Back "Home" in West Marin County
On November 1, 2023, we headed back to Samuel P Taylor State Park in West Marin County for our fourth winter of Camp Hosting there, but first we completed Halloween in Colfax.
A Skeleton (AKA Avi) and Cat (AKA me), ready to hit the streets in Colfax.
Avi, who had been a vampire princess at school, decided it would never do for trick or treating because the vampire fangs she had bought to complete her costume would not cooperate. She said I had to be in costume to go trick or treating with her so she painted my face and dug into her costume supplies for cat ears (not very visible in this picture), and a tail. Avi takes Halloween very seriously.
T-Rex (AKA Ruth) and the Skeleton on Main Street, Colfax.
Trick or treating at a very decorated house that has been consistently decorated since Ruth was a child.
Looking at the house, RV and little Red Barn before we headed out, November 1.
Lost and found and lost and found again!
This little trinket contains all the gold Rob and I panned in the Klondike near Fairbanks Alaska last spring - a total of $18 worth. I had it on a jacket zipper pull and lost it the first time when I forgot to take it off to wash the jacket. Elsie the cat was batting something in the hall in Colfax and Ruth found that it was this. I put it back on the zipper pull on the jacket and then noticed it was missing again. Having no idea where it might have fallen off I figured this time it was gone forever. While sweeping the RV floor the morning we were leaving the house in Colfax I found it again! Lesson learned, the jacket zipper pull is not a good location, and I don't want it as a neckless, so what shall I do with this souvenir of our Alaska experience?
LesThora and Rob heading down the driveway on our way west to Marin County.
November 1, 2023
Back in our "home" campsite for the next six months at Camp Taylor, Samuel P Taylor State Park.
The quietest place in my world!
After setting up our campsite and checking in with the other camp hosts I walked to my "morning bench" on the Pioneer Tree Trail, about 1/2 mile from our camp site. This spot amongst the old growth redwoods is indeed the quietest spot in my whole world! The only sounds heard here are distant airplanes, an occasional bird and very rarely another person walking by. There are beautiful spots on and near our Colfax property, but we do hear road noise from the county road and I-80. Our property is 1/2 mile off the county road and about 2 miles from the freeway, but the noise still reaches us. At Tahoe my morning spot at the overlook at Eagle Point Campground is never totally quiet. There are noises from boats, sight seeing aircraft and the occasional VERY loud Navy planes flying training runs from the Navy Air Base in Fallon, Nevada.
Let the game begin!
Getting ready to play "Skipbo," one of many games we have to choose from for our evening entertainment. Note the candle burning - that's a "traditional" Christmas gift from Ruth. We often burn the shaped candle (this one a Christmas tree) while playing a game. Over the years Ruth has found some very interesting shaped candles, but the best was one that had a wick, but the warning, "Not intended to be burned." We burned it anyway, and had no mishaps as a result.
It is indeed good to be back in our beautiful Redwood forest, and just in time to experience the beautiful fall season as winter approaches. We don't have the spectacular colors of the north east, but there is color in the park - mostly yellows on Alder, Buckeye and Big Leave Maple trees and others, and a little red as the poison oak gets ready to loose its tell tale "leaves of three."
Some pretty Poison Oak leaves.
Hiking up the Pioneer Tree Trail on our first full day here.
A huge, beautiful mushroom in a nearby campsite.
A delicate white butterfly, or is it a moth?
Trillium leaves.
This is the first time I've ever noticed trillium leaves still around in the fall.
At first I thought this tag might be some form of vandalism, but then I noticed more on nearby trees. It is some kind of study of the trees, I assume, but no one I've asked yet seems to know who put them here. I'll keep inquiring.
Our first November here in 2020 the creek was bone dry, but there was some rain that season and the creek began to flow, but by the time we left in April 2021 it had dried up and Marin County faced severe water shortages that summer. When we came back in November 2021 there had been a huge storm in October and the creek was flowing good. It ebbed and flowed throughout our time here, and there may still have been some water in the creek when we left at the end of March 2022. Last year we arrived on December 1 and the stream was the highest we'd ever seen it, and it got even higher throughout the winter and was still flowing when we left on April 30, 2023. On our return this November 1 parts of the creek were dry, but there were some little pools of water. There had been little early fall rains, but last years abundant rainfall seems to have kept vegetation green and vibrant, and the creek is not "bone dry." I look forward to experiencing what this 2023-24 season has in store for us.
On our first day off at Samuel P Taylor, Monday, November 6, I decided to take a long hike/walk to explore Devil's Gulch and to venture up the four mile long Bill's Trail. I never got to hike it last year at all because it was already closed for the winter, and the storms continued throughout the season, leaving lots of fallen trees and trail maintenance that didn't happen until after we left at the end of April. Bill's Trail is the longest, but easiest access to Barnabe Peak. I made about an 8 mile round trip hike on November 6, but didn't venture all the way up to Barnabe Peak.
The water is pretty still here so the fallen leaves are floating in place.
A lone, giant Redwood tree in Devil's Gulch near the creek crossing to Bill's Trail
The gap in the tree is big enough to walk through.
By next month a gate will be placed here preventing bicycles and horses from going further. Hikers will be able to proceed less than a mile up the trail to Stair Step falls, but from there the trail will be behind a locked gate.
The trail is heavily wooded, but there are views like this to the grass lands and rolling hills.
The first three bridges are within the first 1/2 mile, but the 4th bridge is over 2 miles from the start.
Bridge 8 - almost to the top of this trail.
4 miles from Devil's Gulch.
Beautiful view west from the top of Bill's Trail.
I'm now above the ridge I was looking out to from the trail.
Tomales Bay is visible on the left.
Looking up stream from the bridge across Lagunitas Creek at Camp Taylor.
I am always dazzled by the beauty that surrounds us here.
Turkey Vulture spreading his wings in a tree near our campsite.
I really do love Turkey Vultures!
And as granddaughter Avi says, "They are part of the clean-up crew."
On Tuesday, November 6, I headed to Los Altos and the Jesuit Retreat Center there to serve as a small group leader for a clergy retreat. It's easy and rewarding work that doesn't feel like work. I get to visit with colleagues, active and retired, and the grounds of the retreat center are beautiful with good space for walking about.
A labyrinth to walk at the Retreat Center.
I am enjoying wandering the trails and in the campground seeing familiar, and new things. We haven't had a lot of rain yet, but we've had some very chilly mornings and the high humidity here in the Redwoods keeps everything pretty cool.
Some pretty mushrooms.
I think I need to start learning their names!
A beautiful Big Leaf Maple leaf.
Two different kinds of lichen on a stick.
There was a lichenologist in the park one day as part of a citizen science day put on by OneTam - a non profit collaborative group whose mission is to protect and educate about the Mount Tamalpais water shed of which Samuel P Taylor State Park is a part of. As a State Park Volunteer they invited me to participate. It was lots of fun finding some of the many varieties of lichen in our park.
3 main Lichen growth forms all on one stick:
Fruticose (tree-like), Foliose (leaf like) and Crustose (appressed to substrate)
We headed to Colfax on Monday and Tuesday, November 13 and 14 for the main purpose of blocking this shawl - would be awkward to do in the RV. Then we returned on November 20 for appointments and to pick up the dried shawl that I may or may not need for our grandson Kyle's beach wedding on December 3 in Key West, Florida. The forecast is for high 70s, even into the 80s, which will feel quite warm after our lows in the 30s and highs in the 50s!
Between the two trips to Colfax I celebrated my 73rd birthday on the first significantly rainy day of the season, November 17. We went out to lunch in Mill Valley with daughter Erin and grandson Jacob. The morning was nice enough for a birthday hike, but the rain came in force by afternoon and it rained all night triggering the salmon to start coming up stream to spawn.
Beautiful birthday morning, November 17, looking down Lagunitas Creek.
Wild Cat Canyon Creek now flowing at my "morning bench," November 18, 2023
Releasing a wet raccoon from a dumpster during noon camp check on November 18.
Sunday morning, November 19, I saw my first salmon of the season swimming upstream to spawn. The fresh rain flowing down the creek into Tomales Bay triggered to salmon waiting there to swim back to their natal grounds. The salmon returning this year to spawn are the ones who hatched here our first season as camp hosts at Samuel P Taylor. I said then (2020-2021 season) that I wanted to come back for sure this year to see them complete their 3 year, amazing life cycle. Salmon arriving meant it was time to close access to the creek so Rob and I put up the signs on the afternoon of November 19. No one is allowed into or right next to the creek now until June, so that the very endangered salmon will be disturbed as little as possible.
Putting up a sign.
The male will have already died, but she may last for a couple of weeks protecting the eggs.
I estimate this one is something over 2 feet long.
Back in Colfax on my favorite walk there with Joy.
We stayed in the park for Thanksgiving and Shawn and his girls joined us. Shawn brought his propane turkey fryer, I made won tons and lemon meringue pie and the other camp hosts brought ham and lots of sides and more pies. All together there were 12 of us for dinner by the campfire - 6 family and 6 park personnel. It was a bit cold, but we kept the fire going, and a had a good time eating and visiting.
Meet Flower.
Sophia and Naomi named this dumpster diving raccoon who spent the night in the dumpster near our campsite.
Naomi and Shawn
Rob is trying to figure out a puzzle that Sophia set up.
Erin invited me to meet her in Half Moon Bay on Monday, November 27 for lunch and then some exploring in the tide pools as a super low tide was expected. Between lunch and the tide pools we went shopping in Half Moon Bay, and on the way back to Marin County I stopped for a walk on the beach in Pacifica as the sun was setting. Nestled in the Redwoods of Samuel P Taylor we don't get to see the rising or setting sun. We actually don't get to see, or feel, the sun much at all at our campsite.
Me and Erin at the Fitzgerald Marine Reserve.
I love the Calliarthron Tuberculosum - that's the pink stuff, a form of alga.
I always delight in seeing these beautiful birds!
A hermit crab.
We saw lots of these walking on the sand.
The risen Beaver Moon back at Camp Taylor.
The full moon followed me from San Francisco to the Redwoods where I got a peak of it through the trees in the campground circle above our campsite.
The same tree, noon on Wednesday, November 29.
Tuesday, November 28, our second day off for the week, I decided to hike to the top of Barnabe Peak for the first time this season. The peak is about 1300 feet above our campsite and the route I took was 8 miles round trip. It was really cold in the campground when I left, but I knew I would warm up as I started to climb the mountain and get into the sunshine. It was perfect hiking weather. Even though the sun was brightly shining on the mountain there was a brisk, cool breeze to keep me from getting too warm.
Here is a butterfly along my trail.
Looking out across the still brown West Marin hills to Tomales Bay, Point Reyes and the ocean.
This was a fun and quick 500 piece puzzle that was a birthday gift from a friend. We've been to all 8 national parks represented on this puzzle. We toured Carlsbad Caverns last fall on our cross country trip. I've been to Death Valley twice; once with Ruth and once with Rob, but both times was just a quick stop at the visitor center. We want to go back and spend more time there. Denali was an absolute favorite part of our May/June 2023 Alaska adventure. The Everglades was fascinating, and I learned so much about the "land" of Florida when we were there last fall. I still don't really get why people want to live in that part of the country. Glacier was a favorite from our cross country trip in 2020 and I'd love to return. We've been to the south and north rims of the Grand Canyon, but never have gone down into it - hoping to do a raft trip down and hike out soon. I loved the Grand Tetons, but was frustrated by not feeling comfortable hiking much there last fall because of the Grizzly Bears. Black Bears don't intimidate me, but Grizzlies do! The Great Smoky Mountains was another favorite I hated to leave when we visited in 2020 - maybe we'll get back there again some day.
Strauss and Elsie continue to thrive in Colfax, but Strauss has decided he wants to be an outside cat. None of us want that to happen - too many dangers, especially coyotes, and Strauss's long hair is terrible at attracting burrs. For the past 11 years the cats have been strictly indoor cats - in the house in Eureka, the RV, in the house on Angel Island and now back in Colfax where they spent their first two years of life. During that time Elsie would often try to escape, and sometimes did for a brief time, but Strauss never acted interested when doors were opened, but lately he tries to go out every time a door is opened. His change of behavior got us worried that something might be wrong with him so we took them to the vet for a checkup, and they are healthy.
Joy and Strauss outside.
Ruth lets Strauss accompany her to feed the horse and goats in the morning.
He stays with her just like a dog.
They were so good at the vet - shout out to Dr. Erzsi in Eureka whose home vet visits caused them to love the vet!
Stauss
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