Nature Week, part 2

The second nature excursion of the Pacific Bureau of the UGC was to Topanga State Park, also known as 11,000 acres of awesomeness within the city limits of Los Angeles (crazy, right?). It was sort of an accidental excursion, but hey, that still counts.

I found some random parking and set off down the trail, and within minutes I had my first wildlife encounter. Thankfully, it was far more docile than the initial encounter in Part 1, but it was still exciting. I even flagged down a passing hiker to point it out to him, but he was totally unimpressed. Regardless, here's what I saw:


There were six of them, these mule deer, and appropriately enough, they were sleeker and better-groomed than the mule deer I saw in Colorado. In fact, I could have sworn they were even a little bit more tan. This is SoCal, after all!


And while I was standing there, staring at them and making them alittle bit uncomfortable, a little lizard showed up on the fence in front of me, begging for attention. I took a picture, then politely dismissed him. He probably thought I was a Somebody. Joke's on you, bucko!


This park is full of the coolest trees. Saying that just made me feel like a complete nerd. It's true, though! And different terrains had different kinds. This one was in a wide valley, and it looked like it belonged in the middle of a savanna. It also looked like it would be a lot of fun to climb.

I made my way over to the main trail system, and started up the ridge toward Eagle Rock. The sign said it was a two mile hike, so I figured it would be a nice, pleasant stroll - nothing too intense. Even from partway up the first rise, the view of the valley below was just lovely, and the whole scene was incredibly peaceful.

And looking south, I could see the Palisades, and the Pacific beyond it.

Ok, so it was a little hazy, but it was still pretty nice.

After a while, though, I started to wonder if I'd missed the Eagle Rock. Sure, I know that walking is a lot slower on uphill gravel paths than on the flat sidewalks I'm used to, but still. Come on now. And since it was early afternoon, it was also starting to get hot. I started thinking that around each bend in the path, or just over each rise, I'd see the damn rock and get to go home, but no. More path.

There were a few flowers, and I did see two flocks of some sort of pheasant-related bird take off (way too quickly for me to get a photo), but no eagles, and no Eagle Rock. Just when I'd made up my mind to turn back, I walked another five minutes and finally, blissfully, saw this sign:

The sign failed to mention in that little arrow that it was ten very steep minutes in front of me, but I do appreciate its conciseness. And during that steep jaunt, I did stop once or twice to stare at the ground, not in defeat, but because of a proliferation of these:

They were like a cross between crop circles and finger prints, only more unusual because they were in the bare rock of the path, and only in one particular stretch of the trail. If I ever have a patio, I'd love to have these things carved all over the place.

In any case, at long, long last, I turned a corner and caught a glimpse of the infamous Eagle Rock.


Exciting, I know. But when I finally made my way up to the top of the rock, I felt like I could see the whole state of California.
Whilst up there, I also took the opportunity to look back at the trail I'd taken to get up there, and got this shot:

Since it really was such a lovely day, I spent a few minutes at the summit just soaking it all in, then headed back down. On the way, I saw a really lovely grove of trees that would be perfect for a picnic, a terrifying gigantic beetle, and two more deer, but Blogger seems to think I've hit my limit for number of photos per post. Jerks.

In any case, tune in tomorrow for the next installment of Nature Week, in which I attempt a Very Bad Idea, and get frightened by frogs.