Osha

What does Becca smell?

Dr. K, Becca and I got an early start on the Osha Trail this morning (8:20) knowing full well that this popular hiking spot would probably get crowded later in the day.  We were not wrong, though we ran into nobody during the first half of our trek.  Then the trickle of outdoor enthusiasts turned into a small flood during the second half, and by the time we got back to the trailhead there were 18 vehicles in the parking lot--the most we've ever seen there.

The most remarkable thing about our morning outing was the sheer number of swarming moths we encountered on the far side of the mountain; I don't know which species of moth these tiny critters were, but in all our years of hiking we've never had to make our way through such a cloud of insects, many of them landing on us as we passed along.

Despite the crowds it was a magnificent, cool morning for an extended hike on the Osha Trail--one of our favorites in the Sacramento Mountains.

Bear grass with flower stalk

Closeup of Bear Grass (Nolina microcarpa) flower stalk

Our driveway

Some trees on our property

Tall False Dandelion?

Osha Trail at the metal benches

Closer look at that sky

Looking down past the Mexican Canyon trestle

What's not to love about the Osha Trail?

Becca loves hiking in the high country

Rocky section

Here she comes (dry brush filter applied)

This and the next:  some mountain greenery

Rocky Mountain Penstemon

This and the next:  I've never noticed this plant before

Prickly Rose (about the size of a quarter)

Altitude . . .

.  .  . and temperature

I thought this might be Osha, the plant

Not Osha

Fallen tree

This local resident was barking at us to leave its territory (Red Squirrel)

I'm going with "Weidemeyer's Admiral"

That's the one

This and the next 4:  Sunflowers

This Dark-eyed Junco drove me crazy by not staying still for a photo

#2

The trail along a high mountain meadow

Some type of garter snake

Closeup of snakes head

?

I think this is Eaton's Thistle