Calaveras Big Trees South Grove Rim Loop
Setting and Route:
2020-07-25
07:00 to 13:00
Calaveras Big Trees South Grove Rim Loop
Temp 62F to 86F. Slight wind. Estimated 5-10 mph, depending on location and time.
Started on South Grove Trail, and turned right on the lumber road to hike a loop around the rim of the valley.
https://www.alltrails.com/explore/recording/calaveras-big-trees-south-grove-ridge-loop-52720e0
Observations:
This was a beautiful hike! I was hoping to be able to look down on the South Grove and see the Sequoia grove from above. However, true to the park's name, there were too many Big Trees to be able to see the valley below it. The rim trail is a wide lumber road that is well maintained on the southern half of the loop and less so on on the northern half of the loop, but is easy to follow throughout the hike. The incline is pretty gentle all the way up, gaining about 1700 feet over 7 miles, making it a moderate hike, though lengthy at 11 miles. The hike begins and ends in coniferous forest, with lots of White Fir, Ponderosa Pine, California Incense Cedar, and Pacific Dogwood. No Sequoias to be seen, though. At higher elevations, it takes you through patches of chaparral, dominated by White Manzanita and Black Oak. There are flowers throughout in Spring and early Summer, including Western Columbine, Naked Buckwheat, Mountain Blue Penstemon and Common Woolly Sunflower. Birds generally try to stay concealed and include Dark-eyed Juncos, Hairy Woodpeckers, Ravens and Turkey Vultures. Mammals include Douglas' Squirrel, Long-eared Chipmunks and Black Bear. I saw my first bear, while on a solo hike. It was a young one, a little bigger than a full-grown black lab on steroids. No picture, as it ran before I could raise my camera. No sign of parents, luckily.
There's a wonderful sign at the intersection between South Grove Trail and the lumber road that says,
"This forest has preceeded you by many thousand years;
Please treat it with honor and respect."
That sign should be put up at the entrance to nearly every forest. :)
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