Black Star Falls for 54

I don't think about age much, especially mine, which is why I was confused this past week (Sat., February 16) when I thought that I was turning 53 years old. But then I did the math. The truth: I have now made the revolution around the sun 54 times. In celebration, my husband and I took the one day in between rains (we had been experiencing near constant rain) to hike out to Black Star Falls. The only other time I had ever made that hike was also with my husband, along with some friends. That first trip 9 years ago. It was another era in my life. It was when I was running all the time; I was much stronger physically then. I recall the hike being strenuous and what I would rate as a moderately difficult hike. 

And it was again -- a strenuous, moderately difficult hike. There was a difference though. This time, the creek was crashing through the canyon. Crashing. It was so full, there was no staying dry. It took so much mental focus traversing between the boulders and rapidly moving creek that it became tiresome. Other times, we were scrambling up mud banks, or but sliding down unwalkable surfaces. You really can't beat that type of hiking. It takes both mental and physical strength. And for me, I had some mental and physical strength to pull from, but I was slow moving. Slow moving was okay though, because that canyon was so lush and beautiful, that I loved all the time I could get taking it its glamour. 

Another difference nine years later, is the powers that be erected a sign pointing the way to the falls. As such, there were crowds of hikers on the 16th (I'd say more than 50). But the terrain was difficult enough to thinly spread out the field. Often it seemed like we were the only hikers (waders!) out there.  On a sad note, graffiti had been spray painted on some of the rocks (grrrrr!). 

The falls though -- wow. WOW. Absolutely remarkable how much water tumbled down into the creek. It was loud and misty. And the natural terrain of haphazard boulders made it comfortably easy to lounge about with a couple other dozen people where if we wanted to converse to one another, needed to yell because the falls were that loud. 

Black Star Canyon is Beautiful!

On our second day of no rain last week, 2/8/19 (all other 5 days, we got rain), I headed back to Black Star Canyon. After having turned back because of the heat during the summer, I vowed to return in the wintertime.  

Wintertime is here, and Black Star Canyon did not disappoint. My goal was to hike up Black Star Canyon Road to Beek's Place. Having researched it some on the internet, I figured the trip would be about 15 miles long. I had just enough time to fit that hike in. I was hoping for a total time of 5 hours. That did not happen. Of course that did not happen because I always get side-tracked on little detours. 

First detour: 

A trip down to the top of Black Star Falls. After some miles zig-zagging up Black Star Canyon Road I began to hear a roar -- a roar, even listening to music on my ipod (which I don't usually listen to very loudly). My first thought, though I really couldn't believe it, was that the roar was coming from Black Star Falls. But I had been marching for much too long, surely, I had long passed the falls. The roar intrigued me, but was presumably the first opportunity to make it down there seemed too time-consuming, and I wasn't positive it was a good route anyway. So, I headed back up to the road. 

And then Black Star Canyon road meandered away, zig-zagging again up the mountain. A bit later, I heard that fierce roar again. That's when I realized that I was standing atop a thin single track that headed down from Black Star Canyon Road, off toward the roar, off toward two giant boulders in the not so far distance.  

The first trail I took off of this track took me just to the left of the right boulder in the picture above. As I approached, it became evident to me that I was indeed above the falls, the sound was just so fierce. But just when I thought that I was getting closer, my trail ended at a cliff, an abrupt clift, too scary to even consider approaching. In fact, I backed off immdediately and headed off to another single track that I had spotted on the way down. 

Friends, I found the creek. And it was rushing hard and loud. I was surrounded by boulders, and slippery footings. So, I took a seat on top of a nice solid boulder. I could not see to the bottom of the falls, and I have no idea if there were hikers below. They could have been yelling and I would not have heard them because the water was so loud. I'm not even sure how close I was to the falls. I didn't want to chance venturing closer. I felt this was a time for extreme caution. And besides, the spot that I had found to take it all in was really just spectacular.  

Second detour:

After the falls, I found another enchanting single track off of Black Star Canyon Road (there were actually many different distractions, but I had refrained mostly). This second detour took me through a meadow out onto groups of boulders that led to the edge of the valley.

After that second detour, I began heading down into an immense green valley. The road followed Black Star Creek for quite some time, crossing back and forth over it here and again. Finally, the road headed away from the main creek, but not too far afterward, I came upon another creek that undoubtedly met up with Black Star Creek. There were actually little creeks all over, our rains have been near constant. 

At about 9 miles traversed, I arrive to the ruins of Beek's Place on The Main Divide. I spent some time going through the ruins. There were two buildings, both just one room with fireplaces and plenty of windows. There view was spectacular -- white capped San Gorgonio Mountains and The San Gabriels covered in snow. After a little detour on top (detour #3) to get a better view of The San Gabriels, I finally decide to head back. I was way behind in schedule. But that was okay -- it was Friday, my day off.

Black Star Canyon to Beek's Place, Cccccold in the morning, approx. 37,000 steps (supposidly) 17.17 miles, 2,684' elevation gain. It was gorgeous out there. Black Star Canyon is beautiful! Green, green, green. 

Las Ramblas in Between Rains

Well, heck, we've had a lot of rain lately in the state of California, the place that supposidly doesn't get any rain. Only problem with the no-rain claim is that I have lived here all of my life, and we get plenty of rain EVENTUALLY.  People just have short memories, else they are just too young to remember the many, many times we've had lots of rain. 

It's a good thing that we're finally getting rain. We've been in a drought for a while. The creeks are now all flowing, water falls are falling. Everything is green. It's beautiful. But most of the time on our rain reprieve days, my local trails are closed due to "wet and muddy conditions." I had a hunch though that Las Ramblas Trail wasn't closed. Las Ramblas trailhead is at the edge of Dana Point, right on the border of San Juan Capstrano. The trails associated with Las Ramblas run just inland, overlooking Dana Point, San Juan Capistrano and San Clemente. The view of the Pacific Ocean is immense. But there are no trees. Literally, no trees. There's a few tall shrubs here and there, but really not much shade to speak of. This is why I rarely ever hit Las Ramblas. But there are no rangers for these trails (that I know of, as I believe they are city trails), which meant that possibly they were not closed due to wet and muddy conditions.

Las Ramblas did not disappoint. It was open as I had hoped. It was cold, it was muddy, and at times it was gray. But add to that gray, a sea of green -- and that's not a sea as in the ocean (the ocean was a silver-gray). The sea of green belonged to the hills, they were covered with fresh new growth. Of course, the dirt trails were completely saturated, which meant mud. Boy was it muddy. 

In all I got in 7.59 miles with 1,591' of elevation gain.

Harbor Run

I was okay with not getting my Friday hike last week, mainly because I got in a good 11 mile hike the day before. Friday (1/25) , I had a faculty meeting 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. After that I set up office at the downtown Starbucks, right up from the harbor. I accomplished much over two large coffees (with added heavy whipping cream that I brought in myself!). Later, I enjoyed a small amount of nuts, cheese, and salami for lunch (or rather breakfast, because it was my meal of the day). This was a great big Starbucks, with lots of room. I have to say that I felt quite comfortable working away at the big desks they've got set up there.  I parked myself next to an outlet so that when the batteries ran low, I was back online.

I think that I packed up at Starbucks a little after 2 p.m. Being that I was already dressed for a hike (because I originally thought that I might do that, but decided that I had just too much to do), I decided to go for a short run (umm . . . TROT) down at the harbor. It really was a perfect day for it -- mild weather, cold but not cold enough to require extra clothing more than a thin long sleeve. So, I strapped on my Amazfit watch and hand held my phone for 4 miles, mostly along the marina, and then out to the beach past The Marine Institute. There were plenty of people mingling about, but nothing like tourist season. And there were lots of birds. Wildlife on the seaside on this particular Friday was mainly birds (but lots of squirrels too). Pelicans hung out at the wharf, seagulls swooped low to the water, and ducks dilly-dallied around the marina waters. Talk about pleasant.

To think that I have driven thirty, sixty, ninety minutes to hike or run elsewhere, when I have this a half mile from my home!

I can't get a very good account on my speed because of the little stops I make along the way to snap the photos that I just cannot resist taking. I can't imagine that it added up to more than ten minutes though. Nonetheless, here are some of my Amazefit Stats (as they do differ from my Strava stats, and that still annoys me):

Miles: 4.00
Total Time: 59:44
Calories (allegedy!): 301
Avg heart (bpm): 165 (doubting the accuracy here, seems high for an average)

Who knows when I'll get out there again. Happy for any opportunity. It makes life so much more bearable.

The Adventures of a Mentally Sensitive-Mathis Loop

Aliso Cyn – Wood Cyn – Meadows – Mentally Sensitive – Moulton Meadows Park – Aswut – Top of the World – Alta Laguna Park – West Ridge – Mathis – Wood Cyn – Aliso Cyn

I got out before Friday for some more trails this week. I don't teach Thursday mornings this semester, which means I have the day until about 5:30 pm when I need to drive off to teach a math class. That leaves a lot of time for trails. I decided to spend some of that time putting in some long miles (11) sprinkled with the steepest incline in Aliso Canyon (Mentally Sensitive Trail!). 

The meadows were green. The creek was full. And the wildlife was out in abundance. Squirrels ran across my path. A bright blue bird swooped down in front of me. A road runner flitted across my path on Mentally Sensitive. And as soon as I turned the corner on Meadows heading toward Mentally Sensitive, I spotted a a rarity step out onto the trail from the meadow at my left. I mentioned in my last post that there is a delay in identifying animals when they are coming straight at me. The otherside of that is when the animal is not coming straight at me, there's instant recognition. This was the case on Thursday. I caught a glimpse of the cat from the side and immediately idenitified Bobby! (As in Bobcat). And what a beauty he was. 

Climbing Mentally Sensitive was a chore. Definitely  took my sweet old time. Half way up, I had grown so overheated, I needed to take off my long sleeves and tie them around my waist. The struggle was absolutely wonderful. And the green valleys and Saddleback Mountain views were very pleasing to these old eyes. Soon we will have fields of spring flowers. Hopefully we'll have a few more rains to keep the creeks flowing. Wet winters are a delight in California (not so much during the actual rain because we aren't used to it, and thus a lot of times unprepared and unpracticed). But the pay off from the rain sure is great.

Some Stats:

11.01 miles

Avg. Heart Rate (rpm) 122

Max. Heart Rate 165

1,522' Elevation Gain

1,480' Elevation Loss

Highest Altitude 1,168'

Lowest Altitude 150'

Slopes:

Uphill 35%

Flat 36%

Downhill 29%

Chiquito/Chiquita Falls are Falling

The last time I hiked out to Chiquito Falls I said that the next time I visited they’d be falling. AND THEY WERE. Monday (Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday) I was off from work, so I drove up Ortega Highway and into Blue Jay Campgrounds. Due to the government shutdown, the campgrounds (and all the bathrooms) were locked (because you know, the peasants might go out and play on the king’s land).

I parked outside of the campgrounds on Long Canyon Road and trekked through the grounds to see at least 3 people camping. They parked outside too and hiked in their gear. I mean, who was going to enforce the closing if the government was closed? Nobody, that’s who, and good for the campers too who made the trip all the way up the mountain to find it closed. I do not believe that the actual trails were closed (that would be absolutely unenforceable), but all the campgrounds were for sure.

Despite the government locking us out from the people’s land, the trails were gorgeous on Monday, and they were empty too (until I reached the falls). I took Old San Juan Trail to San Juan Trail. And then, instead of getting right onto Chiquita Trail like I usually do, I opted for The Viejo Tie, which takes a bit longer. I was missing the tie, it had been years. And The Viejo Tie did not disappoint. It was just how I remembered – single track winding between giant boulders arranged on sandy desert-like dirt and then shady, lush areas with moss and shrooms. 

It got even better – Chiquita Trail was lush and green from all of our rains, and the creek was full. The trail was like an enchanted forest with green moss covering the rocks, and a lace like canopy meeting above. At one point, I noticed an animal running toward me on Chiquita, and as usual, it took a couple of seconds before I could determine the animal. It’s a strange thing that when I see an animal coming toward me my sight and thought are not synced. It takes a few seconds for my brain to register what type of animal I’m looking at. My brain registers the picture, but naming it comes a few seconds later. On Monday, it was a gorgeous gray fox. At first, after registering the longish snout and the big pointy ears, I thought coyote. But then my brain settled down and I registered its short legs and the creature’s closeness to the ground. Definitely a fox, and unfortunately, by the time I got my camera out, the fox realized that he was running straight toward a human, turned around and darted off the other way. I do not believe that I have ever caught a picture of a fox. I have perhaps seen a  half dozen on the trails, some in California, others in Texas. 

The falls were falling, and they were crowded with people who had hiked up from The Candy Store on Ortega Highway. There must have been a half dozen hikers laughing and having a good old time as they feasted on fruit at the top of the falls. There another guy playing a ukulele in the high grass right next to the pool, and a male/female couple sitting on the rocks a little further down. After about 15 minutes though, everyone left, and except for the water, it was silent. I had the falls completely to myself. (I posted a 50 second video of the falls here)

I loved this hike. It totaled 9.82 miles with 1,654‘ elevation gain (though that gain was really over about half of that, 1,654' feet in about 4 or 5 miles). I also ran a bit because I was falling behind on time. I took San Juan Trail all the way to the end (or beginning) which I haven’t done in years. It was delightful. It felt good to have dirt beneath my feet. And I didn’t even feel clumsy along that pretty technical trail.