Golden Day

Posted on April 7, 2014 by Robin

I drove to Ione in the foothills today to see my uncle. On the way home I took a meandering route and stopped a couple of times to enjoy the green hills and spectacular wildflowers. With the 80+ degree temperatures this week and probably no more rain, this won’t last long. I took dozens of photos but these are my favorites.

I usually think of poppies as orange but these are yellow.

This is another stop. Whenever I see fields of flowers I think of Beecher Crampton, a lecturer at UCDavis who taught a class on Wildflowers of CA. I am annoyed that I can’t remember the names of all the flowers I see, but some of them pop into my head when I see the flowers up close. Those mounds of white flowers look like this close up. I’m pretty sure this is Meadow Foam (Limnanthes). What about the yellow ones?

I think these are Goldfields (Lasthenia) but I’ll stand corrected if anyone knows for sure.

When I saw this popcorn flower popped into my head (unintentional pun) but I don’t know if that is correct.And what about this one? A Brodiea species?

Even if I don’t know the names I can certainly enjoy them and enjoy the California scenery.

Pinnacles National Park, Part 2

Posted on April 5, 2014 by Robin

Does a 2-day camping trip warrant 2 blog posts? For me it does because we don’t do this very often. And I took lots of photos.

We discovered that we did sleep relatively all right in the truck, although I was told that I had more than my share of the “mattress”. Huh!

The next morning we checked the map and chose the hike for the day. This was the first leg of a 5.5 mile hike. Notice the word Condor. I took my binoculars on this hike, determined to identify a condor this day. Pinnacles is one of the few remaining areas where the endangered California Condors live and nest.

This trail winds up the mountain and behind those peaks in the distance.Getting closer to the peaks. At this point we talked to a wildlife biologist who was using an antennae to try and pick up a signal of the condors who are banded with transponders. She said that they do nest in these cliffs but today she hadn’t found any. They don’t always stay in the park area. We saw plenty of soaring birds but they kept turning out to be buzzards. More of the trail. This is coming around the west side of those peaks. The vegetation was somewhat different than that of yesterday’s hike except for one plant.There was plenty of poison oak, although these trails are wider than those on our Stebbins Cold Canyon hike so it’s easier to avoid. I was struck by the beautiful shades of green in the poison oak. Color abounds.

This was an interesting trail. Notice that railing under the overhanging rock.The Park Service (or maybe it was the CCC years ago) thoughtfully provided steps (and, thankfully, railings) so that hikers could get over these rocks. The views are worth the climb.What would a hike for me be without a few flower photos? Believe me, I took many more than this even though, due to the dry conditions in Northern California, there was not the abundance of wildflowers that I think there would normally be at this time of year. I think I have identified this as a patch of California Gilia (Gilia achilleifolia). I think that this plant is Wild Cucumber or California Manroot (Marah macrocarpa). What we noticed on this hike is that the spiralling tendrils that look like a telephone cord (yes, that dates me) start out straight. When the straight tendril touches something it coils and hangs on. Amazing.

As usual I tried my hand at wildlife photography. Those bee photos are the only ones I’ll show. The bunny, the crow, and the lizard weren’t all that great. The condor look-alike perched on a branch turned out to be a buzzard when I looked at the photo close-up.

This looks like condor country to me……but this was the closest I got to a condor. Good trip anyway.

Pinnacles National Park

Posted on April 3, 2014 by Robin

Last week was Dan’s spring break and we took two days to go camping while my son was in charge of all the sheep including the last few ewes left to lamb.

We got to Pinnacles in the middle of the afternoon, secured a campsite, and went on a hike. We didn’t have a plan other than to start with the trail that goes through one of the caves at the park.

These caves are sometimes closed when the bats are raising babies, but they were open at this time. This cave is not one big chamber but a series of smaller chambers connected by narrow passages under overhanging rocks, following waterways, or up stairs.

This is the exit of the cave. These photos don’t do justice to the scenery. In fact I was disappointed in my photos from this trip because they all seem so washed out. I think I’m regressing as an amateur photographer. (You’ll be glad that I didn’t include my wildlife photos in this blog! I don’t think National Geographic will be calling me anytime soon.)

This view is that exit but looking back down the stairs. We came out of the cave to this small lake.

We looked at the map and decided to hike the trail that went southwest to North Chalone Peak. It was getting late in the day but since we were camping there it didn’t matter when we got back as long as it was still light. This is the view from part way up the trail looking back down to where the cave entrance. Do you see that small lake at the bottom center of the photo?

We didn’t know what to expect at the end of the trail until we came around another corner and saw what looked like a fire lookout in the distance.

Here is what it is like close up.And this is one of the views from the peak. This turned out to be an 8.5 mile hike so we both felt glad to get back to camp and put our feet up. We used this one-night camping trip as a trial run to see how we liked sleeping in the old green truck because we are thinking about a road trip during the summer. It wasn’t like home, but was much better than sleeping in the back of the Explorer at the Grand Canyon a few years ago.

To be continued…

Hiking Close to Home

Posted on March 16, 2014 by Robin

Dan suggested hiking today. The closest place for a hike is to go to Stebbins Cold Canyon Preserve in the Blue Ridge Mountains southeast of Lake Berryessa. There is a five-mile loop trail that has enough elevation change to make you feel as though you had a workout, especially for us flat-landers.Do you see those switchbacks on the map? The rest of that isn’t exactly flat. This was perfect timing to hike in this area. We finally had enough rain for grass and wildflowers to grow (although not nearly enough rain to make up the deficit).Dan walks. I keep stopping to take photos and then I catch up. This is the lower part of the area in Cold Canyon where there is a lot of greenery. It is a completely different ecosystem than what you find up on the ridge.It is good to stay on the trail because there is poison oak everywhere. Even if dogs were allowed on this part of the hike I wouldn’t bring them because they would be covered with it. Dutchman's pipe The interesting flower of CA Dutchman’s Pipe or CA Pipevine (Aristolochia californica). California Bay Laurel (Umbellularia californica)Shooting Star (Dodecatheon) Wild cucumber or Manroot Wild cucumber or California Manroot or California Bigroot (Marah macrocarpa). The flower books say that the root of this deciduous vine may weigh 50-100 pounds.Indian Warrior (Pedicularis densiflora) is parasitic, attaching to the roots of other plants.As you leave the canyon and start climbing through the chaparral the vegetation changes. This is a beautiful big digger pine. Did I mention the poison oak? View of part of Lake Berryessa.More climbing to do before we start the downhill. We didn’t get enough rain this year for the grass to grow up through last year’s old dead grass. Those hills are faintly green, but not enough. Dan recovered my lens cap after it rolled several feet down slope. Most of that is not poison oak, but “most” isn’t “all”. My hero.

Across the Road Close-up

Posted on January 1, 2014 by Robin

I just wrote a post using photos that I took Across the Road from our mailbox. I started that to document the changes in the field that we see from our house everyday. The photos themselves are kind of boring and not all that attractive. Here is some of what I see when I walk Across the Road. (And here is Rusty’s version.) Last year the main crop was sunflowers but there is a corner of land owned by someone else. Last summer’s crop on that parcel was corn. Hot dog. Irrigating the sunflower field. Pollenating the sunflowers. Stickers in someone’s fur. Sometimes our road seems like an alfalfa highway. Swarm of bugs. Another hot dog. Irrigation water. This sure looks appealing when it is 100+ degrees.

Signs that I’m not the only one Across the Road. Hope of the next harvest.

Fall Color

Posted on November 14, 2013 by Robin

We really need rain, but I must admit that the weather is sure nice. I spent an hour in the pasture yesterday morning enjoying the fall color.

It’s not just the trees that are colorful:Red and yellow and green are pretty……but black and white are two of my favorites.

Wish I Was There

Posted on June 30, 2013 by Robin

It was 107 degrees today and the weather people are predicting 6 days of 105 degrees or over. After a few days of this already I am thinking about a hike we took a few weeks ago. This is a trail in the El Dorado National Forest from Wright’s Lake to Twin Lakes in Desolation Wilderness. We went with my son, Matt, my brother and nephew (who were going to continue into Desolation for a backpacking trip) and, of course, the four dogs.

With my 40 mm lens I get views both …… grand and … …close. It’s dry in the valley and foothills now, but at 6000+ feet there are still plenty of wildflowers.

I love the granite boulders and huge views in the Sierras. That distant mountain is Big Hill, where there is a fire lookout and where Matt sometimes works.Dave and Jack were to continue hiking and discussed the options with Matt who knows this area well. It’s not always easy to get a group photo of all four dogs. We are so fortunate to live in an area where we can get to the mountains in just a couple of hours and that we are able to enjoy it by hiking.

But this is what I’m thinking about today as the temperature soared.Silver Creek cascades over granite and forms beautiful waterfalls and refreshing pools along its length. That’s Matt with Sam and Kirin. I took a dip too and I would relish that now. Rusty and Maggie like their water a little more shallow.We hiked about 8 miles I think. Toward the end Maggie didn’t want to leave the pools. I think the water felt good on her feet.This is one of Twin Lakes in Desolation Wilderness.

Views of the Farm

Posted on May 28, 2013 by Robin

As much as I love to read, when I look at blogs I’d rather see photos…especially good photos. That is one reason I like Celi’s blog, thekitchensgarden . I don’t know how Celi finds the time, but she writes a daily post and it’s fun to keep up with what is going on at her farm. Celi recently posted a request to see the views from her readers’ back porches.

My back porch view isn’t too exciting: The back porch looks directly at the back door of my on-farm shop where I teach classes and sell fiber and yarn and related equipment. It’s less appealing right now because we have been remodeling it and it’s essentially a construction zone for the time being. Nevertheless, Farm Club members enthusiastically encouraged me to send Celi a photo.

Celi’s idea made me think of other views that I thought I’d share. How about the views from the barn? From the second story of the barn looking northeast. That’s G-2 (Dan’s hide-out) on the left, and G-1 is hidden in the trees. My shop is barely visible in the break in the trees on the right and the house is behind that. By the way, none of those trees were here when we moved here in 1999. I’ll have to post before and after photos some day. View from the barn looking south. I irrigated yesterday so the sheep are all locked in to the barn area. Normally they would be in the pasture, which is strip grazed using electric fence. View from the second story of the barn looking northwest. We are on the western edge of the Sacramento Valley and those hills are the easternmost part of the Coast Range. The mound in right foreground is the all important ~~manure~~ compost pile which features prominently in several Lamb Game Videos.

What about a view OF the barn?Here is a view of the barn looking west. The sheep are on the non-irrigated side of the fence since the pasture will have to drain for a few days before they go back out. The house and the shop are to my right in this photo. pasture view to barn This is from the pasture looking north. And if I turn slightly and look more north I see the end of the shop and the house that my mom used to live in. Our house is right behind that one.

What about a view INSIDE the barn?This isn’t all the sheep. There are about 60 adults, counting rams, and 80+ lambs. There is Amaryllis in the upper right. The sheep can go under that fence, but Amaryllis has to stay on the other side so that she doesn’t get the alfalfa I feed to the sheep.

There is another view that is important to me. We have only 10 acres, but it feels like much more because we are fortunate to live across the road from much larger farmland. This year’s crop is sunflowers. It doesn’t look like much now, but in a couple of months I know I won’t be able to put my camera down when I walk over there. This is the view of the field from my mailbox. I have been taking a photo of this same view once a week since January with the idea that it will be interesting to see at the end of the year. Remember, without irrigation the Sacramento Valley would be a desert all summer.

Getting to the Mountains

Posted on May 11, 2013 by Robin

I am fortunate that I if I wanted a guided tour somewhere in the El Dorado National Forest and surrounding area I only need to ask my son and daughter-in-law (as long as fire season hasn’t started). They live in Pollock Pines, work for the Forest Service, and spend a lot of their off-time enjoying the mountains so they know all the best places. Last week we took a short hike to Bassi Falls. This is an easy hike to take with dogs because you are never far from water. I took my 44 mm lens–and I have to get used to it again when I switch.

This is Sam and Kirin, my grand-puppies. Here they are with Matt & Kaleena. Sam and Kirin pose better than Rusty and Maggie. By the way, Maggie did so well on this hike. It was only a couple of months ago when I got her that I wondered if I’d ever be able to take her somewhere off leash. This is probably the first time that she has ever had a chance to go for a walk in the mountains. She got along well with Sam and Kirin, who each tower over her. Here is the only photo I got of all four dogs–like herding cats. Sam and Kirin go for the water, Maggie still tries to move away from the camera and Rusty comes towards the camera to watch shadows and sparkles. Sitting in a tree?On the way home we drove to Big Hill, where there is a heli-spot and fire lookout. That light spot surrounded by shadows in the middle of this photo is Bassi Falls.

A day in the mountains and a day with my kids. I need to do this more often.

Relaxing at Someone Else’s Farm

Posted on April 25, 2013 by Robin

A couple of weeks ago I went to Auburn, about an hour away, to the Shepherd’s Picnic hosted by Dan Macon and Flying Mule Farm. I went as a visitor even though I brought a table with books and a few supplies. I did not set up a booth though, so I was free to enjoy the day at liberty. Dan had the day set up kind of like we did for Meet the Sheep, with activities scheduled every hour or so.

Shearing was first. Dan does his own shearing. Here Dan throws a fleece onto the skirting table. Beautiful, clean wool. Next was a discussion of pasture management and flock management. Another friend, Farm Advisor, Roger Ingram, also helped out. I recorded some of what Dan and Roger talked about because I thought it would be great to share with Farm Club and others. One of these days I’ll get around to editing it so others can listen. One of Dan’s former interns brought one of her milking sheep so that she could demonstrate milking. After milking she shared previously pasteurized and cold sheep milk. That was my first taste of sheep milk and it was great! Dan’s co-workers are invaluable assets to his farm. Mo, Taff, and Ernie have starring roles in Dan’s blog as well. Dan, his daughter, and the dogs put on a herding demonstration. What a beautiful spring day in the Sierra foothills! This is gorgeous country, especially when it is so green this time of year. I will admit that during lunch I lay down in the grass and the warm sun and fell asleep. I don’t do that very often!