A Little Hiking On The Left Coast

[beanbag]

I took the family to So Cal last week for a much deserved vacation. We spent some time on the beach, did some Kayaking and biking, and even got in a hike.

Here are some pictures of the hike.

We hiked to the Parker Mesa Overlook in the Topanga State Park, which is in the Santa Monica mountains, just north of L.A. It was a six mile out-and-back on a fire road.

We didn't see any of these......

But I guess it was wildflower season, because we sure saw a lot of these:

The whole hike was on this fire road, and there was little in the way of shade.

Even though it wasn't a particularly hot day, the sun was really strong for my family having just finished up one of the hardest east coast winters on record.

Here is Son of Beanbag with his left coast uncle, and his 14 year old sister. Sis started getting burned and, much to her chagrin, had to put on my stinky long sleeve shirt to cover up.

This native plant was really cool:

It had a very long, straight stalk with a huge bud at the end:

This picture was taken in a different area, but shows the bloom:

My bushcrafting instinct kicked in, so I harvested some pieces of the dead stalk, which I thought might make a good a bow drill spindle, or even a two stick hearth board.

We started inland and walked west out towards the coast. After some more dry, dusty miles we started getting close.

Here is the view. Typical L.A. Haze I guess.

Here is a closer view of the famous Santa Monica Pier, which was a fun place to hang out with the family.

On the way back we saw more wild flowers,

and more semi-arid scenery:

Finally after over three hours of hiking in the blazing sun, we were done.

Though I'm not much of a fire road kind of guy, I really liked the hike, and the views were nice. We all had a great time hiking with the in-laws. I was envious of all the mountain bikers I saw riding the trail. If I did it again, it would definitely be on a bike.

Regarding knives- Because we flew out there with only carry on bags, I couldn't bring any blades. The only knife I brought on the hike was my brother in law's SAK.

Thanks for looking.

Next installment- The coast and some wild life.

Bean

 

[tknife]

Hey I know that sign, great pics! I have been on that road many times, it's my wife's favorite because of the beach view. It's some great exercise going up that thing and has some nice views :thumbup:

 

[The Warrior]

Beautiful area and photos. Thanks for sharing.

 

[kgd]

Great trip report and wow talk about pretty flowers! I thought those plants were another type of yucca, but I could be wrong. I encountered them while near Merida, MX. Let us know how it works on the bowdrill.

 

[Flying Guillotine]

Nice photos, now is a great time to head up there due to the recent rains we have had in SoCal. I try to get up to Topanga as often as possible. BTW, not all the trails up there are on the fire road. There are a few really nice proper trails that wind up and down the hills with dense foliage on both sides.
We've only ever seen the occasional rattlesnake up there, and of course deer and small critters.

Glad you enjoyed a little taste of California trails

I think that plant with the single large stalk is a type of agave or "century plant". They call them that since they seem to bloom ever hundred years or so, of course that's not really the case though.

 

[sar5]

If you encounter a mountain lion, put hands up in the air and make lots of noise, I think that would be natural
Really nice pics and I'm glad you had a great trip.

 

[beanbag]

Hey I know that sign, great pics! I have been on that road many times, it's my wife's favorite because of the beach view. It's some great exercise going up that thing and has some nice views :thumbup:

Thanks. I wish it was less hazy that day. My understanding is you can see out to Catalina, and down to Mexico on a clear day.

Great trip report and wow talk about pretty flowers! I thought those plants were another type of yucca, but I could be wrong. I encountered them while near Merida, MX. Let us know how it works on the bowdrill.

Thanks. Someone identified that as Yucca,and someone else said century plant, but I'm not sure. If it is Yucca,it's supposedly edible and, in addition to making a nice bow drill set, is good for cordage. Unfortunately I'm not going to be able to try it out because the three stalks I harvested were confiscated at LAX by the friggin' TSA. I foolishly started whittling one of the stalks after the hike, and though I made sure to keep the tip rounded, was classified as a threatening bushcrafter and was "disarmed."

Glad you enjoyed a little taste of California trails

I love Cali. I used to live there and miss it dearly. I worked in Yosemite in the summer of '86. I know the trails there quite well. Beautiful state, always great memories.

If you encounter a mountain lion, put hands up in the air and make lots of noise, I think that would be natural
Really nice pics and I'm glad you had a great trip.

Shoo Mt. Lion, shoo!

 

[Mistwalker]

Some really great pictures, looks like an awesome area to kick around in.


Scotch Thistle?

Man, I'd love to explore just this little area!

 

[j williams]

What a cool pic. Id love to tromp around up there......

I believe its desert Agave....:thumbup:

 

[762 shooter]

It is a yucca. I grew up in that area. Yuccas a great plants and the native indians used them for numerous things. I think that the name "desert agave" is a regional thing. Everyone that I knew in SoCal called them yuccas. I seem to recall hearing desert agave in AZ a time or two.
The Westside is the best side!

 

[tknife]

We have several varieties of yucca here, also sotol which looks exactly the same to me. There's also a couple types of agave but they are much larger with broad leaves. They all have uses but the agave sap is milky and can leave a rash on the skin. No wonder tequila is so dangerous!

 

[j williams]

Yucca is great. Looks differant then the Yucca I see around here in Missouri. I grew up out in apple valley and Joshua Tree area lots of memories of playin in the deserts. I miss it....

 

[cosmophonic12]

What a cool pic. Id love to tromp around up there......

I believe its desert Agave....:thumbup:

Beautiful stuff but majorities of those cacti are not indigenous to that region. It was obviously planted but I would certainly like to explore it. The cacti planted on the hill are really on vacation as most of it grows in the Baja peninsula and into the Sonoran Desert. This is a nice find!!!

From the photo, here is what I can identify

Center from the right lophocereus schottii senita
Some of the agaves appear to be agave shawii or possibly agave deserti
The taller saguaro like cacti towards the top of the hill appear to be pachycereus pringlei
And most importantly the boojum trees! They are located throughout the hill. Those are really impressive!!

 

[beanbag]

Beautiful stuff but majorities of those cacti are not indigenous to that region. It was obviously planted but I would certainly like to explore it. The cacti planted on the hill are really on vacation as most of it grows in the Baja peninsula and into the Sonoran Desert. This is a nice find!!!

Bingo!!! This man wins the prize. That picture was taken at the San Diego Wildlife Safari Park. It most certainly was planted, and off limits. As I stated in my post, the picture was not from my hike. I was using it to show the Agave bloom because I couldn't find any on my hike.

Here's another picture from the Safari Park- it's a VERY happy elephant! When he showed up, there was an audible gasp from the park visitors and lots of giggling.

The big fella made quite an impression on my kids, and we joked about it the rest of the day. Later, on Torrey Pines State Park beach, my son the prankster insisted I re-create that magic moment with a handy stalk of seaweed:

 

[tonym]

Eh, looks average to me....




Seriously though, great pics Bro! I would love to get out to Cali one of these days.

 

[beanbag]

Eh, looks average to me....

Without naming names, that is definitely NOT what your wife said.