Parker Mesa Overlook, Topanga State Park, CA, Photo by http://venturacountytrails.org
Trails. They take us on a journey from here to there, from beginning to end, from past to future.. Trails are the way we are able to observe wildlands. Whether they are trails made by rangers through Parklands or National Forest, they weave through the countryside inviting us to come along. Trails are not static, but speak of motion and movement.
In the California Chaparral, trails can be seen as brown strips cutting through the thick blue-green stands of native brush: Toyon, Sumac and Sagebrush. Trails are also the way for us to enjoy wildlands, native plants, and the wildlife there without disturbing them.
Some trails are well-worn paths made by footsteps over & over, years in the making or even started by Indians long ago. Some trails were practical & deliberately made, such as for getting to a water source, or a waterfall, or perhaps a bathing spot.
Hikers on Backbone Trail, Flowering Buckwheat, Photo by: Jim Belsley, National Park Service
Other trails were made by animals themselves. For instance, in Southern California where I live, Coyote has made many of the hillside paths, taking shifting, moving, sandy soil and compacting it over time, until we too can walk on the path without it sliding away under our feet. (A scary feeling, I can tell you.) Sometimes Coyote paths become State Park Trails, and sometimes they become roads. Imagine, the repeated footsteps of the silent Ghost Dog could make way for a road!
On Catalina Island (just 20 miles off the coast of California), wild goats make terraced trails on the hills, fighting erosion while eating dense brush (benefits fire clearance) at the same time.
Rabbits make trails too. I see them under and through stands of Chamise. Not as useful for us, perhaps, but awfully important for Rabbits, as these trails take them to places that offer cover from predators.
Deer Running through Wildlife Corridor in Topanga State Park, CA, Photo by: http://venturacountytrails.org
Wildlife need to go places too. Animals need to find water, food and a place to raise their young. In the Santa Monica Mtns, the wildlands are like a puzzle of interlocking green spaces. The National Park Service, the Conservancy and CA Dept of Parks & Recreation, with the help of dedicated volunteers, have worked very hard to connect wildlands, buying private pieces of property when possible to create essential wildlife corridors.
The Backbone Trail is one of the better known trails that runs up and down the Santa Monica Mtns on the West Coast. You can pick up this Trail at several points here in Topanga. You can walk the entire length of the Coastal Mountain Range, 65 miles. Or, you can enjoy part of the trails at a time, at your own pace, stopping at camp areas to rest and observe wildlife along the way. Group hikes are also offered with field guides.
Trails, paths taking us from here to somewhere else.. From what is familiar to what perhaps is the unknown and could be a great adventure.
Trails intrigue me – I wonder at the footsteps or paw prints that travelled here before me and feel a sense of peace at moving forward along a path. On a nice breezy day, civilization fades away and I am part of the wildlands. There is a quiet satisfaction in travelling along old trails that follow the natural contour of the land. And if on your walk you should stop to look back, you would see the trail melting into the chaparral landscape, and gracefully disappearing.
Do you have a favorite trail? We’d love to hear about it~
© 2012, Kathy Vilim. All rights reserved. This article is the property of BeautifulWildlifeGarden.com If you are reading this at another site, please report that to us
About Kathy Vilim
I’ve never been to California, but you can’t miss finding a great trail in Moab, Utah. Walking the coast (or trail) along Lake Michigan is a pretty special hike as well.
Mary Pellerito recently posted..Wednesday Wonderings
Mary, The Santa Monica Mtn Coastal Range runs along the Pacific. So when you are hiking, there are times when you get a sweeping ocean view, yet you are hundreds of feet above it. Can be a bit dizzying. I love knowing Coyote made many of those trails~
Kathy @nativegardener recently posted..Monticello Says Goodbye to its Long Time Gardener
Great post Kathy, I feel the same way; definitely one of my favorite things how we find ourselves winding our way through a landscape designed by mother nature herself!
Oh good, you know that feeling of winding through the canyons. Are your trails chaparral, too?
Kathy Vilim recently posted..Monticello Says Goodbye to its Long Time Gardener
Wonderful article. I have heard in Africa people are trying to buy up land so there are animal corridors. We have a place called the Emerald Necklace. It is a huge park system that extends from Cleveland I believe to Akron. You can drive through it the whole thing. It has always been special to me. There are small trails within the system for those who want to bike or walk. I remember many happy days with my children romping around the trails.
Susan Hemann recently posted..Quiet Reflection Sunday- Happy Easter
Susan, I’ll bet the Emerald Necklace is wonderful to drive through. It’s so important, especially outside large urban areas to put aside some essential wildlife corridors. In the Santa Monica Mtns (LA) it took the coordination of many different depts, as you might imagine. A vast undertaking but necessary to be good stewards of the animals we do have. I like that there are trails through the parks, but that the animal corridors are safe from daily foot traffic.
Kathy Vilim recently posted..Monticello Says Goodbye to its Long Time Gardener
The more times I walk the same trail — and I’ve walked it every season for almost ten years — the more I see. Every year I learn the names of more plants and get a better feel for what comes up when. The last two years have been a bit off. We had a really cold spring and summer last year, which pushed the buckeyes into flowering super late (June or July). This year, things are late again because it didn’t really start raining until spring. The manroot seems to be doing especially well. My favorite trail has a little of everything, woods, nice views, some open hills, chaparral, a creek with wild blackberry bushes, the odd coyote or rabbit or deer.
Jennifer @noteasy2begreen recently posted..Hardcore Ways to Go Green
Jennifer, you seem really in tune with the changes of the season where you are, and on your favorite trails. It is truly wonderful when we can get so familiar with what we expect to find along the way! Have a happy Earth Day up there on your fave trails.~
Kathy Vilim recently posted..Monticello Says Goodbye to its Long Time Gardener
oh Kathy….what beautiful country you have over there!
I am quite surprised by the rabbit trails in my own yard small and subtle as they are, but still very apparent.
Your comments on wildlife corridors being so important need to get out into a mainstream audience. So few people have any idea that their own existance can depend on the ability of our wildlife to be able to journey without breakups in their habitat.
Well Done!
Loret T. Setters recently posted..Do Birds Mourn?
Thanks so much, Loret. I am very proud of the efforts of so many in putting the wildlife corridors together nearby such a huge urban expanse as is LA. It is amazing to think of the work involved. And I treasure being able to walk those trails. I certainly do want to get the word out about wildlife corridors! Happy Earth Day!
Kathy @nativegardener recently posted..Monticello Says Goodbye to its Long Time Gardener
Hi Kathy — Nice post. I, too, often think about all those footsteps that have passed along the trail before me.
Interesting twist on the idea of trails here in MN, with the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. There, the trails alternate between land and water as one paddles and portages through nearly pristine wilderness — one of my favorite places anywhere.
Keep up the good work!
Jeffrey Willius recently posted..HOW TO BE IN THE MOMENT – 101 Little Tips
Thanks so much~ Your Boundary Waters Canoe Area sounds interesting.. a trail that goes through water and is picked up on the other side. Would that be a river? Thanks for sharing one of your favorite places. Hope you get back there soon~
Kathy @nativegardener recently posted..Monticello Says Goodbye to its Long Time Gardener
I adore trails and I often wonder who or what has traversed the trail…where my house is was once a trail that many animals used through the area….they still come and use the deer run…the only animals it seems to have disrupted were the wild turkeys that have moved on and do not cross over the road anymore.
Donna@Gardens Eye View recently posted..I’ve Been Missing You
Donna, how interesting that your house was built on a trail. Mine was built along one, as well. Once, some hikers with an old map & very stiff walking canes appeared in my garden “out of nowhere”. To them it was my house that was out of place!
Kathy Vilim recently posted..Monticello Says Goodbye to its Long Time Gardener
I love being on the trail, especially if it takes me through the forest or along a river. I’m fortunate enough to have grown up spending a lot of time in Yosemite, so I’m partial to some of the trails there. I enjoy rediscovering them now with my own children.
Debi recently posted..My Friday 5: A Celebration of Trees
Wonderful to be able to rediscover the Yosemite trails with your children! If they say they love trees more than anything, I hope you will encourage them always to speak their mind~
Kathy @nativegardener recently posted..Monticello Says Goodbye to its Long Time Gardener
Hey Kathy, I loved this essay so much because you describe one of my favorite things about Southern California; one of the things I have truly, deeply missed since moving up North; all the great hiking trails. Aaahhh, the Chaparral under the bright California Sun, following a meandering trail shared with the animals, perhaps even following footsteps left long ago by the Native inhabitants. And why I love this article NOW is because I will BE in Topanga Canyon in 48 hours! And I’ve been fantasizing about the trails for months! Really on the top of my list of what I want to do while there is to spend hours under the sun, walking the trails, many of which begin, end, or cross somewhere in Topanga. So thank you for sharing the uniqueness of the Chaparral trails in another great article, with beautiful pictures to go along…can’t wait to see my awesome family in the amazing canyon!