Читать книгу 101 Hikes in Northern California. Exploring Mountains, Valleys, and Seashore онлайн

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The trail now descends off the ridge, veering northeast through varied microclimates that support a range of drought-tolerant and moisture-loving plants. The contrast is stark—yuccas dot the arid slopes, while moisture-reliant redwoods cluster nearby in damp gullies. You next reach a short spur to Espinosa Camp (3.4/1,660'), marked by a large fallen redwood 100 yards past a major gully.

The spur leads 100 feet to several small campsites atop a minor ridge in the shade of live oaks, bays, redwoods, and rare, endemic Santa Lucia firs. Rock outcrops offer unobstructed views toward the coast. This is an excellent picnic or overnight spot, though the nearby gully is usually dry. The continuing hike contours inland along the slopes, rounds a prominent ridge, and reaches the first reliable water source, a creeklet cascading past redwoods and ferns. Open grassy slopes return as the trail tops out at 1,860 feet and begins a gentle descent to Vicente Flat.

You cross three rubble-strewn gullies (4.1/1,800'), their adjacent marble faces misted in winter by a seasonal flow. After the next dry redwood gully, the trail contours north and enters dense woods a quarter mile before reaching Hare Creek and several large redwoods. A few feet farther, a spur cuts upstream to a pair of sites in the open meadow of Vicente Flat itself. The main trail continues a short distance to the Stone Ridge Trail junction (5.2/1,620'); beyond lie many beautiful campsites in the redwoods.