hiking – Page 2 – The MoHo and Other Traveling Tales

01-09-2015 Thousand Palms Hike

Current Location: Catalina Spa and RV Resort, Desert Hot Springs

Midnight: I have been lying around listening to the clock hands turn. Not very entertaining to say the least. The silence was broken by the pit pat of raindrops on the roof of the rig, so I jumped up to bring in the towels and swim suits draped around the chairs and tables on our patio. I think the 3 percent chance of rain might not do much damage to our drying swimwear before morning, but why take the chance.

We began our day as usual, with swimming and soaking, breakfast with the news, fresh orange juice. Although the weather predictions were for cooler temperatures and cloudy skies, by the time we got in the car around mid day to go hunting for our hike, it was sunny and again quite comfortable in the high 60’s.

Our plan was to drive south into Palm Springs and explore the Palm Canyons that are behind a toll gate on lands owned by the Cahuilla people. It was worth paying the price, I though, to see these beautiful canyons and to try out a few of the hikes that are well reviewed by folks who have visited.

As we emerged from the driveway, toward the north and east the skies were blue and clear, but toward the south, murky smog was obscuring the San Jacinto’s. It only took us a moment to make the decision to drive north and east rather than into the brownish bands of gooky air that seemed to be coming filling the entire western part of the Coachella Valley, slipping in like a dirty fog through the canyons into Palm Springs. I guess that is the price we pay for calm air and no winds. Smog.

A short distance east on Dillon Road, the major east west road bisecting the lower end of Desert Hot Springs, is the huge Caliente Springs Resort. I know folks who love to stay here so we thought we would once again check out the digs and see what we thought. It certainly is big, and the large three sectioned pool is quite lovely, and under a shady structure to keep it from the glaring heat.

There is lovely landscaping and several ponds, a golf course, a huge recreation room with posted entertainment venues and several pages of craft classes and activities. It is beautifully landscaped and seemed quite upscale, at least on the surface.

Quite the spot. Most of the sites are very nice versions of park model homes, both for sale and for rent, with a very few RV sections mixed in. Problem for us, however, is that the RV sections are a long way from the pool, a long way from anything. I guess that is why most everyone seemed to have a golf cart. It is a very nice place, but not our kind of place.

I checked out the four hot tubs and the hottest one smelled strongly of chlorine, and the rest of them were about the temperature of our swimming pool. Chemicals and chilly. Not my kind of hot mineral pools. The biggest drawback, even more than the distance, was the posted hours of open pools from 8am to 10 pm. Nope, no way. It really made us appreciate our little park with trees and shrubs between our sites, and our beautiful very warm pools that smell of nothing but pure clean hot spring water.

Whipping back out on Dillon Road, we continued east toward Thousand Palms Highway…actually spelled 1000 Palms on the street sign to keep it short enough to fit I guess. The Thousand Palms Oasis is in the middle of the Coachella Valley Preserve, operated by the Center for Natural Lands Management in Thousand Palms.

I knew of the hiking trails in the preserve, having hiked the Pushawalla Loop on the eastern side of the preserve a few years ago with Laurie and Odel. Once again, at the time, our hiking was limited because of Abby, and Mo stayed home while Laurie, and Odel, and I spent a lovely sunny Christmas Eve hiking the trails.

Today’s hike. The blue line is our route, and the red line is the San Andreas fault.

Today the parking lot was almost full when we arrived, it is amazing how many people are out hiking on a weekday. With the sun shining so brightly, it was magical to slip into the thick darkness of the ancient palms. Some are as much as 150 years old. This palm is the only native palm in California.

We stopped in at the small visitor center to enjoy the displays, including some very detailed information about the San Andreas Fault which runs right through the preserve, and bisects the area in front of the center. The water that is visible at the surface here, comes from the aquifer beneath that emerges due to cracking and fissuring in the fault. Thousand Palms Oasis is one of the largest groves of desert fan palms (Washingtonia filifera) in California.

The trail we chose was a short 2 mile round trip toward McCallum Pond, also formed by a natural earthquake seep. The trail meanders through the riparian forest, up to the desert wash, where plants that can survive with less water than the fan palms but which need more water than is available in the open desert thrive.

Once we reached McCallum Pond, we decided to take the Moon Country Loop for the return trip, adding another mile or so to our walk. I was glad I had the GPS with me, however, because we managed to get on a longer section of Moon Country than we planned. The afternoon was progressing and we were still walking north on a very lunar landscape. I finally tried to double check our location to discover that we had a long way to go before the turnaround. Enuf!

We decided to backtrack, and then cross the wash off trail to reach the other returning leg of the Moon Country Trail, a great decision. The hike was only a bit longer than yesterday, but because of the deep sandy washes where the trail goes, we were much more tired when we finished. Much of it was like walking on a beach. Best part of the Moon Country section of the trail, however, was the lack of people. Most folks seem content to stay on the lower trails near the oases, and we only saw a single man hiking out in the direction we had traveled into Moon Country.

By the time we ended our hike, the murky smog was thinning and was replaced by dark clouds to the west. We hadn’t bothered with lunch, and had a couple of diet pepsi’s and some fritos in the car. Perfect food after not eating all day! I know better than to drink pepsi any time after 2pm, which is why I am still sitting here wide awake writing a blog! Next time I’ll be sure to have a snack bar and an orange and more water in the car.

Big Morongo Canyon Preserve

Current Location: Catalina Spa and RV Resort Desert Hot Springs California

The morning dawned over the desert yesterday like something in an old European landscape painting. As we glided silently in the pool, empty except for the two of us, we watched the puffy clouds shift from gray to pink to white and yellow, a slight breeze ruffling the nearby fine leaved eucalyptus trees.

The temperatures were predicted to be in the mid 70’s, with some cloud cover and a 9 percent chance of rain. Nothing to deter us from exploring a new place to hike.

Not far north from Desert Hot Springs on Highway 62 in the Morongo Valley, is a lovely desert oasis of one of the largest riparian habitats in California, Big Morongo Canyon Preserve, with the upper part of the canyon in the Mojave Desert and the southern portion entering the lower Colorado Desert. The preserve is administered by the BLM, and supported by the Nature Conservancy, and The Friends of Big Morongo Canyon Preserve, a non-profit group.

There are no fees to enter the area, but the signs are loud and clear about no dogs allowed. The preserve is for plants and wildlife and there are mountain lions and other animals that would be terribly disturbed by the presence of dogs. I understand completely. It was with a bit of sadness that we traveled there for our day of dog free hiking, but a bit of relief as well. Much as we miss them, the animals, like children, often called for adjustments in daily life and otherwise. I certainly don’t miss cleaning the cat box!

There is an excellent kiosk with information about the area, trail maps and guides and other brochures at the entrance. There are bird lists for those who want to use them, but we didn’t bring binoculars or bird books, with apologies to Judy and Carol! Yes, Carol, I am going to someday get those binoculars that you showed to me. Today, however, our bird sightings were a bit thin, except for many of your famous “little brown birds” we had no clue about, and one exception, which I write about a bit later.

By the time we entered the Mesquite Trail, the sun had come through the clouds and the temperatures were warm enough for shorts and sleeveless shirts. The skies were beautiful.

The excellent trail maps helped guide us to the trails of our choice and the markers were clear and exactly where the maps said they would be. Hikers know this isn’t always the case.

We chose to walk all the trails except the Canyon Trail, a 9 mile round trip down Big Morongo Canyon ending at Indian Canyon Road and returning uphill to the starting point.

We did however, manage to see all the other trails, ranging in length from a few tenths of a mile to a mile or so. In all, we managed 3 miles of easy hiking through several different habitats in the preserve.

The preserve is most known for its bird population, and there are several large wooden viewing decks scattered throughout the lower trails in the riparian portions of the park. After walking the beautiful Yucca Ridge trail with its wide open views, we slipped down into the thick willow, mesquite, and Fremont cottonwood covered trails to enjoy the shade and the sound of birds. I wish I could learn bird calls, because I think that might help a lot with identifying what is impossible to see in the thick brush.

Best moment of the day came at a small observation bench hidden in the thickets. We sat down and Mo asked, “What do you suppose this is for?”

I said I thought it was a place to sit and watch for birds, and the words no more than left my mouth than a very friendly, very curious western scrub jay flew right in front of us and landed on a branch not two feet away, checking us out for quite some time before deciding that we had no food and flying off in search of something more enticing.

On the higher Yucca trail, that skirts the eastern perimeter of the preserve, there are many plants that are identified with signs, and while the minute differences are visible up close in person, overall all those shrubs looked like gray twiggy things with thorns! We laughed about hiking the beautiful desert in the dormant time of January. The only sign of life was new green grass on the ridges and near the trails, evidence of the recent rains in the area.

Although we only hiked 3 miles, we did spent more than a couple of hours enjoying the viewing platforms, the strategically placed benches, and shaded boardwalks meandering through the marshy areas.

I do think that Whitewater Canyon may be a bit more picturesque, but does not have the big cottonwood and willow forest that makes this preserve a special place to visit. We especially enjoyed the variety of plants, habitats and terrain that we encountered in a reasonably accessible area.

01-08-2015 Big Morongo Canyon

Current Location: Catalina Spa and RV Resort Desert Hot Springs

We drove a bit north to the Morongo Valley yesterday to hike in the Big Morongo Canyon Preserve. More to come later, but for now I thought this collage of the wonderful, colorful, varied plants so well marked along the trails would pique your interest. Desert hiking in January can be interesting. 1-01-08-2015 Big Morongo Canyon

While the plants may be less than spectacular this time of year, the views are worth the hike.

A Treat in Grants Pass, Cathedral Hills and a Skunk

Current Location: Rocky Point Oregon, 34 degrees F with a 50 percent chance of snow

The cottage in Grants Pass is a great stopover spot when we are returning from our coast travels. Daughter Deborah is living there now, so we camp in the MoHo when we are there. During the winter months we pull the MoHo inside the big RV shed for protection, and sometimes we decide to camp inside as well when we are there.

day at the cottage Reminds me of those RV storage shed campsites that were developed in North Dakota for the oil workers. Although the shed has all around windows at the top, the interior is rather dim. Wouldn’t want to live there indefinitely, but it is great protection from weather and falling tree limbs in a windstorm. Yes, we do have some very large, very old white oak trees on the cottage property.

There are always chores associated with staying at the cottage. Mo is still working on the bathroom drywall and taping project after we put in a new bathtub, and now there is finally a shower as well. Deb is quite happy with that project since she has had to settle for baths in the morning before work until now when she can jump in for a quick shower.

This time of year there is always leaf burning, and leaf raking, but Deb has kept on top of most of the raking, so Mo had a big pile to burn this time. Of course, inversions are common in the Rogue Valley of Grants Pass, and Josephine County is judicious about allowing burn days. The first day was a no burn day, but on the second misty rainy morning the 6am phone call yielded good results. OK to burn!

day at the cottage Funny thing, though, those big sloppy leaves didn’t want to burn, in spite of the big tarp that was protecting the pile. Mo burned most of the day and only managed about 1/3 of the pile. I raked a bit, and then retreated to the cozy house to finish the binding on some kids quilts I have been making for Christmas. kid quilts (2 of 7)

The house was cozy because we finally managed to get the new gas stove heater installed and running. When the Avista guy came last month to light the pilot, he refused to approve the old stove, which had seen better days. It heated great all last winter, but was no longer safe. Time for a new stove.

That whole process was a bit of a kerfuffle, because no one in several towns had any gas stoves in stock. After much research, we finally found a great little Williams stove with a bit of a fire view for several hundred dollars less than anything we could find in town. The town shops said they could special order something, but even so the big delay was finding someone to do the installation.

Total Home Supply on the internet provided excellent service, with free shipping, and we had the stove at our door within two days. It took another month to get the installation completed, but now the cottage is again warm and cozy, and safe! Deborah hung in there as the month got colder, staying in front of her little electric heater most of the time. Now she has heat AND a shower. All that is needed is some kind of way to figure out the crazy electrical problems.

Remember, this little cottage wasn’t really something that we needed. Our only wish was for a place to store the MoHo. When Mo was trying to trouble shoot the electrical situation in a house built in 1926, she shook her head and wondered whether it was worth it or not. Someday we will get it all figured out, and it is still great to have a warmer climate for storing the MoHo in the winter. No winterizing, and we can head north or south without worrying about deep snows in the Klamath Basin. That was the plan.

The cottage is in a rural neighborhood, with rather narrow roads and deep ditches on either side of the pavement. The amount of passing traffic is a bit surprising, but I thought I would have enough room and warning to manage it for walking. What I didn’t expect was the number of big dogs, although why I wouldn’t expect that in a rural Oregon neighborhood, I have no idea. Big barking dogs, even behind fences, scare me. Adding to that fear is the sight of a big barking dog that has managed to get outside his fence. I have to remember to get some pepper spray.

After one day of walking Summit Loop for a few miles, I decided I needed another alternative for my walking project when we are at the cottage. Enter Cathedral Hills County Park.

Just a mile west of the cottage lies the hidden treasure of 400 acres of BLM protected wild land with more than 12 miles of trails for hiking, mountain biking and horseback riding. Douglas-fir and ponderosa pine dominate the forested portions of the park, with madrone, manzanita, and yes, poison oak on the warmer southern slopes.

I drove to the Walker trail head, with a small parking lot for just a few cars and found it completely empty. I also found a nice notification of a black bear seen in the area just a few days prior to my visit. I wasn’t concerned, however, black bears usually stay well hidden and run when approached. I was worried that there might be loose dogs or crazy people wandering about, but turned out I had the entire trail to myself.

It was a great hike, accompanied by a large flock of turkeys, I walked up the steep eastern flank of the hills toward the ridge, enjoying the switchbacks. Unlike Humbug Mountain, these switchbacks actually have level areas in addition to the steeper parts. Good knee resting sections for the trip back down!

I was appreciative of the trail signs, and once on the ridge hiked south to get some amazing views of the Applegate Valley and the coast range mountains to the southwest. It is easy to forget just how mountainous this part of Oregon is when driving around in lower parts of the Rogue Valley and Grants Pass.

The cottage in on the terrace mid photo toward the east

I had the iPhone tracking my route, and as I continued on the ridge trail, was having a big of difficulty figuring out how that route fit with what I was seeing on the trail. Turns out I was completely turned around in my head, and thought I was looking west toward the valley, and instead, with closer inspection realized that I was looking directly at the terrace below where the cottage was barely visible toward the east. Sheesh. I don’t think you could actually get lost in the hills, but you can definitely get turned around and end up somewhere you might not want to be.

I am so happy that there is this amazing resource for me to explore so close to home. I only walked a few miles, and later, looking at the park map, realized just how much there is left to discover through the seasons at this hidden gem.

Our last adventure at the cottage was a bit less fun, but no less exciting. Deb had been hearing activity under the house, and there was a large excavated hole indicating that some creature really liked living there. She bought a trap and set it, with no results. However, a bigger trap did the trick, and when Mo and I got up on our last morning, we saw the cute little black and white visitor curled up in the back of the trap, watching us with her twinkling eyes.

Skunks are really cute critters. Really. Deb had to go to work, and couldn’t wait around to deal with it. Oh dear. Too Bad. Mo and I said not to worry, we would handle it. We not only had the pickup, but had the trailer with us for hauling the lawn mower, so figured the skunk could be relocated without much damage.

Mo threw a blue tarp over her, but she didn’t spray until Mo actually picked up the trap and put it in the far back part of the trailer, covering the tarp with the wheel chocks so the tarp wouldn’t blow away as we drove down the highway. Critter control had told Deborah that at least 20 miles away was required for release to keep the animals from returning.

We settled for about 15 miles, where we found a nice area near the Merlin dump, with no houses around, lots of brush and a ravine with a small stream. Ms Skunk should have been delighted to jump out of her cage. Instead she hung back, and when Mo upended the trap, she managed to stick to the back of the cage and refused to come out! Finally with a bit of pushing and shaking and some more spraying (did you know a skunk can spray straight up?!), she fell out of the trap and ambled off into the brush.

Mission accomplished. I do hope she doesn’t try to find her way home. So far there has been no activity under the house, but we saved the stinky blue tarp just in case, and will know what to do next time. Even though Mo didn’t get sprayed directly, we had skunk smell everywhere, especially on her shoes and clothes and in the truck and in the baby car. That smell is just amazing. I found out that hydrogen peroxide and baking soda works better than tomato juice, but in the absence of a quart of peroxide around the house, I learned that ammonia works almost as well.

Mo’s shoes are still on the porch here at home airing out, and the truck still smells faintly skunky. Ah well…at least we didn’t get hit directly and Deb’s cats didn’t get sprayed either. Life can be fun if you let it.

11-10-2014 Cape Blanco and Humbug Mountain

Current Location: Rocky Point, Oregon 42 degrees F and raining with snow tonight

I feel rather lucky to think that the most I might have to deal with tonight are a few snow flurries amidst the rain. I have been keeping up the walking plan, logging between 10,000 and 17,000 steps per day. I have walked in rain and wind but so far haven’t had to walk in snow. Cape Blanco

That blue pyramid in the distance on the left is Humbug Mountain from Cape Blanco

The best way to keep up a walking plan, however, is to spend a few days on the Oregon coast, driving short distances between campgrounds, setting up camp, and then exploring on foot. Often when we go to the coast, we have the kayaks, and spend much of our time finding fun places to launch the boats and explore by water. This time it was different, and I was delighted to enjoy the parks and trails at a slower pace, with a different perspective.

Our goal after spending one night near Bandon at Bullards Beach State Park, was Humbug Mountain State Park, just 69 miles south on Highway 101. Between our park destinations, however, was the mystical, magical world of Cape Blanco, written about with such beauty by the Cape Blanco lighthouse queen, Nina. Ah yes, I know there are other kings and queens at that lighthouse, many of them friends of Nina and Paul, but in my opinion, Nina still reigns supreme when it comes to writing about Cape Blanco.

I had never been out on the Cape, although Mo camped once at the state park campground and remembered most how very high above the ocean it is located. Not an easy walk to the beach, by any means. We drove the few miles from 101 toward the state park, and I must say, in spite of reading about it and seeing all the photos, I was surprised at the wild, remote beauty of Cape Blanco.

With the lighthouse closed since the end of October, we knew there would be no access, no great lighthouse tours, but it was still worth the beautiful walk up the road from the gate to the lighthouse. Looking in the windows of the little gift shop I knew that I really wanted to come back again sometime during “the season”, and take the tour.

The view from the headlands high over the ocean on all sides was magnificent. We hiked a bit of distance on a portion of the Oregon Coast Trail that is on the north side of the park road. Even with dark gray clouds and windy weather, the coastline was beautiful. Driving through the campground, I was surprised at the number of people tucked away into the very dark, very tree shrouded campsites. This is not a campground for someone who needs open skies and space. It is Northwest Forest rain country dark, and on this dark rainy day, I was glad I wasn’t camped there.

Continuing south toward Port Orford and just six miles beyond the little town to Humbug Mountain State Park, we arrived at the campground early enough to take the trail that leads under the highway to the small but lovely beach. The tide was in, so we couldn’t walk far toward the north before we were stopped by big waves and rocks.

Small but lovely beach at Humbug Mountain State Park

The biggest surprise of all was 4 bars on the phone and a strong Verizon signal on the iPad. Then, wonder of wonders, we got not only the major satellite channels, but our local channels as well. We settled in comfortably to site 44 without incident and with no neighbors. Chilly night, good food, internet, and TV. Can’t beat that combination nestled up in a cozy motorhome on the Oregon Coast.

l hoped the weather predictions for a sunny if chilly day to come were correct. Humbug Mountain looms above the campground, very nearly completely blocking the southern sky with its massive steep northern slope. We could see the mountain all the way from the Cape Blanco Lighthouse.

Humbug Mountain was created about 130 million years ago, when ocean arc islands collided, uplifting primordial mountains composed of mostly sandstone. The arc islands then collided with the North American continent, uplifting Humbug Mountain in the process. At 1,756 feet above sea level, it is one of the highest mountains in the Oregon Coast Range to rise directly from the ocean.

Our hike to the summit of Humbug Mountain began at sea level, and rose to that lofty elevation in just 3 miles in one direction and 2.5 miles in the other direction. The hike was 5.5 miles round trip, following the longer eastern route on the way up and the steeper and shorter western route on the way down.

I was so happy for a gorgeous, sunny day, even though the shadows on the northern slope of the mountain were long and dark. We hiked through ancient Douglas-fir old growth forests, with huge trees that showed deep fire scars at the base of their trunks. The views from the trail were few and far between thanks to the very thick forests, but a couple of times we could see to the east over the Coast Range, and as we descended from the summit, there was one spot where the entire coast lay before us.

With the curve north toward Port Orford, we could see Cape Blanco beyond in the distance, with the tiny lighthouse just visible in the brilliant sunlight. The view from the top of the mountain is rather nondescript, with trees blocking most of the view except for a brilliant patch of sun drenched ocean toward the south. We didn’t linger long at the summit, knowing we had that long downhill hike ahead of us.

As most hikers know, going up takes energy, but can be managed. Going down is an entirely different story, and even with my hiking poles, I was extremely glad to see the end of that trail. It seemed like we were suspended high above the highway for a very long time, and the switchbacks just kept on going.

Somehow this huge Douglas-fir fell UP the hill. Must have been one of those famous Oregon coast gales.

Our planned treat for the evening after our great hike was a trip to Port Orford for some fish and chips at the Crazy Norwegian. Sadly, the highly rated little cafe was closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. With a recommendation from the quilt shop across the street, we drove a bit north to find supper at a place called Port and Starboard. It was a huge disappointment. There was only a single waitress trying to manage everything, so service was minimal, and worst of all, Mo’s clam chowder was lukewarm and tasted terrible. Mo ate about two bites and gave up. I had fish and chips that was pretty greasy, a bit like that cheap frozen stuff at the grocery store. Not what we had hoped for at all.

View from the summit of Humbug Mountain. Brilliant sunshine on that ocean to the south.

We drove home in the dark, glad that our camp wasn’t far away, that we had TV and heat and everything we needed right there. I know I can cook a great meal, but it is nice to go out now and then, but not so much when it is money thrown away. In fairness, the waitress did not charge us for the soup. It might be that it was just a bad night, based on the reviews of people who seem to love the place.

The Humbug Mountain State Park was a lovely place to camp, with the surrounding mountains giving it a more wilderness feeling than many of the well groomed Oregon State parks we have visited. We had no reservation, but didn’t have any problem getting a decent site, although there are far more sites without hookups in this park than in many Oregon State parks.

Before we left for our ill fated supper, Mo laid out the fire, ready to light when we returned. The stars were brilliant without a cloud anywhere and without any sign of fog or mist to dim their light. I loved the feeling of the mountains surrounding us. Some people complain of the road noise at this campground, but we only heard it early in the morning, and the nighttime was wonderfully quiet. We had wonderful campfires both nights we were at Humbug.

With our coast trip coming to a close, we took the easy route south toward Gold Beach and Brookings, noting the big signs that proclaimed that the Harris Beach campground was definitely closed. Stopping for a bit of time at the Crissy Field Recreation Site, I walked south along the beach, wondering if those deep sand steps counted more than regular steps. After our hike on the previous day, I had insisted on walking somewhere flat, but then flat beaches aren’t any easier on the calves than steep mountains!

We arrived at the cottage in Grants Pass, and the MoHo’s winter home by early afternoon, ready for a few days working on little projects and visiting with Deborah. We celebrated Veteran’s Day with a free dinner for Mo at Applebee’s Restaurant in Grants Pass, thanks to their special giveaway for veterans. Dinner was great, especially that Perfect Marguerita that is one of my favorite things at Applebee’s. It was a great way to end our little coastal vacation.