  No one drinks the beer anyways.  It's all about the yummy potluck of epic proportions.

Oh!  We had a heart-stopping 10 minutes down at the beach.  Three people had gotten stuck on a rock in the very active high tide.  It looked like they could have easily been swept out to sea with the next rogue wave.  It's well known around here that the first rescuers are often the ones who end up dying, not the person in trouble. It's such a helpless feeling to watch this.  There's a beach just on the other side of Point Lobos that the locals call "Mortuary Beach", because every year people die in the waters there.  Thank goodness these three eventually got off the rock safely after holding on for dear life and waiting for a break in the wave action.

As always, my best memories are in the sharing of this Easter tradition with good friends, old and new.  It's one of the few holidays for which I'm very sentimental.  Happy Spring!

habitat ~ 11/25/13 ~ Asilomar State Beach & Conference Grounds

Asilomar State Beach & Conference Grounds

November 25, 2013

I feel like I should appreciate Asilomar more than I do.  It's just 2 miles across town on the ocean side of the Monterey Peninsula, and the weather is often more so than the bay side with more wind and fog.  I hardly ever get over there, unless I'm visiting a friend or taking the scenic route home from the grocery store.  To roam around, I have to be in the mood to deal with the super fine, squeaky Asilomar sand that gets lodged between my toes (I still haven't found great shoes for walking in sand).  However, it really is a gem of a place.  I love the architecture, which was designed by Julia Morgan who also did Hearst Castle.  The Conference Grounds are currently going through a multimillion-dollar accessibility renovation.  It's looking very spiffy.

habitat ~ 09/30/13 ~ SeaRock

SeaRock

stone castle in the Carmel Highlands

Back when I started blogging in 2009, it didn't occur to me that I might meet some of my fellow bloggers in real life. As I was setting up Nature ID, I used the automated keyword search featured on blogspot's profile pages to find local bloggers with nature-oriented themes. There were very few, and one of them was Bread on the Water. I quickly added her to my list of blogs I follow. Gradually, we learned about each other. In all honestly, it took me a while before I realized she lived on the compound of a private Carmel Highlands landmark. Then over two years ago, we had rumblings of maybe meeting... someday.

That someday came into being thanks in no small part to the death of a mutual friend, my invitation to fulfill his promise to take her and her husband (who's also a blogger) on a tour of Rocky Creek, and their sudden 2 month preparation to move out of the area. Within days before their moving, we finally met up twice in 2 days with reciprocating tours. The passing of loved ones really reminds me that someday could easily become never.

Speaking of somedays, I totally want an attached conservatory like they have in the guest house (2nd to last pic above). I already have in mind the kinds of windows and recirculating H2O system, types of plants and insects, and style of furniture I'll have. The first time I discovered such things existed was when I watched Angels and Insects. The scene with the moths enchanted me. That movie inspired me to raise almost 1000 monarchs and various other moths, mantids, and millipedes in my apartment bedroom in the summer of 2000. A more kid-friendly movie that also features a private conservatory is The Curse of the Were-Rabbit.

Thank you, Jeannette and Mark, for a lovely tour.

habitat ~ 09/29/13 ~ Rocky Creek

Rocky Creek

September 27, 28, and 29, 2013

There was only a core group of 10 of us with 4 small dogs that camped this time.  The girlfriend invited her recently engaged friends, and I invited a fellow local blogger, Bread on the Water, and her husband down for a visit.  We had a bit less revelry than in the past, with no cocktail hour visitors and an evening honoring 2 of our friends who died recently.  Rocky Creek is a special place filled with fond memories.

The pond was engineered by one of the family members who's a hydrologist.  The overflow goes right back into Rocky Creek.   There are several decent sized fish that jump around on occasion. 

I'm always amazed at the power of the wind to mold redwood trees into sculptural shapes.  And, yes, there always seems to be something in bloom, such as this silver bush lupine.

Here's what happens to tanbark oaks when Sudden Oak Death hits them.  SOD first started appearing in this canyon maybe about 10 years ago (?).  

And last, here's a view of Rocky Creek Bridge from the lower property road.  Caltrans is still working on repairing and upgrading a section of Hwy 1 just south of the Bridge that slid into the ocean 2 years ago.  BigSurKate has excellent updates on road closures there.

ps 10/22/13 - For a blog post about a recently released paper on SOD and redwoods, check out BigSurKate.

habitat ~ 09/09/13 ~ Wilder Ranch State Park

 Wilder Ranch State Park

September 9, 2013

Well, I made good on my promise to visit Wilder Ranch sooner rather than later.  I met up with a friend I've known since we were 11 years old.  I love that we've been friends for over 30 years.  She said the bluffs at Wilder have been beautiful lately.  She was right.  The sea breeze was minimal, so it was unusually comfortable hiking along the coastline, something I haven't done since my first visit to Wilder.  The coastal geology reminds me of Montaña De Oro State Park, which is 130 miles southeast as the crow flies.  We were chatting quite a bit (yep, I was one of those I usually despise on the trails), so I wasn't paying too much attention to individual items to ID.  Although, we did see a bobcat on the trail!  This is only my 3rd bobcat sighting (1st at Los Padres Dam, 2nd at Palo Corona Park).  My friend didn't believe me and thought it was a house cat. "No way!  Look how big it is!  Wait until it turns to see if it has a tail."  Sure enough, a bobbed tail.   And, yes, it's pumpkin time. Wilder Ranch is the southern boundary for an area along Hwy 1 up to Half Moon Bay that I like to call "Pumpkinville" for the plethora of pumpkin farms.  I am so looking forward to autumn this year.

habitat ~ 07/17/13 ~ Morro Strand State Beach

Morro Strand State Beach

July  17, 2013

Per our usual of not making reservations, we were out of luck securing a camping spot at the main Morro Bay State Park.  So we settled for the parking lot at Morro Strand State Beach.  Truth be told I wouldn't exactly recommend either campground at $35/night, but the locations work well for what we like to do down there.  Perhaps it's mostly nostalgia for why I keep going back.  I was a little surprised to find out Morro Strand SB is still open for business considering it has been on the chopping block twice since 2009.  How did this get resolved?  Did Save Our State Parks actually save it?  Does anyone know how this played out?  Darn news these days rarely offer follow-up reports.

The nicest thing about staying at the strand is, well, the beach... even though it can get extremely windy in the afternoons.  I know, I know, I live along Monterey Bay with plenty of perfectly fine beaches here in town, but there's something about this beach adjacent to Morro Bay that hits home for me.  It's my favorite central CA coast beach for beachcombing.  It's long and flat and rarely stinky. There are always plenty of birds, like the Heermann's gulls, western gulls, and marbled godwit shown here.  There are also many more sand dollars, crabs, and clams than I can find at home.  It's a lovely spot to watch the sun set.

Easter 2013 in the Highlands

 our eggs

 brightest flowers (blossoms) that caught my eye

 Bird Island of Point Lobos

hidden egg

my favorite spring garden view

posted 04/09/13 - Here's my annual Easter entry, a little late.  I've been attending this party for over a decade now ever since I moved back to CA, and I've included 5 of those years on this blog.  Without children of our own and family so far away, I observe very few traditions, so this is very special for me.  The real memories are in all the pictures I don't post:  Andy's awe the first time he came with me when we began dating; kids who struggle with the milestone question of "Am I too old to hunt for eggs?"; the velcro-egg hider who gave us Icelandic ice cubes as a wedding present; Andy's mom's tinkly laugh as she participated in the beer hunt that follows the egg hunt; the wide-eyed mixed reactions of friends who came as my guests; the waffle-maker who didn't make waffles; and older ladies who progress from canes, to walkers, to wheelchairs, to memories.

habitat ~ 09/29/12 ~ Rocky Creek

 Rocky Creek

September 29, 2012

posted 10/10/12 - It's been 3 years and 2 months since a core group of 7 of us camped down here together on private property that has been owned by the same families for almost a century.  We did not stay at the cabin.  We also had 3 dogs, a son and girlfriend, and 3 other visitors from last time. There were 3 additional campers, 6 new visitors, and 4 additional dogs who also joined us.  Phew! What I'll remember most from this excursion are the collective stories of our lives, all that has changed and all that has remained the same.  This passage of time has been bittersweet.

One of our cocktail hour visitors mentioned a celebrity wedding.  I assumed he was talking about another famous wedding that happened in Big Sur this past summer.  It wasn't until I got home that I found out another starlet had gotten married this day, and long lens photos were plastered all over the internet.  It's such a close-knit community down in Big Sur that I just can't imagine a native would sell out.  They guard and respect privacy.  I suspect the wedding planners for both weddings leaked the information and photos.  However, I'm glad to see Big Sur is getting booked after last year's economically devastating period with several road closures.

Blogger bigsurkate has been posting updates on the Rocky Creek hard closures that I believe will be starting this coming Sunday night and going through next year.  The traffic backup for the existing one lane can be seen in the last photo above.  It's something to keep in mind if you plan on visiting Big Sur anytime soon.

As for the habitat aspects, I couldn't get out of my mind a critical comment made by a fellow CNPS member during a trip to nearby Garrapata State Park back on June 3, 2012.  He felt the families were not doing enough to eradicate the cape ivy and jubata grass (shown in the 2nd and 3rd photos above) that is spreading down the coast.  Although, I'm not sure I entirely agree with him about extensive artificial planting of natives, either.  This practice gives a false expectation of what wild truly looks like and takes an extraordinary amount of resources to attempt to sustain.  I found Death of a Million Trees' Conciliation Biology: Revising Conservation Biology and Authenticity: A modern definition of wilderness posts to be fascinating.  I've long held the belief that us humans are arrogant if we think we can fully understand and control nature.  It's like holding a 2x4 against the tidal wave of natural processes that will continue long after we're gone, bonked on the head by that same 2x4.

habitat ~ 06/03/12 ~ Garrapata State Park

Garrapata State Park
June 3, 2012

Despite my group outing fatigue from all the Fort Ord excursions in May, I signed up for this CNPS trip led by Bob Hale. If you can believe, I had never stopped here along Hwy 1 towards Big Sur to hike. All the cars parked along the busy Hwy under the trees have scared me away, because I figured the trails would be more crowded than I prefer when I go out to enjoy wild beauty (which turned out to be quite correct). Since it's only about 5 miles south of the more famous Point Lobos State Natural Reserve, it's become a very popular place with the seemingly annual closing of various sections of Hwy 1 due to rock slides and road collapses from winter storms and construction along the harsh Pacific Ocean edge.

We started with the very windy Soberanes Point Trail around Whale Peak (shown in the second photo above). Then we traversed the Hwy to get to the inland side and did a short section of the warm Soberanes Canyon Trail where we lunched under the redwoods (sorry, no picture). I was amazed to see all the work Bob and his volunteer cohorts have done to remove invasive poison hemlock, mustards, and thistles. Plus, I was equally surprised to find out how much planting of native seeds they do.

With all that work, it's no wonder Garrapata is such a beautiful place botanically; the impressive ocean views kinda take care of themselves. Unfortunately, this State Park is listed for closure come June 30, 2012, along with 3 other State Parks in Monterey County (Limekiln State Park, Moss Landing State Beach, and Zmudowski State Beach). Many people are very upset by the pending closures, like Randy at Way Points. Unlike back in 2009 when Mr. Terminator was Governor and threatened to close 80% of CA's State Parks, this year's more conservative closure list under Mr. Brown is going to happen... unless local groups organize non-profits or survive by sheer volunteer forces. In addition to Bob's group, there's another group that does trail maintenance; they call themselves Friends of Garrapata (FOG). It will be a rough, uphill battle to keep this place in decent shape.

silent Sunday

habitat ~ 11/03/11 ~ Morro Strand State Beach

Morro Strand State Beach
November 3, 2011

When I first started Nature ID back in May 2009, Andy I were visiting San Luis Obispo County a little more frequently than we do now, and my blog subtitle was "from the Central Coast of California." Thanks to school and changes in our lifestyle, we stay closer to home in Monterey County these days, so I've re-subtitled Nature ID to reflect the change of location focus.
However, it's only been 3 weeks since I last visited this beach on October 12, 2011 in Morro Bay, about 150 miles southeast of Monterey Bay. The weather couldn't have been more different with a high of 67.5°F compared to the 92.8°F previously.

My friend Jennifer, who is also a regular commenter on Nature ID, loved my sand dollar shots. Since she had never really been to Morro Bay, I thought it'd be a good idea to play hookey from our responsibilities and do a girls' trip. And, yes, she found many, many sand dollars, not to mention added new bird sightings to her brother's Birdpost [no longer available] site.

Heavy sigh... Morro Strand State Beach is on the list for closure in the coming year along with 69 other CA State Parks. Unlike back in 2009 when Mr. Terminator proposed closing 80% of CA's 278 State Parks, this year's threat of closure feels realistic and more serious. While I can see them closing and fencing off the campground, I just can't imagine any agency being able to keep people off this awesome 3-mile beach. With no restrooms, no refuse containers, or other maintenance and management, I predict the quality of this beach will quickly go downhill. Public-private partnerships have been organized to attempt to fill the gaps throughout the state, but it takes a cadre of folks willing to volunteer their money, time, sweat, and expertise. Randy at Way Points has been vocal with his posts about Trail Closure at Garrapata and Henry Coe gets a Reprieve. I'm surprised other CA nature bloggers I follow haven't said much on this very important and relevant topic. Save Our State Parks seems to me to be the best organization out there spreading the word.

ps 05/31/12 - The Central Coast Natural History Association Executive Director contacted me and asked if they could use my last picture of the SOS sign alongside the standard brown State Parks sign on the cover of their "Nature Notes" newsletter. They're a non-profit that raises money for their local SLO County State Parks and have been fighting to keep these special parks open for over 4 years. Of course, they have my permission! I sent to her a few higher resolution image files from which to choose.

wordless Wednesday

habitat ~ 10/12/11 ~ Morro Strand State Beach

Morro Strand State Beach
October 12, 2011

posted 10/28/11 - It was so hot and windy when we arrived in Morro Bay. It hit 92.8°F! After setting up camp, I suggested we go to the beach to cool off a bit. Morro Strand SB is a flat 3-mile beach with gentle waves. It's great for bird watching, beach combing, and tide pooling (when the tide is low). It was also once known as Atascadero State Beach, the name I remember as a child when my dad would surf fish here.

Andy and I first "discovered" this lovely beach when we camped back in June of 2009. Usually we prefer to camp at Morro Bay State Park where we ended up on this trip. Hey, I like being able to scope out individual campsites and check out any potential neighbors... so I never make reservations. This can be risky finding a spot during peak summer season, hence why 2 years ago, we had the fortune to find the less-developed Morro Strand SB, which is right on the beach. It's essentially a big parking lot with fire pits and restrooms with no showers. However, you can have access to showers at Morro Bay SP. I believe Morro Strand SB is $25/night and Morro Bay SP is $35/night. If you don't make online reservations like us, the State Parks only accept cash. Morro Strand State Beach is one of many State Parks slated for closure by next summer. I'm not sure how they would keep people off this incredible beach if it were closed.

habitat ~ 10/10/11 ~ Point Lobos State Natural Reserve

Point Lobos State Natural Reserve
October 10, 2011

Hmph! I have more IDs from this hike, but they're flummoxing me. Those will have to wait until another day. In this habitat post I want to show a typical trail, the unusual geological formations, the variety of blooms in October, the incredible coves for which Point Lobos is famous, and a map of the current closed trails. Enjoy!

ps 10/26/11 - For the only other picture of the rock circles I've found online, check out DidaK's flickr. Thanks to an informative The Rocks of Point Lobos PDF provided by the Point Lobos Foundation (linked in the location name under the photos), I now know the rock circles are weathered concretions.