was a chore for some of us, stuck behind trucks, hikers headed to the Outdoor Club, and other assorted lolly-gaggers.Dick came screaming into the parking lot at 2 minutes past ten, unnoticed by everyone else who were busy grabbing their packs. By the time he came out of the "loo" a few minutes later, the group had vamoosed down the trail. But on which trail? Last year we started the hike with a stroll to across Ridgecrest to look for Jewel flowers. Hmm....doesn't look like they went thata-way, so which-a-way did they go? L
uckily for him, Wendy had stopped just a short distance downhill to the north and Dick spotted her and high-tailed it down the trail to catch up.As
we started up the Benstein trail, Harvester ants crossed in front us, toting bales of seeds, and probably snickering at the itty-bitty day packs were were lugging on our backs. Farther on, Acorn Woodpeckers attracted our attention with their raucous calls, and butterflies took a nectar break on the Ookows lining the trail.About 45 minutes into the hike, Dennis met up with us as we descended the Rock Springs-Lagunitas Fire Road. Within a half hour we'd left the forest behind and were crossing Potrero Meadows on the way Laurel Dell. When we reached the rocky, brushy area where you can see off to the north over Fairfax, we looked down into the rocks along the side of the trail and got a big, big surprise --- a Northern Pacific Rattlesnake staring back up at us. Fortunately, Mr. Snake was content to sit on his coiled up bottom-side and not bite. (Click here for Wendy's list of all of the birds, bugs and other biota we spotted).
We left Laurel Dell a little after midday and began to make our way up the Cataract Trail finding its shady periphery covered with Iris growing not singly, but in clumps, here and there. An Artist's Conch clung to a Bay tree, hoping for a little longer lifespan after the last spell of rain a few days earlier. Farther upstream a winter storm had knocked out a bridge across the creek, forcing us to imitate Rockhopper Penguins to keep our feet dry. (Dennis brought his little "Flip" movie camera and took this video of a baby waterfall in the creek).
By 1:15 pm we had finished the hike and were met by Silvia and her service dog, Hettie, who assuaged our thirsty tongues with big glasses of homemade lemonade. Then we began
hauling our contributions to the "Final Exam" feast up to the picnic tables above the parking lot.After sating our appetites from a cornucopia of culinary offerings, and polishing off most of Wendy's decadent
chocolate dessert, it was "Mystery Box Time!" Nate won the "doorprize" drawing and a "Meandering in Marin" photo-collage mug. In return for leading us (astray only once in a great while) over hill and dale, Wendy received a photo collage T-shirt. (Dick is working with Wendy on an on-line "Meandering Merchandising Mart" where Meanders can buy their own T-shirts, mugs, note cards, and other neat stuff).
After lunch, Dick and Theresa stayed behind and joined Wendy and Silvia on a half-hour hunt for Jewel flowers and other flora on the serpentine outcropping south of Ridgecrest. Their search was successful,
and in the process, they were rewarded with sweeping panoramas down Mount Tam and over the Marin Headlands to San Francisco, sitting like a mirage in a light hazy fog.Later, Dick drove over to a nearly deserted East Peak and circumnavigated it, enjoying the long view out to the northwest all the way to Black Mountain. (Alas, his second camera battery gave out, so no photos were taken here).
(Here's a Google Earth image of the the area where we hiked; click on it to make it larger. According to the Martins' book, Hiking Marin, we probably traveled around 5 miles-plus).
(The vertical profile for the hike shows we did a lot of up and down; the Martin's book says the elevation change over the course of the hike is 1,200').
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