Prairie Creek, Foothill, and West Ridge loop

Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park

(Map link.)

After hiking Hope Creek, I still had a few hours before dark to wander trails. Where to find a gnome plant? Since my GPS is rather primitive, I had elected to name the points in it according to how accurate they were. Knowing the accuracy helps me not get wrapped up in looking around an area only defined to ±1km, but wasn't as helpful for finding a specific plant. There were quite a few points near the visitor center and a couple up on West Ridge, so I decided it was time to finish off walking West Ridge. (As I walked it, it's parts total: this south bit, the middle, and north.) Parking near the visitor center was a little crazy. People were waiting for the 15 minute spaces next to it. I found one space near the campground and there's approximately half a mile of parallel parking along the meadow, so they weren't actually about to run out of room. I wound my way likely the long way around to get to the visitor center and start along the Prairie Creek Trail.

The bridge over Prairie Creek and past a few big redwoods. The bark changes color above the point that typical tourists can reach.

Prairie Creek Trail is wide and well used in this section.

Even in the brushy, open areas next to Prairie Creek, there is nice trail.

At the suggestion that I could take Foothill Trail instead, I cut over to Tall Trees (crowded) and along it. It climbs just a little and loops through some small tributaries before finishing at Brown Creek.

A few trees along the way.

The base of a massive tree along Brown Creek. The growth pattern seems to suggest a drop in ground level over the years.

Then I was back on Prairie Creek Trail. It's really only brushy for a little bit shortly before Zigzag #1, but that bit makes a lasting impression.

A little less brushy where Zigzag #1 starts up to the ridge.

Zigzag #1 climbs solidly at the bottom, but smooths out toward the top. I thought I hadn't passed any more rhododendrons on the west ridge portion of my hike a few weeks back, but there is a small number right near the top of Zigzag #1 and they were in peak blooming form as I passed this time.

A few rhododendrons.

A few more rhododendrons down the hill.

I got to West Ridge and took the right. I made a greater effort to find the odd flowers hidden in the duff. Actually, I'd been hurrying until then simply because there wasn't enough time to spend in examination on every mile of this loop. A lot of the flowers seemed to be a little bit behind the cycle of the flowers on the eastern ridge. There weren't quite so many leopard lilies and they were only in clumps of two or three, but there were still a few.

The windflowers are looking a little fresher on this ridge.

A collection of redwoods, new and cracked off, down the ocean side of the hill.

I got within 200 feet of a point marked "gnome" on my GPS because it hadn't had any accuracy information. Just what I wanted to find. I was another 300 feet on the other side of the marked location when I spotted the plant. My victory was complete! (There is actually one more monotrope that grows in park, but I found the specific ones I'd been looking for and one more besides.)

The gnome plant is practically on the trail. As expected, the coordinates are poor, but the plant is very visible from the trail. There's a couple leopard lilies on the right side, too.

What that little pink blob by the side of the trail above looks like on closer inspection.

The stalk with its scales.

Close up on those flowers.

I kept on looking after finding them, but I found no more along the way. Just a whole lot of really good trees. There's some large flat areas on that ridge where they get particularly big. I still particularly like the ridge top trees.

Along the top of the ridge between the trees.

Trees around a wide, shallow bowl.

Just some more big trees.

Looking up past the leopard lilies.

The ridge drifts downward and as the hour was getting late, that was into darkness. It was still a while until sunset, but in shadow and under the big trees gets pretty dark on its own.

There's even larger trees once back down in a valley.

Some tiny coastal brookfoam.

I got back down to the Nature Trail and took a right to follow the rest of it around back to the car. It surprised me by actually climbing a noticeable number of feet before dropping back down to the seasonal bridge.

A high up view of the Prairie Creek valley, just a bit obscured by big leaf maple.

So I finished the day mildly giddy with a goal completed, and then some, and headed back.

*photo album*




©2021 Valerie Norton
Written 22 Jul 2021