Midnight Sun

A relatively easy 3.2 mile out and back with just over 150 feet of elevation gain for a Christmas Eve hike. Temperature was in the mid 70’s (F) and there was a lovely breeze from the east-southeast. Kiara and Jax were along, and we had a great hike. Not a lot of hikes allow dogs but this one does. A lot of dogs on the trail for Jax to meet, greet and sniff.

The Mission Creek strand of the San Andreas fault is one of up to six strands that it splits into along this part of the fault. The current thinking is that the Mission Creek Strand has had the most movement over the last 5 to 6 million years. Some of the later pictures in the collection show the tortured rock in the western portion of the Creek. Mission Creek itself is intermittent flowing in some areas and not in others due to water movement up along the fault traces and then infiltrating and disappearing into the stream bed.

Merry Christmas to all and a Happier New Year.

After reconnoitering with Joy and Larry, we decided that today’s hike would be Split Rock Trail, a 2-mile loop near Jumbo Rock and Skull Rock. It was a little cooler than in October with temps in the high 40’s to low 50’s. I picked a trail with no shade and the sun helped us stay warm while hiking. A great trail, with only a couple of sections not well marked that Joni was able to navigate as the lead. As always, I way overdid the number of photos, but the granite and pegmatites were just awesome along with the regular Joshua Tree scenery.

Another reconnaissance hike in the Indian Canyons. A 1-mile loop that Joni and I had on our list. Better yet, got to do it with Mollie, Olive and Bear! I keep using the same superlatives over and over so refer back to previous posts. Not overly crowded for a Black Friday hike! Finished with a stop at La Michoacana for some ice cream!

Another spot on the list of places to visit. Mollie, Olive and Bear here to enjoy it with us. A short 25-minute drive from Taos Ct. and we were there. Nice trails – a little crowded on the day before Thanksgiving. Great hike thorough the desert and back through the date palm grove. Must be right along the Mission Creek Strand of the San Andreas Fault. Then lunch at Bubba’s!