Animals and Nature

Our First Hike at Sylvan Meadows – Murrieta, CA

May 14, 2022 by Ole 1 Comment

We love the Santa Rosa Plateau, but it isn’t always open… and sometimes when it is open, it isn’t open completely. Back in November 2021, my youngest and I headed out for an early morning hike at Santa Rosa. Unfortunately, it was closed. Fortunately, Sylvan Meadows (located just across the street) was open so we gave it a shot. So, here are some pictures from our first hike at Sylvan Meadows.

Because Sylvan Meadows and Santa Rosa are only separated by a road, the scenery is similar. There are some big differences, however:

Size: Santa Rosa is much larger. According to the rivcoparks.org website, Sylvan Meadows is about 1,000 acres while Santa Rosa is about 9,000 acres.
Vernal pools: Santa Rosa has them (during rainy seasons). Sylvan Meadows does not.
Adobes: Santa Rosa has them. Sylvan Meadows does not.
Bikes / Horses / Dogs: Not allowed at Santa Rosa. Allowed at Sylvan Meadows.

Like Santa Rosa, the trails are fairly easy to follow. While there are nice sights at Sylvan Meadows, I definitely prefer to hike at Santa Rosa. Sylvan Meadows is great if you want to ride your horse or mountain bike, or bring your dog(s).

We saw a bunch of these above ground nests and were really curious what kind of animal makes them. According to a few Google searches, it appears that they are made by wood rats.

Not the greatest picture, but this bird was difficult to catch on camera. I think it’s a blue jay. Bird experts, feel free to correct me if I’m wrong.

This little lizard was also difficult to capture in my lens because it fit in so well with the brush.

If you miss Santa Rosa and want an “almost” Santa Rosa experience, this is a good spot to try. It’s a great spot if you have a horse.

The Last Car Ride

July 11, 2021 by Ole Leave a Comment

I love our animals. We have had three dogs cross the rainbow bridge over the years. I was able to hold each one of them when they crossed. This is a little note to my Great Dane Bruce who crossed over in November 2019.

You loved jumping in the car to go for a ride. Whether it was a ride to the hills for a hike or a trip through a drive-through to get dad some food, you were always eager to come along.

You were my first dog that I raised from a puppy and my best-ever furry friend.

Even though you could barely walk, you still got up when you saw me with the leash. I remember all the times you jumped into my truck with those long Great Dane legs, but I had to lift you into the car this time. I loved watching your jowls blow in the wind as you stuck your head out the window, but you didn’t have the strength to lift your head this time.

When we arrived at the vet’s office, I think you knew. Yet you still walked in.

I’m glad I got to hold you one last time as the vet said it was time.

I hope dogs go to heaven so I can see you again.

Love you Bruce. Your family misses you.

This is Bruce. He crossed the rainbow bridge in November 2019.

Redwoods in Southern California? Yep, at Carbon Canyon Park

October 23, 2020 by Ole Leave a Comment

I owe my wife a trip to the giant redwoods up north. As a down payment, I surprised her this morning with a trip to the smaller redwoods in the Redwood Grove at Carbon Canyon Regional Park.

Visiting the beautifully maintained Redwood Grove was a bargain. We only paid $3 for parking.

We parked in parking lot F (to the left after the guard station) so we could enjoy a little hike before reaching the redwoods. Parking lot F is all the way to top right of the park map (accessed October 23, 2020).

After a mostly flat hike, we reached the Redwood Grove marker.

After a short walk down the dirt trail, we reached the grove.

These aren’t giant redwoods like the ones up north, but one of the signs indicated that the tallest tree in the grove was measured to be 92 feet back in 2015. Even though they aren’t giants, they are beautiful.

Here are a few pictures:

I couldn’t get close enough to this California Scrub-Jay to get a great picture, but I did manage to get this ok picture:

The Redwood Grove is near the Carbon Canyon Dam, which, interestingly, has no water surrounding it. I assume it’s there for emergencies, which seems to be confirmed by this excerpt from an LA Times article dated August 6, 1988:

The park spreads up-canyon behind Carbon Canyon Dam. As Orange County grew, so did the need for flood control, and in 1959 a dam was built at the mouth of the canyon. If, as a result of winter storms, the Santa Ana River rises too high, the dam’s flood gates will be closed, thus sparing communities downstream of the dam but flooding the park.

The information on this sign explains how this beautiful grove came to be:

A view from the horse trail above the grove:

The entrance to Carbon Canyon Regional Park is located here:

If you would like more information about Carbon Canyon Regional Park or the Redwood Grove, please visit the OC Parks website:

https://www.ocparks.com/parks/carbon/

The Corona Peak is Gone

August 18, 2020 by Ole Leave a Comment

Did you ever notice the pointy Corona peak off the 91 freeway near McKinley? We passed it many times over the years and I often wondered if there was a way to hike to the top.

There was, but not anymore.

The peak is gone. It is now an active mining site. Do not hike here.

Here’s a picture from May 2017…

The "Corona Peak" as seen from the Home Depot parking lot.

… and a picture from this week (08/16/20):

I’ve always considered this peak to be an unofficial Corona landmark, so I will miss it. If my research is correct, I believe that much more of this hill will disappear.

In fact, there was an even higher peak roughly south of this one, but it was whittled down by mining as well.

That peak was designated “Cloud Reset” with a height of 1,637 feet.

From what I can tell, the peak I’m writing about has no official designation, although it has been pegged as “Arlington Peak” on Google Maps with a height of 1,621 feet. According to the National Geodetic Survey Data Explorer, however, there is a different peak designated “Arlington” that is closer to La Sierra.

You can see the remnants of “Cloud Reset” in this map (red marker):

For posterity, here are some pictures of the hike (taken during different hikes) along with some views from the peak:

This is where I used to start this hike (on a side note, I hope to write a post about the Sherman Indian School sometime in the future):

The trail seemed to be well-traveled, but I stopped hiking here when I learned it was an active mining site. Again, this is an active mining site so do not hike here.

Here are some pictures from along the trail…

At or near the top…

Cloud Reset…

It was fun while it lasted.

First Hike at Harford Springs Reserve in Riverside

March 1, 2020 by Ole Leave a Comment

We tried a new (to us) hiking spot yesterday near Lake Mathews in Riverside… Harford Springs Reserve. Here are a few pictures:

We parked at a very small dirt parking lot at 21470 Gavilan Rd. in Perris CA, which is the address listed on the County’s website. Please note that there were no maps, so make sure you come prepared with a GPS device or a paper map. None of us had any cell service during our hike to see where we were, so we just winged it.

There are some trail markers, but the brush is too tall to get a good view of the trails up ahead.

If my google skills didn’t fail me, I think this orange stuff is called xanthoria parietina or common orange lichen. According to Wikipedia, a lichen “is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.”

If you know for sure what this is, please let me know in the comments.

Because we didn’t have a map, we went old school and climbed to the highest spot so we could see the trails.

We went off trail for much of our hike and ended up finding this tiny cave.

It was a nice day for a hike.

From the County’s website:

Harford Springs Reserve

Features:
Located at 21470 Gavilan Rd, Perris CA
Park hours 8AM- Sunset
2000 foot elevation
325 acres
Unique trails for all levels of hikers
Equestrian trails
Beautiful foliage and wildflowers

Our First Visit to Sycamore Canyon Wilderness Park – Riverside

November 13, 2018 by Ole 1 Comment

We love to hike, but sometimes we’re more interested in exploring wide-open spaces than climbing to the top of a hill. Last Sunday, my wife and I planned to spend the day roaming the Santa Rosa Plateau Ecological Reserve in Murrieta, but decided to stay local and visit the Sycamore Canyon Wilderness Park in Riverside instead.

While Sycamore Canyon is tucked in between homes and businesses, it is much larger than we expected. From myscamorecanyon.com:

The Sycamore Canyon Wilderness Park is a large 1,500 acre public open space park that is one of eight protected, core reserves. Designated by the Riverside County Habitat Conservation Agency (RCHCA) for the Federally-listed endangered species Dipodomys stephensi, the Stephens’ kangaroo rat (SKR), the park serves as both a habitat and a recreational hub.

We went for a 3.4-mile hike and only explored a small part of the park.

Since this was our first trip, I checked the internet to find out where to go. I found this map on mysycamorecanyon.com:

We started at the main trail head near The Ameal Moore Nature Center on Central Ave. According to the website, this is the only entrance with a dedicated parking lot. The nature center didn’t have any maps to hand out, so the attendant suggested we use Google Maps to navigate. We didn’t use any maps, but used one of the higher peaks as our landmark since the trails aren’t marked. There are also no bathrooms or drinking fountains out on the trails.

The peak near the middle of the picture is the one we used as our landmark while hiking.

This is the view from a rock formation near the Sycamore Highlands Park. We look forward to going back on a clear day.

My wife enjoying the view.

Even though we didn’t go further into the park, we still found ourselves surrounded by nature.

We even made some new friends.

We hope to get on the other side of this ravine on a future trip.

This is the view from the peak we used as our landmark.

This is me standing at the top.

Nice day. We will be back.

Looking for more hiking spots in and around Riverside? Check out our list of Places to Hike in Riverside and Beyond. #hikeriverside

Sycamore Canyon Wilderness Park
400 Central Avenue, Riverside, CA 92507
mysycamorecanyon.com

Heat Stroke is No Joke. I learned the hard way.

July 23, 2018 by Ole Leave a Comment

I have always had a high tolerance for heat. I love to hike and enjoy the empty trails when it is too hot outside for most people. At least, I used to, until I learned about heat stroke the hard way.

I guess there’s a good reason that I haven’t seen anyone else on the “Big C” trail yet. #hikeriverside #riversideca

A post shared by Kris (@krisinriverside) on Oct 22, 2017 at 1:50pm PDT

Having said that, I did flirt with heat exhaustion once, which led to changes in my hiking preparedness…

While looking at pictures from past visits to the old Temescal tin mines to share on my website, I was reminded of one of my scariest hikes. On 8/1/17, I solo hiked out to the tin mines on a crazy hot day… up to 107 degrees per my Garmin. I used up all of my water, had no shade, and eventually completely ran out of energy. As I sat on a hill dehydrated and completely out of gas, I was genuinely nervous. Thankfully, a thunderstorm came along and saved the day. The cool weather and rain gave me a much needed second wind. This hike changed my preparation. Now, I always carry more than enough water, energy gel or granola bars, an umbrella for shade and a cell phone charger in case I get stuck and need my phone for an emergency. #hikeriverside #riversideca #lakemathews #hikeinlandempire #hiking

A post shared by Kris (@krisinriverside) on Apr 29, 2018 at 8:21pm PDT

I also have a hard head and have never lost consciousness despite taking some hard hits over the years.

It turns out that hiking in the heat and hits to the head are not my weaknesses. Stupidity is.

On July 6th, 2018, the temperature reached 117 degrees Fahrenheit in Riverside. On that day, I hustled to get my work done (in my hot office) so I could leave in the early afternoon to watch my sons play water polo (in the hot sun). When we got home from the games, we entered a dark, hot house.

Yes, on the hottest day of the year our power went out.

Can’t even report our power outage. Good thing it isn’t hot. Thankful for my @johndeere generator so we can at least run some fans and keep the fridge cold. #helldegrees #highof115

A post shared by Kris (@krisinriverside) on Jul 6, 2018 at 8:40pm PDT

I scrambled to get fuel, lay out cords and set up the generator so we could run some fans, keep the refrigerator cold and watch a movie.

When I finally sat down to relax at about 9 PM, I felt a horrible pain in my abdomen. I got up to walk it off and ended up in the kitchen. The last thing I remember is reaching for a cup out of the cupboard.

The next thing I remember was my youngest son asking me if I was ok. I had passed out and was on the floor. I was probably only out for a minute.

We searched the interwebs and determined that I most likely passed out due to dehydration and the heat. Technically, I don’t know if it was due to heat exhaustion or heat stroke, but it scared the heck out of me. My wife made me drink a ton of water, gave me some ice and sat me down in front of a fan. I was fine in no time.

Looking back on that day, I realized that I drank no water all day. I drank some Diet Coke with dinner, but that was it.

In other words, I was stupid and this was completely avoidable.

The silver lining: I now drink a ton of water and have completely given up Diet Coke.

With the next heat wave starting today (Wednesday is supposed to reach 111 degrees in Riverside), make sure you take care of yourself and know the symptoms of heat-related illnesses:

From medicinenet.com:
Signs and symptoms of heat-related illness vary based on the condition, but may include

an elevated body temperature,

headache,

nausea,

weakness,

dizziness,

fainting,

muscle cramps,

seizures,

confusion, and

coma.

Heat exhaustion and heat stroke can be life-threatening:

From medicinenet.com:
Heat stroke is a medical emergency requiring immediate medical attention. It is the most severe form of heat-related illness, and it can sometimes lead to death or permanent disability.

Also, let’s not forget our four-legged friends. Check this link for some warm weather pet safety tips from the American Veterinary Medical Association.

It’s getting HOT HOT HOT out and tomorrow is going to be a scorcher!!! Keep your furry friends safe with these top tips for heat pet safety! ?????? #safetyfirst #toptips #petsafety #heatstroke #toohot #highof113 #animalcare #animalwelfare #animalshelter #animalfriendsofthevalleys

A post shared by Animal Friends of the Valleys (@animalfriendsofthevalleys) on Jul 5, 2018 at 4:06pm PDT

Don’t be like me. Stay hydrated and stay cool. Water is good.

Our hikes to the Temescal / Cajalco Tin Mines: Riverside / Corona

May 5, 2018 by Ole 5 Comments

Back in July 2017, my wife and I went for a short hike in the hills above La Sierra near Lake Mathews. When we got to the top of the first hill, we decided to abandon our planned hike and go in a different direction. A few miles later, we decided to see if we could make it to Corona Crossings. Six or seven miles later, we met our kids at Chick-fil-A for a well-deserved lunch.

Completely by accident, we ended up hiking through the site of the old Temescal / Cajalco tin mines.

I’ve been back out there a bunch of times since our first visit. Here are some pictures:

On our first hike, we found these burned-up cars in a clearing a few miles in from where we started on La Sierra. The cars are gone now, but this is a popular spot for illegal target shooting. I’ve walked through here three times when people were out shooting. Be careful if you venture through here.

I like stopping here for a moment to take in the view. There have been two recent fires in this area. The first picture is from July 2017 and the second is from April 2018.

On to the old tin mining site…

This is a picture from “about 1890” of the tin mining site from a Press Enterprise article:

I hiked back out there today to see if I could get a current picture from the same perspective:

According to a post on the History of Corona Facebook page (follow the link for a summary of the history of the tin mines), the tin mines closed in 1892. There are also a few old pictures attached to the post, including this old map of the site:

Here are some pictures of the remaining structures…

Reservoir?

Ore bin?

Smelter? By the way, there is now a big red bullseye (actually, a painting of a ladybug) on the large concrete structure in the middle of the picture. In addition to the clearing I mentioned above, people also use the tin mining site for illegal target practice. I’ve seen or heard people shooting out here a few times, so be careful.

There used to be a large structure at the top of this retaining wall.

You can see this retaining wall toward the bottom right of this picture posted on the History of Corona Facebook page:

If you walk up the steps, watch out for the barbed wire on the ground.

Looking down the steps.

Remnants of another structure.

The old Temescal / Cajalco tin mines in Corona, CA.

There are three fenced-off mine openings in the immediate area. Here are a few of them:

This old structure…

… appears to be one of the buildings near the right of this picture from Corona Public Library’s website:

I’m always on the lookout for wildlife when I go on my hikes, and was surprised to see this guy out at the tin mines back in November of last year.

Update: April 2020 – My wife and I also saw this guy or girl near one of the mines. We think it is a red diamond rattlesnake.

This hill is to the west of the tin mining site. Although I don’t know the actual name of the hill, I call it “Tin Hill”. The flag is a new addition that we noticed on a recent visit.

I hiked to the top of this hill back in November 2017. The side I climbed is covered in loose rock and I almost fell a few times. There is actually a path on the other side of the hill. Oops.

The view of the old tin mining site from the top of “Tin Hill”:

By the way, bring plenty of water. I let myself get in trouble once on a very hot day out here. Thankfully, a freak thunderstorm saved me.

View this post on Instagram

While looking at pictures from past visits to the old Temescal tin mines to share on my website, I was reminded of one of my scariest hikes. On 8/1/17, I solo hiked out to the tin mines on a crazy hot day… up to 107 degrees per my Garmin. I used up all of my water, had no shade, and eventually completely ran out of energy. As I sat on a hill dehydrated and completely out of gas, I was genuinely nervous. Thankfully, a thunderstorm came along and saved the day. The cool weather and rain gave me a much needed second wind. This hike changed my preparation. Now, I always carry more than enough water, energy gel or granola bars, an umbrella for shade and a cell phone charger in case I get stuck and need my phone for an emergency. #hikeriverside #riversideca #lakemathews #hikeinlandempire #hiking

A post shared by Kris (@krisinriverside) on Apr 29, 2018 at 8:21pm PDT

Looking for more hiking spots in and around Riverside? Check out our list of Places to Hike in Riverside and Beyond. #hikeriverside

Santa Rosa Plateau: Great Place to Hike and Enjoy Nature

April 14, 2018 by Ole Leave a Comment

About five years ago on our way back from lunch in Murrieta, we exited the 15 freeway at Clinton Keith Road to see where the road would take us. We headed toward the Cleveland Forest until we came across what appeared to be hiking trails. Our little driving adventure had brought us to the Santa Rosa Plateau Ecological Reserve.

What is the Reserve? Here is an excerpt from the rivcoparks.org website:

Consisting of 9000 acres, the Reserve protects unique ecosystems such as Engelmann oak woodlands, riparian wetlands, coastal sage scrub, chaparral, bunchgrass prairie, and vernal pools as well as more than 200 species of native birds and 49 endangered, threatened or rare animal and plant species, including mule deer, mountain lions, badgers, bobcats, western pond turtles, white-tailed kites and fairy shrimp. Of the two species of fairy shrimp that live in the seasonal vernal pools on the Reserve, one is found only here and nowhere else on Earth!

We have gone back many times since our first visit in 2012, but after highlighting the trails I remember us hiking over the years, it is clear that we still have a few to go.

Here are some pictures from our many visits:

The Visitor Center is one of three places to enter the reserve, and is probably a good place to start on your first visit, especially if you have kids or need access to an actual restroom.

The Visitor Center has informative displays inside the building and out through the back doors, including this graphic that made me kind of sad:

When the last California grizzly was killed just north of here in 1908, it brought an end to an animal nicknamed “Bear of the Chaparral”.

We usually park at the Hidden Valley trail head and start our hikes on the Trans Preserve trail. We have also parked at the Vernal Pool trail head, which is a good place to start if you just want to visit the vernal pools.

The trails at Santa Rosa are marked and pretty easy to follow. Grab a map from one of the trail heads, and you should have no problem finding your way around.

One of our favorite spots is this tree tunnel on the Trans Preserve trail.

This is another of my favorite spots. I love the sound when the grass is a little taller and the wind is a little stronger.

The big vernal pool is one of the main sights to see. If you haven’t heard of a vernal pool before, here is some info from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife:

Vernal pools are a type of temporary wetland […] where a hard underground layer prevents rainwater from draining downward into the subsoils. […] In the springtime the water gradually evaporates away, until the pools become completely dry in the summer and fall.

Vernal pools support plants and animals that are specifically adapted to living with very wet winter and spring conditions followed by very dry summer and fall conditions.

We’ve visited the big vernal pool when it was empty, like on this visit in 2012…

… and when it was full, like on this visit in March 2017…

I have read about the fairy shrimp, but have never seen them. During our visit in March 2017, we saw thousands of tiny pink and translucent creatures in the water. I’m not sure if these are the two different types of fairy shrimp, but the water was full of them both.

We went back again a month later when the vernal pool wasn’t as full, and saw some water snakes, including this guy or girl…

This video shows one of the water snakes, the view from Monument Hill and part of the Trans Preserve trail:

Although they are out there, we have only seen coyotes a few times.

We also caught an impromptu air show earlier this year put on by the Red Eagles Formation Team. Apparently, this is one of the team’s approved training locations. Very impressive.

There are two adobes on the Reserve that were built in the mid-1800s. You can walk through the compound and into one of the adobes. We visited them on our first trip.

The highest spot on the Reserve seems to be Monument Hill, which we visited for the first time earlier this year.

The lone bench at the top of the hill is a nice quiet spot to enjoy the view.

Our most recent trip: November 2017

This was the first time we parked at the Visitor Center, which gave us the opportunity to take some trails we had never hiked before. We ended up hiking about nine miles.

We saw this hill off Waterline Road and decided to get a closer look.

The rocks were a little sketchy, so I took a quick picture of my wife enjoying the view and climbed back down.

From Waterline Road, we continued along Monument Hill Road until we reached the Punta Mesa Trail, which was our main goal for the day. We even got to see a dinosaur…

Although there hasn’t been any rain recently, there was still water under this bridge on the Adobe Loop trail…

Another great day at the Plateau.

When we’re in the mood for wide open spaces without having to climb too much, this is the place we go.

For more information about the Santa Rosa Plateau Ecological Reserve, click here: www.rivcoparks.org

Looking for more hiking spots in and around Riverside? Check out our list of Places to Hike in Riverside and Beyond.

Birds of Prey: Osprey and Bald Eagle at Lake Mathews

February 6, 2018 by Ole 5 Comments

My wife spotted an osprey today at Lake Mathews, so I went back with my camera to see if I could get a few pictures. When I arrived, I saw what appeared to be a big bird on a rock in the middle of the lake, but it was too far away for my lens. After I got home and zoomed in on the pictures, I realized it was a bald eagle, not the osprey. Yes, a bald eagle at Lake Mathews.

I eventually found the osprey…

We saw bald eagles at Lake Mathews once before back in January 2016:

We saw two eagles that day, but we could only get close enough to one of them to get any decent pictures. Unfortunately, we were still too far away to get good pictures. Hopefully that will change some day.

Additional info…

Some facts about bald eagles:

Distinguished by a white head and white tail feathers, bald eagles are powerful, brown birds that may weigh 14 pounds and have a wingspan of 8 feet. Male eagles are smaller, weighing as much as 10 pounds and have a wingspan of 6 feet. […]

Bald Eagles live near rivers, lakes, and marshes where they can find fish, their staple food. Bald Eagles will also feed on waterfowl, turtles, rabbits, snakes, and other small animals and carrion. […]

Bald Eagles may live 15 to 25 years in the wild, longer in captivity.

Source: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

Excerpts from the American Bald Eagle Recovery and National Emblem Commemorative Coin Act:

The Congress finds as follows:
(1) The bald eagle was designated as the national emblem of the United States on June 20, 1782, by our country’s Founding Fathers at the Second Continental Congress.
(2) The bald eagle is the greatest visible symbol of the spirit of freedom and democracy in the world.
(3) The bald eagle species is unique to North America and represents the American values and attributes of freedom, courage, strength, spirit, loyalty, justice, equality, democracy, quality, and excellence.

Source: American Bald Eagle Recovery and National Emblem Commemorative Coin Act

Some facts about ospreys:

The osprey (Pandion haliaetus)—also known as the sea hawk, fish eagle, river hawk or fish hawk—is a large raptor, reaching more than 24 inches in length with a wingspan of up to 71 inches. As its other names suggest, the osprey’s diet consists almost exclusively of fish—up to 99% fish. […]

The typical lifespan of an osprey is 7–10 years, though rarely individuals can grow to as old as 20–25 years.

Source: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service