Lava Beds National Monument

Visited: Sept 2014

Nearby city: Tulelake, CA

This area of northeastern California is home to the basaltic lava fields from the eruptions of Medicine Lake Volcano, whose last major eruption was back in 1000 AD. This monument is similar to Craters of the Moon in Idaho, here you will find over 700 caves and lava formations such as lava tubes, fumaroles, cinder cones, spatter cones, and volcanic fields. 

We basically did a drive through of this Park. It was a very short stay. Our first stop was Petroglyph Point. We made a big mistake and thought the petroglyps were on top of the hill.  So we hiked up to the top of the hill (it took about half hour or so)...oops, the petroglyps aren't on top of the hill, they're on the bottom along the cliff face. 

good view from the top...but no petroglyphs

the petroglyphs were at the bottom of this cliff

here they are … not that impressive 😃

So, the hike wore us out a little bit and wasted our time. Therefore, we didn't do much here but drive through. This area has an interesting history, it was the site of the Modoc War of 1872-1873. When members of the Modoc Tribe refused to leave their lands in California and move to Klamath Reservation in southern Oregon, hostilities broke out between Modoc and white settlers. A group of about 150 Modoc, led by Kintpuash (known as "Captain Jack"), hid out in these lava fields and resisted the US Army. The hostilities led to the death of General Edward Canby, the only US general to be killed during the Indian Wars. There is a cross in the monument that marks the spot where he died.

   

Again, we we're short on time, so we only stopped at one of the lava tube caves, Skull Cave.

If you're going to hike through the caves you'll need to bring your own light source. There's a lot more to explore here...but we just didn't have enough time. If we do go back though, we'll make sure to skip the petroglyphs. 😁 More info here: https://www.nps.gov/labe/index.htm

Pinnacles National Park

Visited: May 2018

Nearby town: Salinas, CA

Hidden away in a rather remote area of central California is one of the state's lesser known gems, Pinnacles National Park. This relatively small park is one of our newest ones, created in 2013 (however, it had been a national monument since 1908).

The park's towering and somewhat eerie pinnacles, crags, and spires were created by plate tectonics, earthquakes, and volcanic activity. The park is relatively compact, but bear in mind there is no through road in the park boundaries that connects the East and West Entrances (you'll have to take about an hour and a half loop either from the north or south to hit both entrances). Because of that you may want to spend at least two days in the park, one for the west entrance and one for the east entrance.

We started our journey at the East Entrance of the Park, and did the incredible Bear Gulch/High Peaks/Condor Gulch loop trail. This combination was a great hike, pretty long (about 6.7 miles), but well worth it. And it showcases pretty much all there is to see here. If you don't have enough time you can shorten it by just doing the Bear Gulch section, or just the High Peaks section, etc.

The trail first heads to the Bear Gulch reservoir. This hike is very cool because you go through a cave. It's a talus cave, which means it is formed by openings in large boulders piled up on mountain slopes. Therefore, it is not entirely enclosed, but it would be a good idea to have a flashlight for the particularly dark sections.

a rather tight squeeze

Going through the talus cave was very enjoyable. As you can probably tell, Pinnacles is an outstanding destination for rock climbers. We did see a number of climbers throughout the park. Eventually, you emerge from the talus cave and get to the Bear Gulch reservoir.

At this point, the trail heads up to the top of the craggy peaks, this is the High Peaks section.

Just a heads up as you go along the High Peaks portion. Once you get to the top of the mountain, there are some narrow ledges and steps along the trail. There are railings to help you along. It's a little intense, but not too crazy.

As you go along the High Peaks section, look toward the skies for condors. You'll also see lots of turkey vultures. Here's how to spot the difference, the bottom of the wings of a turkey vulture are brown. The bottom of California Condor wings have a white patch along the top part of the wings, like this:

Along the trail, we were treated to a rare surprise. We saw a juvenile condor and two adult condors right along the trail. We we're right next to them! It was awesome.

Condors have been a huge success story in the park. In 1987, these large rather majestic birds actually went extinct in the wild, and only 27 individuals in captivity. They have since been re-introduced in northern Arizona and central California, including the park boundaries. Pinnacles National Park now manages 86 wild condors within the boundaries (notice the numbered tag on the adult condors). As of 2017, there are now 463 condors living either in the wild or in captivity. Seeing these condors in the wild up close and personal was a highlight of our visit.

The next day we headed to the West Entrance and did the Balconies Loop Hike. This hike was good (although not as cool as the High Peaks loop), and the cave section is a little more difficult than the Bear Gulch cave, some scrambling and bouldering required. Nothing too intense.

 Although Pinnacles is not as well-known as other California national parks (such as Yosemite, Sequoia, Death Valley, etc.), it is well worth a visit. Pinnacles exceeded our expectations big time. For more info: https://www.nps.gov/pinn/index.htm