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A challenge

Do you remember this photograph I posted of the yellow hills of Big Sur?

Valley View by Daniel Danbom

Well, I ran into Joe Burnett, biologist for the VWS’s Condor reintroduction program, last night and he suggested a challenge. If Jeff Norman were still around (we miss you Jeff!) this challenge would not be necessary.

This is the challenge – hike into Mt. Manual, and take close-up photographs of the various yellow flowers contributing to this unusual phenomena, and send them to me at kwnovoa@mac.com I will post them on my blog. If you know what they are, include that information. But even if you do NOT know what they are, send them in, and hopefully, someone can help us identify them. We will also see how much of what we are seeing is native or introduced.

Here is a close-up of one flower that is making the hills yellow, at least close to the highway. Is it also on Mt. Manual? I originally thought it was a tansy, but I believe that may be incorrect, and would love for someone to identify it for me. It is all over right now, in more abundance than I have ever seen – both in areas touched by the Basin Fire, and those untouched.

Do you know what this is? Barbara Woyt does. It is Eriophyllum staechadifolium or lizard tail, also known as Seaside Woolly Sunflower. Is it part of the display on Mt. Manuel? Get out there soon, as this display won’t last long in this hot weather! And send those photos in! Let’s all find out what is causing this unusual display! Thanks, Joe, for the challenge. Now let’s see if my readers are up for it!
(Note, this photo was not taken for the challenge, or it would be a closer shot. Here, I wanted the hills and ocean in the background, but a good photo for this challenge would clearly show the flowers AND the leaves for identification purposes as close-up as your camera would allow.)

Summer Fog

There is something refreshing and alluring about the summer fog on the coast. Living up here above it, I get scorching temperatures, and look down on the fog below. Sometimes envious, but mostly grateful I don’t live in it.

Fog over Willow Creek

I had to pass into it several times this week, and was surprised about how thick it was. For me, the fog presents another photo opportunity. I love what the fog does to the forest.
Foggy Forest

Trees in the Mist

Trees: Living Sculpture

Timeless Beauty

Tunnel of Light

Just because …

This is just one aspect of the magic that is Big Sur. This lonely little columbine is one of the few remaining.

When I saw this, I had to stop and capture it. The dark, the contrast between the one bright spot and the shadowy green called me. I shot it dark in the camera, and unlike most shots, I only took one, and was happy with what I saw in the LCD. I was even happier when I saw it larger on my computer. This is straight out of the camera, exactly what I witnessed. Mother Nature’s gift. And interestingly, I violated all the cannons of composition by placing the subject dead center, and still, it works.

Columbine & Ferns

Just because … Mother Nature’s beauty cannot be enhanced.
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On a completely different note, Gideon has been sick since Saturday, and was at the vet’s Tuesday, and again today, when he was admitted to the hospital. News tonight is that he is improving. His fever is going down, and his pain has been lessened by an inflammatory drug. We are hoping he will come home Friday. Dr. will call again tomorrow morning. I am a tad distracted from my blog, but had this one prepared to go up. I’ll be back when Gideon is home again.

Gideon News

My first love, Gideon, came home today. He is so much better, and so peppy, it is hard to believe he has been through hell for the last couple of months. His first shot created so many problems. This time, he got two shots in two days, but he is like the puppy he was (even though he is 9 years old – he is a BC/Aussie mix, after all). We are all so grateful for the thoughts and prayers of our extended family of friends. We still have to watch him rather closely for a couple of weeks, but the worst is over. Now that this is over, I should be able to go back to regular reporting.

Here is that beautiful guy, again:

Gideon, the Wonder Dog

Photo Contest & Gideon

Today is the last day to submit your entry – until midnight tonight, so get those entries in. Photos and voting in a few days.

Gideon received his 3rd heart worm shot yesterday, his second the day before. He’s had to stay at the vets for the last few days. I go pick him up, shortly. He will have to stay quiet for a few weeks, but so far, he has come through this difficult treatment very well.

Of note: A fire was reported yesterday around 4:15 pm in the area of Prewitt Ridge and/or Wild Cattle. Follow-up reports from neighbors indicate this was a false alarm, nothing was located. WildCAD-LPNF does have a “wildfire” report listed on their site for 6:30 pm, but as I said, it appears to have been a false alarm.

A lot is going on with the traffic light at CV Rd and Highway One. Emails and postings have been provided by Pelican Network and the Chamber email systems. I will try to get a post up regarding this situation in the next few days. Gideon comes first.

Mountain Adventure #736

And my day was interesting, to say the least. Mountain Adventure #736:

Okay, I made that number up. I don’t know what number this one is. I’ve lost track, I’ve had so many.

With all the adventures I’ve had, one thing that has never happened is my 1998 Jeep has never broken down on the dirt road….or my 1988 Range Rover before that. It is almost as if they know that is verboten. Well, today, that luck changed.

I was going through Turkey Flats, you know, Turkey Flats … I’ve taken lots of photos there.

Turkey Flats
See Cone Peak in the background?

anyway, all of a sudden, there was no response from the gas pedal. None. Okay, I said to myself, Ms. Cool Big Sur Mountain Mama. It is all down hill, so I’ll get to the bottom, and get my friend Lynne to call Triple A for me. (I forgot my cell phone, for the first time in ages – not that there is any signal there) Except that it is not all flat.

I am going through the Buttle property, making good progress, coasting, and I get to the itty bitty creek that still has water in it, and there is THE hill. I forgot about THE hill. It is one that is so minor in the scheme of things, that it is easy to forget. BUT, the Jeep would not make it up.

It’s just a little hill! This shows it coming back, going down it.

I tried coasting back down and up the back hill as far as I could, hoping for a sling shot or pendulum effect. I didn’t have to go too far, just get the momentum going. Three times, I tried. No dice.

So, I coasted back down to this itty bitty creek, figuring, if I am stuck here for a couple days, at least the dogs and I will have water.

What? You can’t see the “creek” in there? Okay, maybe not a creek, but a drizzle. Still, enough to keep the dogs and I alive for a few days or weeks, or until someone stumbled upon us.

I turned off the engine, sat there for a minute, then scrambled down to the creek bed in my town clothes and town shoes, and got water for the doggies.

Then, as calm as can be, I opened the hood. That’s what guys do, right? Well, it is still as foreign to me as the day I bought it. Makes no sense. Besides, it was the gas pedal inside that quit, not the engine.

I get down under the dash, check out the gas pedal, and see that it is to the floor and unresponsive. Hmmm. Throttle cable? Maybe? There must be something like that. I find that there is this elbow shaped thingy that is behind the gas pedal. Huh? That must go to something, I thought. Wow, if I pushed on that, then it did something – what I wasn’t sure, but I was sure this elbow shaped thingy was the key. THEN, I found this cable type thingy that came through the back top above the gas pedal from the engine compartment. It had a knob on it.

Now, the elbow shaped thingy, I found by feeling about, had a round hole with a slit in it. If I put the cable thingy through the slot to the hole, it held, and the elbow shaped thingy was now connected to the cable and connected to the gas pedal. And voila! The gas pedal and the throttle cable were again connected and speaking to each other, and I put my foot on the gas, and get a response. Hooray! I conquered the unconquerable!

This, from a woman with not a single mechanical bone in her body. I was, and am, absolutely surprised at myself.

Watch out Indy mechanics, here I come! Am I too old for another career?

Only in Big Sur …

The First Annual Burning Dog Festival, organized out of Santa Cruz, is being held June 11-14th at Plaskett Creek Campground. Yes, a “burning man”-inspired event that is dog-friendly, and includes hikes and events for your pooch,

The schedule is quite ambitious and can be found here: schedule. It includes hikes, agility course, art with your dog, costumes, BBQ, Luau, and trips to the Esalen hot tubs.

Of course, our local events that weekend include Jazz on the River at River Inn on Sunday afternoons at 2:00 pm. (see schedule here) and the Big Sur Wine Expedition is June 9th and 10th. (Additional information here). There is always a great line-up at the Henry Miller Library. The Woodsist Festival for that Saturday is sold-out, with a waiting list, but you can see the month’s events here: HML June Events. There are always global art, music, and dance events at Spirit Garden but I don’t see an events calendar for this year. Fernwood has live music on both Friday and Saturday nights and sometimes on Sundays and you can see their June line-up here. The Maiden Publick House often has live music on the weekends, too.

There are probably other events, as well, but I scoured and could not find them. But there are always “events” in Big Sur – like hiking, surfing, bicycling, campfire talks, shopping for local crafts, books, and other gems. It is the time when we shake off the sleepiness of our winter slumber, and host the millions and millions of people who visit us each year.

But for unusual? The 1st Annual Burning Dog Event has to take the cake. Should be an interesting weekend at Plaskett Creek Campground.

Just Joey Rose

This sweet guy, my surviving rose, is an incredible producer. Year after year, he hangs tough against gophers, insects, and benign neglect to surprise and delight me.

Just Joey, bud

It starts out as a nice, orange-peach when it is budding …

Blooming Just Joey

…and then lightens to a wonderful peach color. For someone who loves a garden, but doesn’t have time to take care of it, Just Joey is perfect.

Oh, and on a similar note, I discovered a new gopher product today – a “green” gopher product that is non-toxic. It is pricey, but I like the idea, so I ordered one to sample it. If it works as claimed, and I can drive the gophers from my garden, I will be ordering 5 lbs of the stuff! I’ll keep you posted. Gideon and Dakota are both pretty good gopher hunters, but Gideon is still on house arrest for another month.

If you want to check it out (this is not a commercial plug) or are curious, you can find this product here: Gopher Goo

Memorial Day Weekend

Today it begins. Memorial Day weekend is typically the start of the summer tourist season here in Big Sur. The day is sunny and beautiful and the gorgeous weather is predicted to continue all weekend.

Just a reminder (to myself, as much as to others), be patient, be kind, and pay attention on the road. One of my friends used to say that some tourists took their common sense, put it in the dresser drawer, and locked it up for safe-keeping until they got home.

I’ll be out and about to see what is happening on our fair coast today, pretending to be a tourist. 😉 Enjoy this wonderful long weekend, where ever you are!

Missing Condor – good news

Because it might be missed in the comment section of my blog on the History Spotlight on the Condors, and because it is such a happy occurrence, I decided to reproduce Joe’s comment in its entirety here. Good job, Joe!

Thanks for posting the news about our missing condor, #204. I have good news to report on his status…he was finally captured down in southern California at Hopper Mountain Wildlife Refuge (near Fillmore, CA)in mid April.

He disappeared from Big Sur in early April shortly after we noticed a major decline in his health. I immediatley alerted Big Sur residents that live in the vicinity of his nesting territory to keep on the lookout for a sick condor. We attempted to capture him near one of his night-time roost spots, but he was still strong enough to elude us and then he went completely off the radar. A volunteer took me up in his airplane to track 204’s radio signal, but nothing…we flew all the way down to SLO and back up the coast.

A few days later we recieived a call from our partners in So Cal (US Fish and Wildlife Service, who I had alerted as well) that 204 had arrived at their condor release site. The last time 204 flew to that site was 4 years ago, which caught me by surprise, but I always knew it was a possibility. He was so lethargic in Big Sur I didn’t think he had the strength to make the 250 mile flight, but he did it…really amazing. He was captured the following day and is now recovering at Los Angeles Zoo.

It appears he sustained two injuries to his wings, which he may have been inflicted during an attack by a Golden Eagle. One of his injuries was a puncture wound that went completely through his wing, most likely from the talon of an eagle. The injuries made him more vulnerable to the flock and likely caused him to be singled out. If your a dominant male that is injured, you become a target for lower ranking males. I witnessed this firsthand and believe this directly led to his poor health and emaciation…the less dominant birds wouldn’t let him feed. He continues to do well at the Zoo and we plan to re-release him later this month.

A big Thanks to the community for keeping an eye out for Big Sur’s wildlife, they really need us to be their protectors. Great spotlight story on the condor…check out our monthly field notes for updates on the Big Sur condor flock. fieldnotes
Cheers, Joe Burnett- Ventana Wildlife Society