Piedras Blancas (Elephant Seal Rookery), California (more local history here)

Named after the white rocks that hang around this shoreline, the place is primarily known for its old light house and the massive amount of elephant seals. They were kind of sparse this time of year, though I wouldn’t want to visit during mating season. I had a hard time telling if they were dead or alive. I think they are just lazy - I see some of them move and they only wobble maybe 4 steps before lying down again and repeating the process five minutes later.

I can’t blame them though, females can weigh up to 1,500 LB (680 KG) and males can weight 5,000 LB (2267 KG). These blokes were nearly killed off because of oils found in their fat.

Big Sur, California (more local history here)

Warning: Bad photos from a broken camera. 

Once the home to of the Esselen, Ohlone, and Salinan people. Most folks here lived nomadic and hunter-gatherer lifestyles. The first Europeans to arrive in the area were Spaniard settlers around the mid-1550s and most of the original population died from diseases or lived in missionaries where the culture and language eventually faded with assimilation with Mexicans and Spaniard ranchers. 

When California became “United Statian” territory following the Mexican-American War, pioneers came into the region in search for land. Anglo-Americans and Mexicans mixed in this area, and the name Big Sur came up. After the Gold Rush passed, the area was left to the wilderness against until the construction of Highway 1 in the 20th Century.

Big Sur is my favorite place in California. If I had all the money in the world, I’d probably become a burly hermit in a cabin somewhere in either Big Sur, Washington/Oregon or Montana. Maybe it is a lot of fond childhood memories … 

San Jacinto Mountains ( more local history here)

The mountains were settled by various Amerindians years ago. Though the Serrano and Cahuilla people arrived and built villages near streams and springs. They were hunter-gatherers and they survived on small game and acorn. San Jacinto was the seasonal home to these folks. It’s fabulous hiking here during the winter because you’ll be trotting along snow, but if you look down you’ll be greeted with the view of this golden desert …

San Jacinto peak is close to 11,000 feet above sea levels. Luckily, there is a tram station that takes you far up. I’m kind of wowed how Amerindians made their way up here with moccasins so many years ago. The trails are covered with sharp rock, and from my experience at Ansel Adams Wilderness … I know how much that hurts with thin shoes.

There is a trail called Cactus to Clouds where you climb from the bottom of the mountain to the top. Most people opt to take the tram station to the near the top of the mountain, then proceed to the peak. It would be a whopping twenty-three miles to do Cactus to Clouds. I felt ashamed because as I was descending the peak, I met an old gentleman who was at least sixty and accomplished it. Apparently, he was a marathon runner. W-wow. Heh. I hope when I become an old man I’ll be as ace. Be careful about attempting the full Cactus to Clouds trail in addition to the peak. Some folks have died on that road from dehydration and cockiness.

Salton Sea, California (more local history here)

Warning: Bad photos due to a broken ten-year-old point n’ shoot.

A semi-abandoned establishment in the far reaches of the Imperial Valley, just alongside the border of Mexicali. Of course, I was stopped by border patrol, who asked me if I smoked dope or not. Le sigh!

Once inhabited by the Cahuillas, they were decimated by European diseases during the 19th century.

The Salton Sea was created due to canals dug from the Colorado River in order to create farmlands in this otherwise arid desert. During the turn of the century, American entrepreneurs poured money to fund this massive project that would cause an ecological disaster so great, the largest lake in California would be created in two years (15 by 35 miles on average) from unrelenting floods.

Within a few decades, people would capitalize on the catastrophe and created a desert oasis that became the hotspot for Southern Californian hotshots. In fact, it attracted more visitors annually than National Park Yosemite. That wouldn’t last after the water in the lake became so salinized, it was saltier than the Pacific Ocean. Fishes that were introduced to the lake died off by the thousands. The poor creatures suffocated from the lack of oxygen caused by the heat and salt. All of the species of fish are gone, except the hardy tilapia, but as you can tell by the photo, they aren’t fairing well, either.  Many birds that had made the sea their home also perished from starvation and diseases. With a lack of natural run offs, and more agricultural run-offs, the “sea” is only becoming saltier with the passing of days. 

What really diminished the Salton Sea community were a series of storm that battered all the houses around it, destroying resorts, tourist attractions, homes and dock. Consequently, the cities remain unfinished or abandoned. Foundations and roads built leading to nowhere … boats, homes dotting the shoreline left empty. If you look at Salton City from Google Maps, you can see the roads built, still waiting for houses that will never come.

Ansel Adams Wilderness, California (more local history here)

Trail: Thousand Island Lake Loop

Distance: 16 miles.

Note:My failing, ten-year-old point-n-shoot camera is ailing. Please excuse the poor quality photos.

Located in the Sierra Nevadas Mountain ranges of Eastern California, Ansel Adams Wilderness (originally Minaret Wilderness because of the jagged mountain peaks) was renamed after the esteemed photographer, Ansel Adams, who spent much of his life lugging around ancient photography equipment and taking gorgeous photos of the American wilderness.

Ansel Adams Wilderness was once the home of various Amerindian groups such as the Sierra Miwok, Washo, Mono, and Shoshone for three thousand years. The area I travelled in specifically was used as a trading route. Though the Spanish had colonized much of California, the Sierra Nevadas were left alone until the Californian Gold Rush attracted many miners and American entrepreneurs from the East.

The trail I hiked ends at a gorgeous lake called Thousand Island Lake, though I started on the trail later that I expected, so I wasn’t able to make it. I think the autumn season is the best time to visit the area if you have time, because it is so crowded during the summertime.

I was so underprepared when I went; I hiked thirteen mile in the wilderness with a pair of chucked with holes in them. Consequently, the snow started seeping into my shoes and soaked my ripped socks. To make matters worse, the trail was extremely rocky and my feet hurt so badly by the time I was done, haha.

I am rewriting a lot of old blurbs. Don’t mind me.

Baldy Mountain - Bear Canyon Trail (UP) & Main Trail + Devil’s Backbone (BACK)

Some of you know I went to Mount. Baldy last weekend, apart of the San Gabriel Mountains in Los Angeles County. I had to turn back because I lacked proper equipment and it was storming. The snow had mostly melted at the bottom, but I came back with a vengeance anyways.

I went to the top of the summit with a small group. It was around 10,000 feet above sea level and the view was just amazing. Poor bloke passed out from exhuastion. You could see the Californian islands off the coast - Catalina and San Clemente. From the other side, you could see peaks as far away as San Jancinto, Saddleback Mountain, etc. 

There was one part that was rather dangerous called Devil’s Backbone. The trail is very narrow, and if you slip and fall, you are good as dead because it will be complete free fall until you were smashed open by a rock or tree. What made is really nervous wracking this time was because the ridges were covered in snow and ice, so you would have to climb over it or trek past it. 

To be honest, I was scared out of my mind. Devil’s Backbone (Photo 7 & 8) is notorious for killing hikers during the winter due to high winds and ice. I think a conversation I had with a journalist behind me was, “Oh my God, I am going to die. Oh my god, I am going to die. Wait, wow, that is a nice picture. Hold on one moment. Pause. Oh my god, I just looked down. It is so steep. Oh my god. I am going to die. I am going to die.”

For more local history.

Convict Lake, California

Warning: I have decade-old point-and-shoot camera that is on the verge of breaking, so the photos are less than stellar.

A beautiful lake hidden in the Sierra Nevada forests off Highway 395. I took this shot sometime in the autumn on a crisp day. I caught random rides from people. I was really lucky, haha.

The lake has a rather interesting history. The reason why it is called Convict Lake is because there was a band of men from Nevada who were escaping imprisonment. They traversed through a horrible blizzard across the mountain ranges of the Sierras and finally arrived here. However, the police caught up with them and had a showdown here where one bloke was killed. The men who survived the long, long trek from Nevada to California were eventually caught and returned to prison. I guess … at least they had ‘fun’? 

For more local history.

Warning: As usual, these photos were taken with a broken point-n-shoot camera.

 Mount Baldy, California

It was once the home to the Tonva people. Not sure what happened to them. Here is a reconstruction of a Tongva dwelling. From some billboard I found because information about this area seems very scarce. :(

For thousands of years, the Tongva ventured into this mountain region in search of food and material goods. Leaving their permanent villages in the valleys below, the Yongva set up summer and autumn camps in the cool mountains. Outside the thatched walls of their “kich,” fish and deer meat were hung to dry. Roots, seeds, berries and nuts were gathered and eaten; dried acorns were stored in the willow baskets granaries. Hard world and summer bounty meant survival during the long winter ahead. Permanent villages of the Tonva were located in the valleys. They included ceremonial area, ceremonial house and family dwellings.

Wooeyhoo, what  wild ride. I went to this place on a whim, and ignored reports for violent winds and storm. The first portion of it was hell – the rain was pouring and the gusts were violent enough to blow droplets sideways. About a mile or two in the trail, rain was replaced by snow, and this very moist fog. In fact, the mist was actually clouds! Pretty neat, but rather chilly.You can tell that the storm hit rather suddenly from the plants and flowers neatly encased in ice.

The trail was exceedingly difficult in pour weather because towards the summit, the slopes can have an angle of 45 degrees. Not to mention towards the top, the former ridges of the mountains below no longer protect you, so you are subjected to very harsh winds that can blow to at least 20 MPHs.

I was fearless about climbing it, until I reached towards the top … and looked down. Unfortunately, after hiking many miles, we had to turn back one mile from the summit because the weather has become so awful, and worst, the snow had become nearly ice. Unlike soft snow which you could easily supplant your foot in, ice will slide you down that slope unless you have cramp-ons.

I think the rapid elevation gain adversely affected my thinking abilities because I kept pulling icicles and ate them. Then I took my cane and attacked them while proclaiming, “You will never have the Water Crystal.” I tried to take a picture of the feat, but my equipment was dead. I turned around and said, “My batteries camera died!” Yeah …

Some passerbyers later on asked me if I blaze. Though the answer is no, can’t blame ‘em for assuming.

For more local history.

Salvation Mountain, California

A strange location in the middle of nowhere within the arid county of Imperial Valley, California. Salvation Mountain was created by a very religious man named Leonard Knight from a small farming community in Vermont. He arrived in California to visit his sister, and became a Christian. He wanted to create a giant hot air balloon saying, “God is Love.” Though he saved money for years, he found it was not enough.

So he decided to create a mountain.

After trial and error, he used adobo clay, straw, wood and auto glass to begin is huge monument. I admire the guy, even though people have offered huge sums of money to turn his message into hate, he turned them all down. 

He takes donations in paint buckets and whatever loose change you can spare.

Climbed San Jacinto and got lost for a bit. Had a lot of fun. Ended up at the peak at 10,800 feet above sea level. 

San Jacinto Valley has a rather long history. The first people settled there a few thousand years ago, followed by the Serrano and the Cahuilla people. Spanish explorers arrived in the territory around the 1770s from crossing the Colorado River a bit to the South. The valley was quickly passed through the hands of the Spanish to the Mexicans and then to the Americans. You can read more about it here.