Category Archives: trails

running, running|races, trails, trails|big bear

Holcomb Valley 33 Mile Trail Run 2011

first published & last updated
Click on thumbnails for more info & larger image.

When you’re a middle-of-the-pack runner doing a 33 mile race in the mountains of Southern California you have a lot of time to think. I’d already been running 5 1/2 hours, and what I was thinking about at the moment is that I wished I had spent the last week in Big Bear, Mammoth, or anywhere higher than the soaring 890′ elevation of the west San Fernando Valley.



Why? The Holcomb Valley 33 Mile course is deceiving. Even though it has only one steep climb, and the total elevation gain/loss is only about 3600′, it has the highest average elevation of any 50K in Southern California. Nearly 30 miles of the course are above 7000′, and this translates to a big performance hit, especially for the unacclimated, middle-of-the-pack runner.

In addition to wishing I was acclimatized, I was also thinking that we’d lucked out again this year and the weather for the race was pretty comfortable. It was warmer at the start of the race than last year, and even though the midday temps recorded at Fawnskin were almost identical to last year, it felt a little warmer for most of the run. (The descent to, and climb out from, aid station #6 must be tough on a day in the eighties!)



And besides the altitude and weather, I was thinking it was taking a long time to get to aid station #7. It seemed I should have reached the Belleville miner’s cabin by now. The cabin’s at about mile 26 and only about a mile and a half from the LAST aid station.

Finally, the flat surrounding the cabin came into view. How different that view would have been 140 years ago. At the height of the gold rush Belleville was a boom town of thousands, and as the third or fourth largest town in Southern California had vied for the county seat! Somewhere across the flat was a large western juniper said to have been a hangman’s tree.

Fifteen minutes later I was a happy runner; drinking cola, getting a bottle filled with ice and water, and kidding around with the aid station volunteers from Bear Valley Search & Rescue. They were outstanding — as were all the volunteers!



After thanking everybody for being there, I turned onto the PCT and started to jog up the trail. Even though more than 5 miles remained — more than half of it uphill — it felt good to be on the last leg of the race and headed for the finish line!

Congrats to the overall winners Jorge Pacheco (4:20:13) and Vanessa Jones (5:45:16) and to all the runners that participated in the race. This year the median time (half the runners above, half below) was about 7:38:00.

Here’s an interactive Google Earth flyover of the course that can be viewed in most browsers. (Google Earth plugin required.) Distances specified are based on my GPS trace from last year, and were calculated in SportTracks. Distances and placemark locations should be considered approximate. Here’s an elevation profile from last year’s post about the race.

Many thanks to Gary and Pam Kalina, Bear Valley Search & Rescue, the sponsors, and all the volunteers for a great race! For additional info see the Holcomb Valley Trail Runs web site.

Related post: Holcomb Valley 33 Mile Trail Run 2010

nature, nature|botany, nature|wildfire, nature|wildflowers, photography, photography|wildflowers, trails, trails|san gabriels

After the Station Fire: Phacelia Near Three Points

published
Click on thumbnails for more info & larger image.

Various species of Phacelia are fire-followers and have bloomed in profusion in areas burned by the Station Fire. These are Davidson’s Phacelia (Phacelia davidsonii) along the Three Points – Mt. Waterman Trail about a mile from Three Points.



Like Turricula (Poodle-dog bush)*, many species of Phacelia can cause a contact dermatitis similar to poison oak. Generally, any Phacelia should be considered suspect, and especially those that are fuzzy and sticky.

One Phacelia that has been shown to elicit a reaction is California bluebell (Phacelia minor) — a relatively common wildflower in the middle to lower elevation areas burned by the Station Fire. In one study, it was found that the amount of two active compounds in Phacelia minor required to produce a qualified reaction was 6.3 µg and 3.8 µg; compared to 170 µg for Turricula and 1.6 µg for a component of urushiol from poison ivy.

*The taxonomic name for Turricula parryi (Poodle-dog bush) has changed to Eriodictyon parryi. The Jepson Manual: Vascular Plants of California, Second Edition (2012) has returned Turricula to the genus Eriodictyon, as originally described by Gray. According to the Wikipedia entry for Turricula (April 11, 2012), “… molecular phylogenetic analysis carried out by Ferguson (1998) confirms that Turricula should be treated as a separate genus within a clade (Ferguson does not use the term “subfamily”) that includes Eriodictyon, and also the genera Nama and Wigandia; Eriodictyon is the genus to which Turricula is closest in molecular terms, and is its sister taxon.” I use “Turricula” and “Poodle-dog bush” interchangeably as a common name.

Related post: After the Station Fire: Contact Dermatitis from Turricula parryi – Poodle-dog Bush

nature, nature|trees, photography, photography|still life, running, trails, trails|malibu creek state park

Malibu Creek State Park Coast Redwoods

first published & last updated
Click on thumbnails for more info & larger image.

Coast redwood in Malibu Creek State Park

Benefiting from the cool ocean air that flows into Malibu Canyon, the afternoon shadows of Goat Buttes, their north-facing aspect, and the sustaining waters of Malibu Creek and Century Lake, the 100-year-old coast redwoods in Malibu Creek State Park appear to be thriving.



Coast redwoods are not endemic to Southern California. According to Los Padres Forestwatch, the southernmost stand of naturally-occurring coast redwoods is on the coast about 200 miles north of Malibu Creek State Park in an area of Los Padres National Forest designated the Southern Redwood Botanical Area.

Numerous redwoods have been planted in Southern California, and not all of them are doing well. A reprint of the 2004 article “What’s up with the redwoods?” by James Downer, originally available as a resource link on the Urban Forest Ecosystems Institute website, discusses a dramatic decline in coast redwoods planted in Ventura County and describes some of the problems facing this wonderful tree.

Perhaps the Malibu Creek State Park redwoods have a better chance of surviving, and naturally occurring or not, will be enjoyed by Park visitors for centuries to come.

From this morning’s trail run in Malibu Creek State Park.

Some related posts: The Malibu Creek State Park Redwoods Are Dying, Malibu Creek State Park Redwoods: Fighting the Drought

nature, nature|clouds, nature|weather, photography, photography|landscape, running, running|adventures, trails, trails|mt. pinos, weather, weather|southern california

Atmospheric Dynamics

published
Click on thumbnails for more info & larger image.

Complex of mountain wave clouds to the north-northeast of Mt. Pinos

These unusual clouds are a complex of lenticular clouds to the north-northeast of Mt. Pinos, photographed this morning from near Mt. Abel. They were produced by strong south-southwesterly winds blowing across the east-west oriented Emigdio and Tehachapi mountain ranges, north of Los Angeles. Here’s another view of these clouds from near the summit of Mt. Pinos.



The winds were associated with the circulation of an unseasonably strong low pressure system off the California coast. The storm system has resulted in measurable rain as far south as Santa Barbara County, and new rainfall records for the date were set in San Francisco, Paso Robles and Santa Maria.



The photographs were taken during a blustery out and back trail run from Mt. Pinos to Mt. Abel on the Vincent Tumamait Trail in the Chumash Wilderness. At the start of the run, the temperature at the Chula Vista trailhead (8400′) on Mt. Pinos was a chilly 39°F. In exposed areas the wind speed was 20-25 mph with gusts to around 50 mph.

Other than the potential for deadfall, the wind wasn’t too bad in the trees. The Vincent Tumamait Trail was in the best condition I’ve seen in years.

Update June 6, 2011. The low that was off the Central California coast Saturday and most of Sunday and an associated cold front set a new rainfall record for June 5 at Santa Barbara Airport, and produced a few sprinkles and showers in the Los Angeles area.

Some related posts: Mountain Weather, Lenticular Wave Clouds, Mt. Pinos – Mt. Abel Out & Back

nature, nature|trees, nature|wildfire, photography, photography|landscape, running, running|adventures, trails, trails|san gabriels

After the Station Fire: Three Points – Mt. Waterman Loop

published
Click on thumbnails for more info & larger image.

Scorched Jeffrey Pines on the South Side of Waterman Mountain

Scorched Jeffrey Pines on the South Side of Waterman Mountain

It was very odd to run up the Mt. Waterman Trail on the Sunday of a 3-day Memorial Day weekend, and see no one. And hear nothing, except the wind in the trees, the distant call of a jay, and the periodic drone of a contractor’s truck working on the highway. That’s because — surprise, surprise — Angeles Crest Highway was closed a little east of Three Points and on to Islip Saddle. CalTrans Road Conditions had only listed the Winter closure from Islip Saddle to Vincent Gap. Based on the number of cars parked at the closure, not many people knew about it.



I hadn’t known about it until I saw the Ranger’s truck and closed gate from the Pacific Crest Trail. I was doing a loop from Three Points up the PCT to the Burkhart Trail, then up to Buckhorn, over Mt. Waterman, and back down to Three Points. Part of this loop — from Mt. Waterman to Three Points on Trail 10W04 — had just reopened, and like last weekend I wanted to see how recovery from the 2009 Station Fire was progressing.



The conditions were much better on this loop, than last week’s. Although within the initial Station Fire Closure area, and closed for eight months, 11 of the first 13.5 miles of the loop were not burned in the Station Fire. This mostly unburned stretch opened in late May 2010 and is described in the post Three Points to Waterman Mountain, the Long Way.



The remaining six miles of the loop, which winds in and out of the shallow canyons on the south side of Mt. Waterman, was in the burn area. Conditions along the trail appeared to generally correspond to BAER burn severity maps and images. At the higher elevations, fingers of the fire had run up the steep slopes, burning understory and scattered Jeffrey pines and incense cedars, while leaving other areas untouched.



At lower elevation, particularly in the chaparral and pine at the head of the north branch of Devils Canyon, the fire effects were more severe. The chaparral is recovering, but numerous Coulter and Jeffrey pines appeared to have been killed, and their replacement will be a slower process. This area is traversed by the last two miles of Trail 10W04, leading to Three Points.

There was very little, if any, damage from runoff and the trail was generally in good shape. The trail was slightly overgrown in spots, particularly at lower elevation, but was nothing like the Gabrielino Trail between Switzer and Red Box. There was some Turricula (Poodle-dog bush) at lower elevation, but for the most part it was fairly easy to avoid. Some pine needle covered sections of trail were indistinct, but it was like that before the fire.



From a trail running perspective, it is still a very “runnable” course with varied terrain and much to see and enjoy. Cooper Canyon Falls is very short side trip from the PCT’s junction with the Burkhart Trail. The side trip to the summit of Mt. Waterman (8038′) adds about two miles to the loop.

Some related posts: Three Points – Mt. Waterman Loop, Three Points Loop Plus Mt. Waterman