| Hood Mountain
from Jack London State Park. This is an impressive peak (2,730'), looming
2,400' over the Valley of the Moon, in Kenwood Calif. |
| John hunches
cautiously and takes a picture of a feisty little creature we encountered
on the trail. |
| This little shaver
let us know who was the boss. |
| Already loaded
down with lunch, it seemed to be eager for more. Or, maybe it was just
trying to make it to the side of the trail. We left it alone, wondering
if a passing hawk would snatch it up. |
| By now, we've
passed through several plant communities. Here we are in a transition
between chaparral and mixed evergreen forest. Much of the trail is a 4WD
fire road, at times heavily eroded by intense winter runoff. Other parts
of the hiking trail depart from the road and wander through forest. The
elevation gain on this route is impressive, nearly 2,000' in 4.5 miles,
matching some sierra trails. |
| Here we see some
juniper berries. |
| This is manzanita. |
| The underlying
geology in this area is very complex, with volcanic, metamorphic, and
sedimentary rock. Lots of basalt, chert, shale, and greywacke! |
| Interesting patterns
of cracks and fracture planes, covered with splotches of colorful lichen. |
| Hey, guess what!
We're on the summit. |
| From the left:
Frank, Greg, and John. From the summit, it is possible to see the Pacific
Ocean, downtown San Francisco, and the Sierra Nevada. Not on this day,
however, with persistent high clouds. |
| A few hundred
feet past the summit is Gunsight Rock, looming over the valley floor.
This is impressive rock (chert, mostly), but it is not very stable. This
is not Yosemite Granite, folks. |
| Greg enjoys an
airy perch. |
| John relaxes
and takes in the view. Note the metamorphosed sea shells in the rock.
This rock, at over 2,500' elevation, was dredged up from the sea floor! |
| Looking down
Sonoma Valley, to the south. If there were no clouds, you would see downtown
San Francisco, and Mount Tamalpais in Marin County. Sugarloaf Ridge, home
of another fabulous State Park, is out of view to the left. Sonoma Mountain
and Jack London State Park are to the right. This area is still pretty
nice, but there has been some residential and vineyard development since
the photo was taken, in 1988. |
| Looking west,
across northern Sonoma Valley. Sonoma Mountain and Jack London State Park
are straight ahead. Petaluma Valley is on the other side of Sonoma Mountain.
Kenwood is below us, with a bit of the Oakmont residential development
on the right. |
| Looking west-northwest,
across northern Sonoma Valley, and the southern outskirts of Santa Rosa
in the foreground. Bennett Mountain and Annadel State Park are located
to the right of center. Scenic Bennett Valley is just to the left of Bennett
Mountain, with western Sonoma County and the Pacific Ocean somewhere out
there, in the hazy distance. |
| Looking east-northeast,
at Mount Saint Helena (4,344'), barely visible through the clouds, at
the head of Napa Valley. |
| Looking down
at some cattle, toward Sugarloaf Ridge, to the south. |
| On the valley
floor, looking up at Hood Mountain. This was taken in winter 1976, with
hints of snow here and there. Gunsight Rock is the prominent feature on
this peak. Our hiking route in this photo essay comes from the left. |
| Sugarloaf Ridge,
close southerly neighbor to Hood Mountain. A worthy hiking and camping
destination in it's own right! But that is the subject for another photo
essay. Another hiking trail links Sugarloaf Ridge State Park with Hood
Mountain Regional Park. |
| Trip
Map (BIG, 360K!) |