The 2023 Journey Begins

Happy New Year from the Redwoods of Samuel P Taylor State Park!

Wildcat Canyon Creek where I begin each day, including the first day of a new year.

Sunlight shining through the trees on the morning of January 1, 2023

The first day of the new year was a Sunday, so a "work" day for us. After doing morning rounds and eating breakfast and before noon rounds we decided to go for a short "first day" hike. It was a beautiful, sunshiny day after lots of rain and the park was full of folks coming out to enjoy nature to celebrate the beginning of 2023. We walked down the South Creek Trail which begins very close to our campsite and ends at a bridge across Lagunitas Creek about a mile from our RV.

There were of course pretty mushrooms along the way.

The sign for Samuel P Taylor's Paper Mill.

Taylor made enough money in the mid 19th century California gold rush to purchase property here.

For several years he ran the mill along the creek, using water and cut redwood trees to power it.

The fiber for the paper he made came from rags collected in San Francisco.

What remains of the old mill today.

Rob on the bridge at our turn around point for our "first day" hike.

The rushing, rain swelled waters of Lagunitas Creek.

One of my favorite birds is the Turkey Vulture - an animal perfectly designed for the important place it has in nature of cleaning up other dead animals. On our way to the bridge we saw two vultures over head on a tree branch across our trail. I took a picture, but they were hiding their heads. On the way back we saw several vultures in trees by the creek and wondered what they might be waiting for. Some of them were spreading their wings to dry, but then we saw a couple of vultures down by the creek and on closer examination realized those two were eating a dead salmon that was next to the creek. I've often seen groups of vultures in trees like we did on New Year's Day and wondered what they were doing there, now we know that they may be waiting their turn for a feast down below. None of the birds above tried to challenge the two that were eating. I don't know if those two were just the lucky ones to get there first or if they were some how more dominant. We enjoyed learning first hand a little more about the behavior of a favorite critter of mine.

Two vultures overhead as we walked to the bridge.

Two other vultures in a tree spreading their wings to dry.

Two more drying their wings.

Two vultures having a dead salmon feast.

A very tiny mushroom on the top of a sign post.

I think Rob gets tired of my interest in the mushrooms, but he volunteered his finger for size comparison.

First jigsaw puzzle of 2023!

This is actually two separate puzzles made up of 268 uniquely shaped wooden pieces.

It was a perfect size and challenge for New Year's afternoon and fit nicely on our small table.

I will definitely enjoy doing this one again.

Monday, January 2, we headed to Colfax for a doctor appointment on Tuesday. We had time for a couple of board games and a pizza dinner on Monday, and I got to do my 4 1/2 mile walk/hike up to the Boardman Canal and the Weimar Water Company. The views of the mountains were obscured by the drippy clouds, but I still enjoyed the time outdoors.

A newly fallen small tree along my morning path.

Holding my Subaru's key fob with the pushbutton start button behind it.

On Tuesday on our way back to the Bay Area after the doctor appointment we went to lunch in Roseville, and I realized I couldn't unlock the car. Rob was driving and he had no issues. We each have a key fob that we never have to take out of our pocket to open, lock or drive the car. Very nice when it works, but mine just quit. I called the Subaru dealer to find out what could be the problem with my fob, and was told most likely it was a dead battery, but that it could need reprogramming. Fortunately there was a Subaru dealer near our lunch spot and their parts department put a new battery in it, no charge, and it worked just fine. I asked how I was supposed to know the battery was going dead and was told that "normally" there is a message on the dashboard - I had not seen any such message, but then I might not have recognized it! We love our year and a half old Subaru Forester and lots of its "space age" features, but some of its technology is disconcerting to say the least. What if I had been somewhere driving alone, turned off the car, went for a walk, and the battery in the key fob died while I was out and about? There is a key to get in the car, but it won't start the car, and in trying to find out if the fob was completely dead, as instructed by the Subaru dealer when I called, I found out that key is just for an emergency to get in the vehicle, AND, it makes the horn start honking so everyone gets to watch! As to messages on the dashboard? There are LOTS of them, and the owner's manual shows pictures of some of them and says something like, "There are several messages, like these, that will alert you to issues you need to deal with." In the first several weeks we had the car we had to pull over a number of times and call the dealer to ask what a particular icon message meant since the owner's manual didn't show that one! We love the car, BUT modern technology can be a bit daunting!

This is what greeted us on Tuesday evening, January 3 when we entered the park.

A sign that said "Campsites Available," and one that said "Area Closed."

It took us awhile to get hold of a ranger to find out the park, especially the campground, had been closed in anticipation of the huge storm predicted. We could stay or leave - we chose to stay and provide eyes and ears and information for the park and the few visitors who tried to come in. Besides, where were we going to go? 3 hours back to Colfax? To a motel? On Wednesday we hung out in the entrance kiosk pictured above to answer the phone (if someone called and no one was there to answer the phone they would get a message said the park was open) and talk to people who drove around the barricades on the main road to find out why they were there. The new head ranger doesn't know how to change the message and the park aid that does wasn't on the schedule to work this week. All day Wednesday the electricity repeatedly went off and on until finally going off for good sometime after 2:00 PM. Since the phone and answering message are dependent on electricity at least when people called now they wouldn't get a message that said the park was open.

Wednesday night was the worst intensity of the storm with lots of rain and wind. We didn't hear or feel the wind during the night, but we heard the results of it with redwood cones pummeling the roof of the RV, sounding much bigger than they are. Redwood cones are pretty small and not able to do damage, but they were loud. Thursday morning I ventured out to see how the Orchard Hill Campground above us fared. Turns out it was a good call to close the campground as there were several good size branches that came down, none over a tent site, but several over places where folks might have been walking. There was one large fir tree that came down across the entrance to a campsite - between where the cars park and the picnic table. The tributary creeks and Lagunitas Creek once again swelled, but not to the extent they had the week before.

A new log in Wild Cat Canyon Creek downstream from my morning bench.

Lots of mushrooms on a log on the morning of January 5.

One of them up close.

The large fir tree across the entrance to campsite 44.

Rob did hear what sounded like a falling tree the night before.

Another view of the downed tree.

Since the night of January 4-5 it has been pretty mild weather, but the power stayed off until early this morning, Saturday, January 7. Personally we did fine with the power off as our RV operates well on battery power and we have propane for cooking, the refrigerator switches from electric to propane when we're not plugged in, and we have a propane furnace. There was a break in the rain on Epiphany, January 6, so even though the park was officially closed, lots of regular walkers came by to break up their cabin fever caused by all the rain. Yes, I know, January 6 has become a day in history, but for me it was Epiphany first. Epiphany, the 12th day of Christmas is when the Christian church celebrates the coming of the Wise Men to Bethlehem to see the baby Jesus (by then probably 2 years old), and the "Epiphany" that Christ's coming was to more than the Jews. And, January 6 is the day that two of our children were born 3 years apart (1976 and 1979).