Category Archives: smmc open space

cheeseboro, landscape, nature, photography, running, smmc open space, trail running, trails, wildflowers, wildflowers

Weekday Wildflowers

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Goldfields along a trail in Upper Las VIrgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve

Many of my weekday runs are on the trails of Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve (formerly Ahmanson Ranch).

In the wake of the Woolsey Fire and our wet rain year, the hills of Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve have been covered with a dense carpet of green that has recently transitioned into a sea of mustard yellow. The grasses have now gone to seed and the hills will soon turn a summery-blond.

At first glance, just about all you see at Ahmanson Ranch is the green and yellow. But if you look closer, intermixed with the black mustard and other introduced plants are a variety of wildflowers.

In a few areas of the Preserve, there are large patches of native wildflowers, but it is more common for the native flowers to have to battle introduced plants for growing space. Some species are more successful than others.

Here is a slideshow of the wildflowers I’ve been seeing on my weekday runs, along with some comments and the date the photo was taken. Some of my weekday runs extend into Cheeseboro Canyon, so wildflowers from that area are also included. Additional photos may be added as the season progresses.

The yellow flowers along the trail on which Lynn is running are goldfields. As of April 10, there were still patches of goldfields blooming in the Lasky Mesa area.

birds, nature, news, photography, running, smmc open space, southern california, trails, weather, weather, wildlife

The First Snakes of Spring

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Red-tailed hawk with gopher snake at Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve (aka Ahmanson Ranch).

When I left the house to drive over to Ahmanson Ranch, the temperature in West Hills was 92 °F. It had been five months since it was that warm.

It’s been my experience that the first hot weather of Spring is often associated with an uptick of snake sightings. Over the past seven days or so, I’d seen a very young rattlesnake and a  couple of small gopher snakes, but so far, that was it. With the warm weather, I thought I might see a snake on my run today, I just didn’t expect it to be in this manner.

Lost in thought, I was just about to the entrance of Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve (aka Ahmanson Ranch) when I was startled by a large red-tailed hawk flying from right to left directly in front of me. Something long was dangling from its talons.

I stopped and watched as the raptor, fumbling with a large snake, awkwardly flew onto the top of a street light. The snake was dangling precariously from the light, and the bird seemed to be having a little trouble holding it.

The snake looked relatively heavy-bodied, and at the time I thought it might be a rattlesnake. That brought to mind a story of a hawk somehow dropping a rattlesnake into a car. However improbable, I didn’t want to approach the hawk and frighten it. I have enough problems with rattlesnakes on the ground and don’t need them falling from the sky.

I got what photos I could with my phone and headed out for a run.

You know how it is when you’ve seen a snake — anything sinuous on the trail sets off the brain’s snake alert. During my run I saw a couple of stick snakes, but no real ones. Finishing my run, I pressed the Start/Stop button on my watch and started walking across the parking lot.

Red-tailed hawk waiting to retrieve a dropped gopher snake at Ahmanson Ranch.
Red-tailed hawk waiting to retrieve a dropped gopher snake.

What? I squinted my eyes… Was the hawk still perched on the street light? No way, more than an hour had passed!

Continuing across the parking lot, I could see the hawk was still there, but where was the snake?

Cautiously, I approached the light post. I didn’t want to agitate the hawk or stumble onto an upset rattlesnake.

Sometime during my run, the hawk had dropped the snake — a gopher snake — and was waiting to retrieve it. It lay upside down on the street — sans its head. Rattlesnake or not, the hawk had removed the dangerous bit first.

I’ll be curious to see if the snake is still in the street tomorrow.

Update April 11, 2019. The following day (Tuesday) no trace of the snake remained, but the red-tailed hawk was still there — perched on an adjacent street light. On Wednesday the bird was gone.

landscape, nature, news, photography, running, smmc open space, southern california, trails, weather, weather

Cool Running in the Simi Hills

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Cool running at Ahmanson Ranch in the Simi Hills.

For the last couple of days of January, all of February, and the first third of March, the temperature at Downtown Los Angeles (USC) and many other Los Angeles area locations did not reach 70 °F!

Will have to think of days like today when it’s 100 degrees and I’m picking foxtails out of my socks and shoes!

landscape, nature, news, photography, running, smmc open space, southern california, trails, weather, weather, wildfire

After the Woolsey Fire and a Lot of Rain: Upper Las Virgenes Creek

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Upper Las Virgenes Creek on March 7, 2019, following the Woolsey Fire and frequent Winter rain.

It’s not often we get to hear the burble and gurgle of Las Virgenes Creek in Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve. Last Winter it didn’t run at all.

There were two crossings of the creek on my run today. My shoes were already wet from running on wet trails, so I didn’t worry about keeping my shoes dry.

Here’s a video snapshot of the creek on Vimeo. It’s carrying a bit more sediment than normal, as a result of the Woolsey Fire.

clouds, landscape, nature, news, photography, running, smmc open space, southern california, trails, weather, weather

Simi Valley Snow Shower

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Simi Valley Snow Shower

There were many reports of snow, sleet, hail, and graupel around the area yesterday.

It was definitely cold! The afternoon temperature at 1700′ at the Cheeseboro RAWS was around 42°F. And the temperature was probably cooler in the vicinity of convective showers, such as the one above.

The photograph is from Sage Ranch, at an elevation of about 2000′. I was hoping to see some snow on the ground — but no cloud buildups cooperated.

Related post: Snow on Oat Mountain (December 2008)

landscape, nature, photography, running, smmc open space, southern california, trails, weather, weather, wildfire, wildflowers, wildflowers

Run to the Cheeseboro Remote Automated Weather Station

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Cheeseboro Remote Automated Weather Station (RAWS)

This afternoon’s run was to the Cheeseboro Remote Automated Weather Station (RAWS). The station is perched on the ridge between Las Virgenes Canyon and Cheeseboro Canyon, along the Cheeseboro Ridge power line service road.

It is about 5 miles from the Victory Trailhead of Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve (formerly Ahmanson Ranch) and one of many good runs from that trailhead into the Cheeseboro – Palo Comado Canyon area.

California poppies in Las Virgenes Canyon
California poppies in Las Virgenes Canyon

Runs in the Ahmanson Ranch area are especially scenic at the moment. Above average rainfall has produced lush green growth in the oak grasslands following the Woolsey Fire. Many of the oaks are beginning to sprout new leaves and poppies and other wildflowers are beginning to bloom. Today there was a nice show of poppies in Las Virgenes Canyon at the connector leading to Cheeseboro Ridge and Cheeseboro Canyon.

Operated by the BLM and NPS the Cheeseboro RAWS (CEEC1) has been in service since September 1995. The station was in the area burned by the 2005 Topanga and 2018 Woolsey Fires and was active throughout each event.

Following are some of the extremes recorded by the station:

• Highest hourly temperature was 115 °F on July 7, 2018.
• Lowest hourly temperature was 32 °F on December 12, 1998.
• Maximum hourly wind speed was 37 mph on October 22, 2007.
• Maximum wind gust was 92 mph on January 6, 2003.
• Maximum daily precipitation was 5.01 inches on February 12, 2003.

So far this rain year (July 1 to June 30), 15.67 inches of rain has been recorded by the station.

Related post: Southern California Trail Running Temps