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Page Revised: 5/12/06 |
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Available Sites Topanga State Park |
Date of Review 5/11/06 |
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What's Blooming photo gallery: www.nps.gov/samo/bloom/bloom.htm |
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Topanga State Park |
Hondo Canyon & Topanga Meadows |
Date: 5/11/06 |
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The creek runs right alongside Old
Topanga Rd. Find rocks to scramble
across on and the trail takes you up to a meadow that is filled with blue
eyed grass interspersed with mariposa lilies and buttercups, rigid hedge
nettle stands at the edge of the woods.
The trail climbs through the meadow and enters the woods where there
are deerweed, canyon sunflower and sticky monkey flower. There is an area that is completely covered
in hummingbird sage. Just beautiful. (DS) |
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Naturalist's rating: Good |
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Cheeseboro & Palo Comado Canyons |
Various north-end trails |
Date: 5/11/06 |
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Just a brief update to the Cheeseboro
report on 4/20/06 (see below). As summer has progressed we continue to see
very good to even excellent displays of wild flowers in the north end of this
unit while the south end languishes under its burden of non-native weeds. It
is definitely worth the trip to the north end if you are up for the two-plus
mile hike (one way) just to reach that remote portion of this unit. Many
people bike up to the north end, although the roughness and grade of some of
the trails make it difficult to focus on the flowers while on a bike.
It’s probably worth mentioning that the north end is pretty barren of
trees while the lower “weedy” end has some beautiful stands of
native oaks making hiking in the lower end a real pleasure as the temperature
rises. (TV) |
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Naturalist's rating: Poor to Very Good |
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Cold Creek Preserve |
Stunt High Trail |
Date: 5/3/06 |
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At the trail head there is flowering
purple sage and the first mariposa lily I have seen this season. Good signs.
Heading into the woods the creek is rushing. There bush poppy, purple nightshade, canyon
sunflower, golden yarrow and baby blue eyes.
Climbing up into the meadow there are geophytes; more mariposas, blue
eyed grass, blue dicks, goldenstars, sweet pea, larkspur and a large sweep of
Chinese houses. Climbing higher into
the chaparral there is California everlasting, deerweed, caterpillar phacelia,
eucrypta, popcorn flower, wooly blue curls, heart leaf penstemon, California
buckwheat and sticky monkey flower.
There are some special treats; blow wives, skullcap, mustard evening
primrose and exquisite fairy lanterns.
A lovely hike. (DS) |
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Naturalist's rating: Good |
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Circle X Ranch |
Backbone Trail below Triunfo Pk. |
Date: 4/28/06 |
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We’re still waiting for the
great flower displays we’ve seen here in the past. The species count is
up to a respectable eighty five species, but many are having such a light
turnout that it would be easy to miss the few individuals in bloom. This
well-groomed grassy trail affords several dramatic vistas in most directions
of the compass, especially if you take the side trip up to Triunfo Peak. The
trail condition is excellent, and its wide and level aspect is a pleasure to
hike. It has been recently mowed which is good because tall grasses can
harbor ticks, including those that may potentially carry Lyme disease.
Indeed, I went off trail for just a moment and found several ticks on me when
I returned to the trail. There are still some decent displays
of greenbark ceanothus blooming on this trail but they are now well past
their prime. Other flower highlights include elderberry, shooting stars,
chinese houses, Douglas sandwort, eucrypta, a couple of different
everlastings, a few early purple clarkia, coast goldfields, hedge nettle,
small-flowered meconella, black sage, windmill pink, rock rose, chia, chinese
houses, Parry’s phacelia, caterpillar phacelia, fiesta flower, bleeding
heart, red-skinned onion, deerweed, California buckwheat, popcorn flower,
wild cucumber, purple nightshade, blue larkspur, wishbone bush, common
fiddleneck, mustard evening primrose, wooly blue curls, California saxifrage,
prickly phlox, miners lettuce, golden yarrow, bush monkey flower, canyon
sunflower, wild morning glory, blue dicks, virgin’s bower, and a few
different Lupines (TV). |
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Naturalist's rating: Fair |
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Malibu Creek State Park |
Backbone Trail |
Date: 4/22/06 |
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Backbone Trail Sections Including
Stunt Road to Piuma Road and Piuma Road east crossing to Piuma Road west
crossing. This hike was the seventh of the 2005-2006
Backbone Trail NPS Series. We will be hiking the entire Backbone Trail, one
part each month and reporting on the flowers seen. The hike series was
oversubscribed this year so we are having a Saturday and Sunday hike over the
same route to accommodate all interested hikers. Following is the flower list
gathered by different people over the two days. Our route took us from the
top of Stunt Road to Malibu Canyon Road:
a distance of 7.5 miles. The weather both days was overcast and cool. Starting at the top of Stunt Road, we
went up and over Saddle Peak, descending the Saddle Peak Trail through Dark
Canyon and climbing the Piuma Ridge Trail to descent to Piuma Road, and
following the road to the Backbone Trailhead parking on Malibu Canyon Road.
The hike includes the Coastal Sage Scrub, Southern Oak Woodland, Chaparral,
Riparian Woodland, and Valley Grassland plant communities. Expectations of a
large variety of blooming species were met with over 90 species being noted.
The cool weather we have been experiencing has delayed flowering of many
plants, but has also induced several plants to continue flowering. As usual,
there always seems to be a couple plants that we could not immediately
identify. The Backbone Trailhead going west
from the top of Stunt Road begins about 100 yards down Stunt. Before reaching
the trail we had already noted Greenbark Ceanothus, Red Stem and Long-Beaked
Filaree, Golden Yarrow, Elderberry, Black Mustard, Mule Fat, Big Pod
Ceanothus, Yellow Sweet Clover, and Common Sow Thistle. On the trail to the
top we saw our first Prickly Phlox, Bur Clover, Tomcat Clover, Blue Dicks,
Two-Tone Everlasting, Popcorn Flower, one of the Vetches, Prickly Sow
Thistle, Dove Lupine, Plantain, Virgins Bower, Canyon Sunflower, Wild Sweet
Pea, Miner’s Lettuce, Coast Live Oak, and Shiny Lomatium. There is a
lot of Spanish Broome on this section, but only a few flowers are braving the
cold. Also noted was the Hairy-Leaved Ceanothus which bears a great
similarity with the Greenbark Ceanothus. Here one can compare the leaf
structures to see the difference: The
Greenbark leaf has one main vein and the Hairy-Leaved has a triple main vein.
As the trail topped out we had a
special treat, seeing White Thorn with a profusion of purple flowers. As
mentioned previously in these blooming reports, this is been a terrific year
for Ceanothus blooming. The White Thorn is a seldom seen species of Ceanothus
but we saw many in bloom continuing further down the trail. There is an
abundance of Eastwood Manzanita blooming and bearing berries and further down
the trail and we were able to compare the rough textured leaves of the
Eastwood with the smooth leaves of the Big Berry Manzanita and see the larger
berries. Other flowers along the trail were the Fuchsia-Flowered Gooseberry,
Scrub Oak, Silver Lotus on the rocks, Large-Flowered Lotus, Sugar Bush, Deer
Weed, and Cobweb Thistle. A scattering of Bush Poppies remain where they had
dominated after the 1993 fire, now giving way to the more typical Chaparral.
In the cool, shady areas Wild Cucumber flowers persist and we saw Bush
Lupine, California Everlasting, Some Wooly Blue Curls, and lots of
Bur-Chervil. There were Morning Glory, Black Sage, Caterpillar Phacelia,
Eucrypta, a few early Chamise, Hummingbird Sage, Turkey Pea, Silver Puffs, a
Windmill Pink, lots of Chia, Catalina Mariposa Lily, Purple Sage, Pacific
Sanicle, Wishbone Bush, Foothill Lupine, Bush Monkey Flower, lots of Poison
Oak, Blue-Eyed Grass, a single Indian Pink, a profusion of Hollyleaf Cherry,
Mountain Mahogany, Fiesta Flower, Narrow-Leaved Bedstraw, Minute Popcorn
Flower, Cliff Aster, Hedge Mustard, and Scarlet Pimpernel. Nearing the bottom
of the descent are many Chinese Houses. We also noted Hedge Nettle and
Wallflower. Climbing out of Dark Canyon always seems to provide special
displays; this time it was Baby Blue Eyes, Woodland Star, Globe Gilia, Yellow
Pin Cushion, Wild Peony, and the invasive Italian Thistle. The Piuma Ridge Trail has Blue Larkspur,
Owl’s Clover, Hedypnois, Blackberry, Indian Warrior, London Rocket,
Small Evening Primrose, Mustard Evening Primrose, Water Cress, California
Poppy, and Collarless Poppy. As the trail approached Piuma Road a second time
there were more and more introduced species as we hiked through an area of an
old cabin ruins, ending with the invasive Periwinkle. (BE & GS) |
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Naturalist's rating: Good |
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Zuma/Trancas Cyns
vicinity |
Backbone Trail |
Date: 4/22/06 |
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The short stretch of Backbone Trail from
Mulholland Hwy to Encinal Canyon Rd (about 1 mile) is a delight to the
senses. Each breeze is filled with the smell of sage and California
Everlasting. Each turn has striking contrasts from white popcorn flower to
deep purple Parry's phacelia and purple nightshade to the bright yellow
candle flame and fire dot lichen growing golden designs on to deep green
chamise. Starting from Mulholland Hwy, the trek is all down hill to Encinal
Canyon Rd, but it will certainly lift your spirits. Other flowers present: lupine, monkey
flower, deer weed, morning glory, canyon sunflower, cliff aster. (JJL) |
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Naturalist's rating: Good to Excellent |
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Circle X Ranch |
Canyon View Trail |
Date: 4/21/06 |
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Still very few flowers making an
appearance. Actually, the species count is up to a respectable seventy five
species, but many are having such a light turnout that it would be easy to
miss the few small individuals in bloom. Now that the ceanothus have mostly
finishing up it is harder to be generous in rating this trail, but on the
other hand the trail is in good condition, is very lush and green, and is a
pleasure to hike. Highlights include black sage, windmill pink, rock rose,
chia, yellow pincushion, chinese houses, Parry’s phacelia, red-skinned
onion, deerweed, California buckwheat, popcorn flower, wild cucumber, both
white and purple nightshade, blue larkspur, wishbone bush, common fiddleneck,
mustard evening primrose, wooly blue curls, water speedwell, collarless
California poppy, globe gilia, California saxifrage, miners lettuce, annual
paintbrush, golden yarrow, bush and creek and yellow monkey flowers, canyon
sunflower, wild morning glory, blue dicks, virgin’s bower, a couple of
early elegant clarkia, and a few California blackberry. (TV). |
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Naturalist's rating: Fair |
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Cheeseboro & Palo Comado Canyons |
Various north-end trails |
Date: 4/20/06 |
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Trails examined included the
Albertson Motorway, Palo Comado Canyon Trail, Sheep Corral Trail, Cheeseboro
Ridge Trail and Cheeseboro Canyon Trail. Much of the lower section of this
unit is literally choked with non-native grasses and weeds but if you get up
to the Northern end you are rewarded with some very nice wildflower displays.
Some sections of some of the trails are quite good right now, even very good,
but overall the quality of the flower display was quite variable from place
to place. Be aware that much of this unit was burned in last fall's fires and
has not been fully reopened for visitor use. Be sure to read all posted signs
to avoid entering closed areas. Some of the burned areas are especially
fragile right now. The lower end of the Palo Comado
Trail and Cheeseboro Canyon Trail and most of the Cheeseboro Ridge Trail were
quite disappointing, but as these trails reach their Northern ends we begin
to see good numbers of several different species of wildflowers. The vicinity
of the intersection of Sheep Corral Trail and Palo Comado Trails was quite
good at least until we dropped back down into the depths of the burn. It is
interesting to see how some of the burned areas are coming back primarily as
non-native weeds, but in other areas the native wildflowers are holding their
own. My own curiosity will certainly keep me watching the burned areas as
Spring progresses. Similarly, sections of the Albertson Motorway vary
considerably, but none as bad as the weed choked lower end of the unit.
Highlights include succulent lupine, paintbrush, purple nightshade, blue
dick, prickly phlox, mustard evening primrose, popcorn flower, bush monkey
flower, yellow monkey flower, black sage, chia, sunflowers, caterpillar
phacelia, Parry's phacelia, several different lupines, wild morning glory, datura,
wishbone bush, a lot of both white and yellow pincushions, several different
lotus, white and twining snapdragons, eucrypta, several different gilia,
sections quite dense with star lily, golden yarrow, blue toadflax, fire
poppies, several different pinks, fiesta flower, long-beaked filaree, and
skullcap. All told over ninety different species in bloom. (TV) |
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Naturalist's rating: Poor to Very Good |
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Cold Creek Preserve |
Cold Creek Canyon Trail |
Date: 4/19/06 |
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We hiked up the trail from the lower
gate to the upper gate on Stunt Road on 4/19/06, seeing the Cold Creek
Preserve for the first time in 5 years. Last year this area was closed
because of landslides. Permission must be obtained from the Mountains Restoration
Trust before using this particular trail. Our main objective was to see the
Stream Orchids, but unfortunately none were yet in bloom. The hike was well
worth the time spent in as much as 55 species were found to be in bloom
including less frequently seen species such as the white thorn Ceanothus and
skullcap. Other species seen, by color follows. White/Cream included wild cucumber,
Calif. everlasting, Durango root, eucrypta, bedstraw, white nightshade,
two-tone everlasting, wild blackberry, chamise, Calif. buckwheat, popcorn
flower, mountain mahogany, miner's lettuce, white sweet clover, bur chervil,
chickweed, Eastwood manzanita, hoary
leaf ceanothus, minute-flowered popcorn flower and milkmaids. Yellow/golden blooms seen were bur
clover, golden yarrow, sour clover, prickly sow thistle, dandelion, large
flowered lotus, bush poppy, mustard evening primrose, coast live oak, black
walnut, shiny lomatium, canyon sunflower, yellow iris, strigose lotus and
snake root. In the lavender/purple/blue group
were succulent lupine, red stem filaree, greenbark ceanothus, hairy
ceanothus, caterpillar phacelia, fiesta flower, skull cap, purple nightshade,
black sage, and white thorn ceanothus. Red/pink were represented by scarlet
pitcher sage, wild sweet pea, cobwebby thistle and scarlet pimpernel. Other sightings included a species of
goosefoot, Calif. filago, Madrid brome, ripgut brome, red brome and soft
brome. A rating of good is warranted for
this hike. (RWM) |
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Naturalist's rating: Good |
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Circle X Ranch |
Grotto Trail |
Date: 4/16/06 |
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Heading out of the group campground
there are common fiddleneck, malacothrix, white and purple nightshade, canyon
sunflower, wild morning glory, black sage, California everlasting and golden
yarrow. After crossing the creek and
heading uphill to the meadow there are a lot of Chinese houses, some
larkspur, fiesta flower and popcorn flower.
The meadow is not in its usual spring glory; there is vetch, blue dick
and some blue eyed grass. Heading
downhill to the grotto there is deerweed, California buckwheat, sticky monkey
flower, one star lily and some hummingbird sage. There is, however, lots of water flowing in
the creeks and many newts. (DS) |
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Naturalist's rating: Fair |
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Circle X Ranch |
Mishe Mokwa Loop Trail |
Date: 4/16/06 |
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The trail was still quite wet from
the recent rains but overall in very good condition. As the weather continues
to warm up we are beginning to see a larger variety of flowers, but so far
still mostly light turnouts of most species, the notable exception being the
several species of ceanothus which have all had a banner year. The
hoary-leaved ceanothus is well past its peak now but the beautiful
hairy-leaved ceanothus is only a bit past its peak and still showing very
dense displays of blossoms. Similarly, the dramatic prickly phlox is past its
prime but still plentiful. Other highlights include California buckwheat,
wild sweet pea, coast gold fields, fuchsia-flowered gooseberry, yellow cress,
popcorn flower, morning glory, wild cucumber, golden yarrow, Eastwood
manzanita, a few late shooting stars, chia, California collarless poppy,
purple nightshade, mustard evening primrose, small evening primrose, gilia,
yellow pincushion, skullcap, blue dicks eucrypta, virgin’s bower,
Parry’s phacelia, mountain phacelia, miner's lettuce, a few holdout
California peony, California saxifrage, a few different lupines, bush monkey
flower, woolly blue curls, chaparral current, and blue larkspur. All told
about seventy different species in bloom
(TV) |
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Naturalist's rating: Fair |
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Castro Crest region |
Backbone Trail |
Date: 4/13/06 |
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On 4/13/06 we hiked the Backbone
Trail in the Castro Crest region and identified 75 species of flora in bloom,
including the grasses and trees. The trail was in good shape along the entire
route and the area that burned last fall is starting to recover with lots of
chamise sprouting from the old crowns. There were an equal number of
yellowish blooms as there were of the whitish, namely 22 each. The whites included Calif buckwheat,
chamise, popcorn flower, miner's lettuce, big pod ceanothus, bristly jewel
flower and bedstraw. There were a few milkmaids as well as Burt's bur
chervil, eucrypta, Mountain mahogany, Eastwood manzanita, and virgin's bower.
Less commonly seen were white hyacinth and Calif saxifrage. Wild blackberry,
windmill pink, wild cucumber, two-tone everlasting, Calif. everlasting,
morning glory and cliff aster were also identified. Amongst the yellow blooms were hedge
mustard, deerweed, golden yarrow, bush sunflower, prickly sow thistle and
blow wives. Also present were snake root, London rocket, miniature evening
primrose, western yellow cress and bur clover. Other blooms were American
winter cress, Johnny jump-up, canyon sunflower, poison oak, pineapple weed,
telegraph weed, bush monkey flower, Southern tauschia, large flowered lotus,
bush poppy and Chile lotus. Amongst the purplish and blue flowers
were red stem filaree, black sage, greenbark ceanothus, purple night shade, wooly blue curls, dove
lupine, blue-eyed grass, collared lupine wishbone bush, Parry's phacelia,
fern leaf phacelia and fiesta flower. Pinkish and red were represented by
Calif. peony, scarlet pimpernel, red maids, scarlet pitcher sage, chaparral
current, fuchsia flowered gooseberry, and prickly phlox. Also seen were sugar
bush, wild sweet pea, Indian pink and wooly paint brush. Other sightings were foxtail barley,
Madrid brome, wild oats, golden top, slender oats and red brome. Both scrub
oak and coast live oak were in bloom. Several fungi were spotted including a
large 5 inch diameter mushroom, a 3.5 inch diameter inverted top toadstool
and numerous smaller toadstools. A rating of very good is awarded for
the quantity and quality of blooms on this hike. (RWM) |
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Naturalist's rating: Very Good |
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Rocky Oaks |
Various trails |
Date: 4/9/06 |
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Our unseasonably cool weather has
delayed the wildflower blooms here, but now things look promising. Most of
the trails to the eastern edge of the site are still very wet and muddy and
will keep you from exploring the meadow. In the areas surrounding the meadow
you can see the beginnings of bloom: popcorn flowers, cryptantha, filaree and
long-billed filaree, as well as lots of funnel-web spider webs and mushrooms.
North of the pond area are small lupines. South of the pond the trail
continues into drier chaparral vegetation and views start to improve.
Firedot, candleflame and speckled greenshield lichens are clearly visible on
black sage, chamise and other shrubs and you’ll find California
buckwheat, lots of California everlasting and then patches of California
poppies. As you continue west, blooms improve. The most impressive are the
several types of ceanothus in bloom, especially the blue violet one,
ceanothus oliganthus. You can also see Carolina geraniums, golden violets,
more small blue lupines and some mountain mahogany, just starting to bloom before
that trail ends at the far western edge of the park. (SB) |
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Naturalist's rating: Fair to Good |
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Malibu Canyon State
Park |
Backbone Trail between Corral Trailhead
and Tapia Park |
Date: 4/8/06 |
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This hike was section number six of
the National Park Service's annual Backbone Trail hike. This section starts
at the Corral Canyon trailhead and runs along the Mesa Peak Fire road then
down to Tapia Park on Malibu Canyon Rd. A good portion of this hike is along
the ridgeline offering some excellent vistas of both the ocean and the
valley. Flower density is still low for this time of year which is somewhat
offset by great displays of ceanothus, producing only a fair showing. All
told about fifty species in bloom. Highlights include Greenbark ceanothus,
prickly phlox, purple nightshade, Eastwood manzanita, manroot, sunflowers,
Parry's phacelia, fiesta flower, virgins bower, a few different lupines,
paintbrush, Indian pink, California blackberry, oxalis albicans, and, perhaps
the most important, summer holly. (RW) |
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Naturalist's rating: Fair |
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Point Mugu State Park |
La Jolla Canyon Trail |
Date: 4/6/06 |
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On 4/06/06 we hiked up the La Jolla
Canyon Trail and connected with the Loop Trail westerly. Our objective was to
find the Creeping buttercups that had been washed out from last years rains.
We found several plants, but none were blooming. Including the grasses and
trees we found 48 species in bloom. The dominant color was yellow which
included hedge mustard, giant coreopsis, bush sunflower, deerweed, telegraph
weed and bush monkey flower. Also found were sour clover, golden yarrow, bur
clover and tree tobacco. Slender bedstraw, canyon sunflower, western
wallflower, snake root, Santa Barbara locoweed and prickly sow thistle
concludes the yellowish group. Second most common were the whitish
group which included morning glory, Calif. everlasting, horehound, poison
oak, and mule fat. Two-tone everlasting, Calif. buckwheat, cliff aster,
bigpod ceanothus, wild blackberry, eucrypta, and popcorn flower rounds out
this group. In the purple/blue category we found
black sage, redstem filaree, purple night shade, rigid hedge nettle,
greenbark ceanothus, blue dick, blue-eyed grass, and wishbone bush. Red/pink
was represented by coast paint brush, wild sweetpea,
and scarlet pimpernel. Other sightings were rip-gut brome,
red brome, Calif. walnut, slender oats, golden top, arroyo willow and wild
oats. There was plenty of water flowing in
the creeks and at least three waterfalls were on display. The trail was in
good condition with only a couple of muddy sections. The ticks seem to be as
plentiful as they were last year, so don't spare the deet. (RWM) |
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Naturalist's rating: Fair |
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Santa
Monica Mountains National Recreation Area 401 West
Hillcrest Drive 805-370-2301 |
Thank
you for your
contributions: Burt
Elliot |
If you
would like to contribute to the wildflower report: e-mail: or phone
Tony at 310-457-6408 |
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