Friday, January 16, 2015

Red Rock Canyon



I know it's been a while since I've made my last post, I was a little busy with the end of my semester and starting everything up again in the new year, but I'm back to give you the last two posts about my trip to California.  It's kind of funny because right when I'm done posing about that trip I'll probably have more pictures to post about the trip I'm en route to now, I'm going to California again.


These pictures are from a hike my Aunt and I took at Foothill Ranch on the Red Rock hiking trail.


The trees over the path were so different from the trees I've seen, the way they bent at odd angles made them look mystical, like they belonged in the pages of a story book.


We were happy to see everything looking so green and healthy as only seven years ago there was a forest fire in this area.


Sometimes you could see old burnt trees but before you had the chance to get sad about it there were plenty more healthy new trees.


At first my Aunt and I had a lot of trouble finding the trail head because it is right across from a Target and right next to a small strip mall.  For the first half mile or so there are houses lining the top of the canyon but once you get passed them it feels like theres nothing for miles.


My favorite part of the hike was when we stumbled across a small deer.  Like I mentioned in a previous post, I think the wildlife in California is very tame.  He let us stand near him and take pictures while he just carried on chomping loudly at his food.  It was fun to see a different species of deer then we have in Ohio, this was a California Mule Deer, it had bigger ears, darker fur, and a smaller structure then the White Tailed Deer I'm used to seeing.


Another interesting thing about this path was the cacti growing along the sides of it.  They had flat surfaces instead of the round cacti you'd expect to see.


As we got closer to the red rocks at the end of the trail I noticed that the terrain was getting more rocky and there was more groundcover plants than trees.


My Aunt Leigh sure does make a fun hiking partner.  She knows a lot about plants and she's just fun to hang out with in general.  I'm definitely going to miss her this time but I'm sure my brother and I will have fun doing different things then I did with her.


I'm sad to admit that this picture doesn't really capture the red hue of these oddly porous rocks.  They looked especially colorful with the sun shining brightly on them. 


One of my favorite things to do when hiking is to turn around and look back at what I've already hiked.  Nine times out of ten I find that I've come a lot farther than I had originally thought and I think it is so fascinating to look back at what you've just hiked through and see it from a viewpoint you didn't get to enjoy when you were among it.


This state park is located at the southern-most tip of the Sierra Nevada where it converges with the El Paso Range.  Through a little research I've discovered that these mountains are made mostly of weathered sedimentary rock.  


That was a beautiful way to spend about three hours.  Aunt Leigh and I decided if we lived there we would hike in that canyon as often as possible.

2 comments:

  1. Wow, Annie, great post. Very fun to see where you and Leigh hiked. It is fun to have you and Nate back here.

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  2. That hike with you was a blast! I love seeing it and remembering it through your camera lens. Some lovely shots here. Nice narration, too. Thanks for posting this <3

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