Whew! Too hot for us. We ran away from Anza Borrego, where temperatures were in the 90's, up to the foothills where the forecast was for 20 degrees cooler. But before we ran, we enjoyed a beautiful desert wildflower show and spotted a desert dragon.
We're now camped at William Heise County Campground, near Julian. At this moment we sit in Thistle, enjoying morning coffee, watching Western Bluebirds frolic. Earlier, the gobble, gobble, gobble of a huge Tom turkey was our alarm clock.
Cedar Fire, one of 14 different Southern California blazes, burned through San Diego County in October, 2003. 273,246 acres were consumed. Here, where we're camped, it burned 70 percent of this 1000 acre park. On a short hike, our first day here, it was astonishing to still see such devastation on the land.
Yesterday we hiked Volcan Mountain Preserve, and there too, along with the splendor, we saw huge swathes of burned trees, many resprouting, others reseeding, but huge dead trees as well. Our hike took us through the chaparral shrubland community, now in full recovery; green, lush grasslands; and colorful wildflowers, so there was no shortage of beauty. It's a magical time of year in these San Diego County hills.
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| Trail Entry Gate |
The hike took us up, up, up. To the east we could see Anza Borrego and the Salton Sea, to the west, it was claimed we could see the Pacific Ocean, but there was too much haze for that.
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| Our lunch bench. |
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| The oak grove around our lunch bench |
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| Looking West |
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| Looking East |
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| Volcan Mountain Trail |
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| Thistle down in the valley, when we were about half way. |
Another great day topped off with another piece of pie!
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“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.”
- Albert Einstein
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