It was so wonderful to join Kris and Jen for some January sunshine
Tuesday, January 21, at Agua Soleil
 |
| Desert sunset from our room |
Wednesday, January 22, Palm Canyon Trail in Indian Canyons
 |
| Trailhead at Indian Canyons |
 |
| Into the palms of the canyon |
 |
| One and a half miles in and about to climb into the desert |
 |
| About 500' up, 75 degrees and complete solitude |
 |
| Kris scouting the trail to the Stone Pools |
 |
| Lots of Cholla on the rugged trail |
 |
| Gorgeous day, fascinating geology |
 |
| A flowing stream with pools in the desert, our lunch spot |
 |
| Jen checking things out by the stream |
 |
| A "jumping Cholla" invades Jen's calf and she bravely removes about 40 spines with her pliers |
 |
| Onward.... |
 |
| Happy couple in the wilderness |
 |
| Sun setting behind the mountains, returning to Palm canyon |
 |
| Jen on the last leg of our great hike. Wonderful solitude and scenery, 7 1/2 miles and 1400' elevation gain. |
Thursday, January 23, Panorama Loop Trail in Joshua Tree National Park
 |
| Heading up the trail in solitude again |
 |
| Very different habitat with pinon pines, cacti and Joshua trees |
 |
| Jen checking out a patch of snow in the shade |
 |
| Posing at a high view point on the Panorama Loop |
 |
| Continuing on the loop |
 |
| Another nice hike, 7.4 miles and 1430' elevation gain |
Saturday, January 25, Big Morongo Canyon
 |
| After Kris and Jen's departure, we explore several loops in Morongo and see many bird species |
 |
| The preserve is on the San Andreas fault and thus there are springs that attract migrating birds |
|
Precambrian Era abutted against Mesazoic Era rock
 |
| Sunset back in Palm Springs |
Sunday, January 26, Whitewater Preserve
 |
| Morning view from our room in our next place in Palm Springs |
 |
| Starting our loop in Whitewater Preserve |
 |
| Easy trail in the beginning |
 |
| Following the river flood plain towards the Pacific Crest Trail |
 |
| Ascending the ridge |
 |
| Looking down on the Whitewater River |
 |
| At the PCT junction |
 |
| Coming down the ridge |
 |
| Tall evening primrose along the Whitewater River bank |
 |
| Ring necked ducks in a pool at the Whitewater Preserve |
Monday, January 27, North Lykken Trail and Desert Palisades Trail from Tuscany Manor
 |
| Walking right from our room up toward the mountains |
 |
| An alternate, unmarked trailhead for the North Lykken trail |
 |
| Looking back down on swimming pools, tennis courts and wind farms |
 |
| Then on to another nearby trail, the Desert Palisades in the Chino Canyon |
 |
| Yellow yarrow |
Just for fun, we kept a list of birds seen on this trip, roughly in the order we saw them:
Black Phoebe
California Scrub Jays
Golden Eagle
Phainopepla
American crow
House sparrows
Eurasian collared doves
Rock pigeons
Merlin
Pacific slope flycatcher
Cooper's hawk
California towhee
Spotted towhee
Cassein's kingbird
American Robin
Ladderback woodpecker
Lesser goldfinch
White crowned sparrows
California thrasher
Bewick's wren
Turkey vulture
Black chinned hummingbird
Juncoes
Black tailed gnatcatcher
Ring necked duck
Northern mockingbird
Orange crowned warbler
Ravens
House finch
White breasted nuthatch
Loggerhead shrike
Western bluebird
Pine siskin
Annas hummingbird
Brewer's blackbird
A great trip, and many thanks to Kris and Jen.
4 comments:
Thanks for joining us there; we had a great time visiting with you!
Thank you, Frank, you're the best! We had a wonderful time.
Lovely pics!
Brightens my day, as we're back in Seattle and the sun never rose today :)
Jen
Thanks, Jen, we also have bright memories of fun in the sun.
Post a Comment