— Monkey Flower Ranch
High desert mountains of the southern Sequoias: yep, that’s hundreds of square miles of desert mountains that are yours to explore. One thing that is stunning about the our spot on the globe are the desert mountains that surround the place. Most of which are day or afternoon hikes – and relatively easy to navigate.
There is so much to share from a place that has so much to offer. The serenity you can achieve with a well planned hike is something you will always carry with you.
To me, these mountains are sacred. They cradled the original settlements, and could have only inspired folk legends, tales of conflict, trials, tribulations, love and creation.
Many of the photographs that are scattered about the house are from my daily hikes. I am sure you can feel the same muse up there as I have
Or it’s just the nature and the scarcity of real peace and harmony that can drive you up into the landscape. I’ll share with you a few of the local hikes you can do in an afternoon.
Before you trek off on a nature hike in our surrounding mountains always:
Of course this is supplemental to anything else you might be bringing, (camera, binoculars, munchies, etc.) or what you already know.
This is snake country
You have two directions to head off to: east and west – we are at a 3223 foot elevation with most of the surrounding mountains at about 4200 ft. Most of the trails heading up to the peaks of these mountains are swish back deer trails. On the east side, there is an old mining road you can use for part of your hike.
The following hikes can give you a good start if you’re feeling energetic and want to continue on.
Yes, you guessed it – this is where I have spent a number of my birthdays – up on Birthday Rock. You can spot Birthday from the house. It appears as a pointy rock, but that is merely the back portion of the rock. You can climb up and relax – it’s a perfect spot to have a birthday toast and a nice little picnic.
From here you have a great view of the entire valley, Cortez canyon, and on the other side of the hill you have a fantastic view of Bob Rabbit Canyon.
This hike will take you at least three hours. Figure 90 minutes to the Rock, then hike down the west side (far side) of the mountain and come around back down to the dirt road that leads back to the ranch. The views from the top are stupendous looking in both directions. The rock itself is ideal for a picnic lunch and a libation of your choice.
Make sure you give yourself plenty of daylight time to do this hike. Coming back after sunset is not wise since you might need to navigate through the creek. You don’t want to cross the creek at night.
The east side canyon is an amazing route
It’s a relatively easy route – only a few times you might need to climb over a couple of boulders while traversing the canyon as you hike towards the hill-top. On the way out, you can stroll through the old settlement – imagining tha this was a populated place for a few thousand years before the Europeans came in the 1800s.
On the other side of the road, there is the eastern canyon. The ranch extends the first forty acres, then it’s BLM land. On our portion, there are stone artefacts from the original settlements here. Try to spot them on your way.
The trail is pretty much a deer trail going through the dried creek bed of the canyon. Just meander up your way and take a breather now and then.
You’ll soon reach the first hillside where you can swish back and forth to finally reach the old mining road that you can see from the road.
From there follow the road up to the first hill top, then that’s the end of that. From there it’s more deer trails switch backs to the top of the highest peak.
The alternate route coming back is to simply take the mining road back down to Kelso Valley Road. You don’t need all that much brightness coming back since you have no creek to cross.
Plan at least five hours for this hike. It takes at least two hours to get to the top. You might want to hang around there for awhile.
Over on the east side – on the canyon side of the road – there are a couple of park benches you can find – on two look out points. These are a great place to just sit and chill – bring a libation, book, or your phone since you can access the wifi from here.
