A Surprise in the Desert
Plus, winter dangers, sunset hikes, red foxes and more
howdy
Although I’m enjoying living mostly in the Pacific Northwest these days, it’s around this time of year that I really start to miss my Southern California mountains, coastal sage, and deserts. So I was very, very happy to be able to spend some time in Palm Springs last week for an AllTrails event (more on that soon) and some extra solo time to reconnect with my desert buddies.
When I talk about “desert buddies,” I’m mostly referring to the native plants. If you’ve joined me on a group hike near Los Angeles, I’m sure you remember me stopping to tell you the story of Toyon or pointing out which sages were especially fragrant. So it’s probably not surprising that when I crested a hill on a steep trail in Indian Canyons (truly one of my favorite places), that I exclaimed – to absolutely nobody else – “Look! It’s desert lavender!”
This is how I hike. And yes, I will go and stick my face in that desert lavender to breathe in the aroma. And yes, I will also rub my fingers along the edges of creosote bush to carry that unique fragrance with me for as long as I can on the trail.
On this hike I saw many stunning and soul-replenishing sights – a dusting of snow on the San Jacinto Mountains; miniature lupines just starting to push their way through the soil; beavertail cactus flower buds starting their journey to neon purple brilliance; a red-tailed hawk soaring above a deep canyon before dive-bombing some unsuspecting meal. But something on this trip truly stuck out: a snail.
While I was slogging up the steep incline, I stopped near the shrinking shadow of a large boulder to catch my breath and chug some water. And there, in the hazy borderlands between the warm desert sun and cool shade, a small snail stood silently.
Although there are many native palm oases in this area – places where you might not be terribly surprised to see a snail – this was far from any water. Soon, this entire landscape would be in direct, blazing sunlight.
I don’t think I even knew snails could live in places like this, and as I sat and drank my water, I watched this snail make its way over a tiny ridge in the rock. Was this snail even aware of how precarious its place in the world was? How large was its known universe? Just the cracks of this large boulder where it could hide from the sun? Do predators even know snails like this are around here?
As I stood up to continue my trek, I paused to stoop down and bid farewell to the snail, thanking it for helping me appreciate and be surprised by deserts … even nearly 20 years after first exploring and falling in love them. These landscapes still reward those who slow down – a lesson I’m sure many of us can appreciate.
The Big Story
Something to talk about
Why It’s So Dangerous To Hike in SoCal Right Now
In last week’s newsletter, I talked about the increased popularity and danger of winter alpine hikes like Mount Baldy. There have been over a dozen rescue requests this month and some unfortunate deaths as well. This week, the team at LAist echoed my concerns and went a little more into the science about why, as they wrote, “conditions are legit dangerous right now.” It’s a combination of weather, proximity to a big population center, a lack of places to train for winter conditions, and other stuff. It’s worth digging into, especially with more winter weather en route.
In more Mount Baldy news, CBS Los Angeles reports that San Bernardino County officials have reached out to legislators to investigate a permit and safety check process for the region … which is exactly what I said was going to happen last week if this kept up.
Modern Hiking
Good stuff from the Modern Hiker site
Who doesn’t love a good sunset, amirite? With its location on the west coast, Southern California is not short on places to watch the sun get lost over the horizon … but our writer Cleo Egnal has a solid round-up of five great hiking areas to watch the day turn into dusk. Keep an eye out for that elusive green flash!
We also have an update to our Hike Finder software. Every Trail Guide on Modern Hiker lists a number of areas or regions that apply to them – so something like Sandstone Peak is listed as being in California, Los Angeles County, and the Santa Monica Mountains NRA. Now, ALL of those locations are clickable and will take you to a Hike Finder map that lists all of our trails in that location.
This was a feature of the OG mapping software on the site but it had become really unwieldy over the years. I really like this functionality because it allows you to just wander around on maps and stumble on some new trails to do. I don’t know about you, but sometimes I like to pick a new trail to do just by randomly flipping to a new page in a hiking guidebook, and this is a way to do something similar online. You don’t ALWAYS have to narrow down a trail to a specific set of things you want, you know!
Your Parks
Your Places
All That and a Bag of Chips
San Diego County Supervisors are about to give the popular trailhead at Woodson Mountain – known colloquially as “Potato Chip Rock” – some serious upgrades. The board approved $3.5 million in renovations and improvements, including a 209-vehicle parking area, solar-powered entry gate and lighting, and increased trash, recycling, and restroom capacity. The county expects the project to be completed by the end of the year. Via Times of San Diego.
Wildlife Crossing
Wildlife and the Outdoors
Red Fox Recovery
It’s no secret that as our human settlements continue to sprawl and grow closer to previously wild areas, the use of wildlife cameras has become more important to finding evidence of our animal friends – especially those that tend to be on the reclusive side. A trail camera at Taboose Pass near Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks captured a photo of a rare Sierra Nevada red fox recently, which was once thought to be extinct and hasn’t been seen in this part of the Sierra Nevada since the 1930s. Wildlife biologists are excited to learn the red fox has a much larger habitat range than previously thought. Via California Dept. of Fish and Wildlife.
Urban Nature Wonder
“Nature Obscura” is a wonderful book. It came out in 2020 and it’s all about finding the joy in the nature that’s around you – especially in urban and built environments.
Author Kelly Brenner will be giving a free presentation on some of the more overlooked organisms that surround us everyday courtesy of Portland Audubon on February 16 from 7-8:30PM. The event is online and free, although donations are accepted.
Leafing Out
Plants!
Trees are the Answer
If you’ve ever waited for a bus in Los Angeles and tried to crowd behind the thin shadow of a utility pole with ten other people, you know two truths: shade is important and cities like L.A. don’t have enough of it. The Independent reports on a new study found that cities that planted trees could reduce deaths from high summer temperatures by a third. There are many other things cities will need to do to mitigate rising temperatures – but trees should be an easy item to include in that list that have a ton of other benefits.
And of course, these things have to be equitable. During the 2021 ‘heat dome’ that sat over the Pacific Northwest, the temperature in the lower-income, tree-poor Portland neighborhood of Lents was 25 degrees higher than temperatures in a wealthier, more forested neighborhood. While the City of Los Angeles has 25% of its land covered by trees (a pretty good citywide number), nearly 1/5th of that tree canopy is in four neighborhoods with just 1% of the city’s population – Pacific Palisades, Los Feliz, Brentwood, and Shadow Hills.
One More Thing
Oh yeah, before I go …
Y’all know I love my history, and y’all know I love my hiking. So when I see hiking and history get some good coverage in media, it makes me very happy.
There’s a relatively little-known story about how the Walt Disney Company wanted to build a ski resort amusement park in the Sierra Nevada in Forest Service land. The Forest Service said the project wouldn’t be an issue with environmental protection – the Sierra Club disagreed and sued. The result was a sea change in the way environmental groups behaved, forever altered their relationship with the public land agencies in the United States and preserved the Mineral King region of Sequoia National Park.
This story is told in John McPhee’s book “Encounters with the Archdruid” (one of my all-time favorites). It was also the subject of a recent Los Angeles Times interview with author Daniel Selmi on his new book about the events, which was summarized in an earlier edition of the Times’ Boiling Point newsletter. It’s a great read — and it will make you appreciate just how unlikely it was that many of our favorite landscapes can still be enjoyed today.
Until next time,
Happy Trails
Nice stuff! We haven't toured in the States yet, but someday we'll ship our car there and go see all the places we've always wanted to. There is so much to see!
Good stuff Casey:)