Part 2 of the day...LCO isn't far from Crawford Oaks, so we thought we would get in two different hikes. This hike starts about 1.5 miles east of Lyle just east of a tunnel. You park in a pull out on the north side of the Hwy. The hike climbs for about a mile up the side of the gorge then travels through oak forest to a turn around in an ancient cherry orchard (though we only saw a couple very old trees). The best part of the hike happens before leaving the cliffs. Turning back before entering the oak forest would make a satisfactory though shorter hike. The views of the gorge are the best there are because you are totally exposed hiking up the cliff. However, there is a ton of POISON OAK - so much that I will probably not return. There was more diversity in the flower population too. Also this day we saw two snakes (one rattlesnake - which rattled), a wild turkey, a fox, heard lots of meadowlarks and other birds - more wildlife than we usually see!
4.7 miles, 1000ft gain.
map
 |
| Heading up |
 |
| delphinium |
 |
| caterpillar on a stick! "Fiddleneck" |
 |
| looking east |
 |
| lunch spot |
 |
| looking down on the lunch spot |
 |
| beautiful trail flowers |
 |
| ancient cherry tree |
 |
| enjoy your hike!!! |
No comments:
Post a Comment