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Orange Orange

  • Black willow, Peters Canyon Regional Park, Orange (11/11/19) Mark Hanning-Lee
  • Black willow, Peters Canyon Regional Park, Orange (11/11/19) Mark Hanning-Lee

It’s rare, extremely so, to receive a report from Orange County.

In the eleven years that CaliforniaFallColor.com has existed, Orange County has been mentioned in only three of over 1,000 fall color reports.

So, when Mark Hanning-Lee sent these snaps of Goodding’s black willow at Peters Canyon Regional Park in Orange, I did a double take.

Orange in Orange? Yes, seeing is believing. OK, it isn’t Sabrina Lake, North Lake, June Lake Loop, Plumas County, Nevada City, Napa or Yosemite Valley at peak, but it’s just as special. Perhaps more so, because of its rarity.

The OC had opened its parking lots to free parking for veterans, yesterday, and Mark took advantage of the invite to score a First Report.

Peters Canyon Regional Park encompasses 340 acres of coastal sage scrub, riparian, freshwater marsh and grassland habitats. Goodding’s black willow, Western sycamore and Fremont cottonwood line Upper Peters Canyon Reservoir and Peters Canyon Creek, which meanders through the canyon.

Among its native deciduous plants, the City of Orange can count Southern California Black Walnut, Fremont cottonwood, Western sycamore, bigleaf maple, creek dogwood, black elderberry, Goodding’s black and other varieties of willow.

Hanning-Lee’s find is unlikely to cause a rush of color spotters to Orange County, though I would welcome more reports from there. As, an Orange Orange just seems right, doesn’t it?

  • Peters Canyon Regional Park, Orange (600′) – Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW!
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Dripping Down The Rivers

Cottonwood, Knights Ferry (11/3/19) Jim Adams

Fall color is dripping down the rivers through the central valley.

Color spotter Jim Adams provides a First Report from Knight’s Ferry where he attended the annual pumpkin roll to find riverside cottonwood and willows and walnut orchards at peak.

Willow, Knights Ferry, Stanislaus River (11/3/19) Jim Adams

He reports that down the Stanislaus River in Oakdale, cottonwood and valley oak have yet to peak.

  • Knights Ferry, Stanislaus River (213′) – Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW!
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Hike to Potem Falls

Potem Falls, Montgomery Creek (10/23/19) Laura Jean

Hike of the week takes you to Potem Falls, an impressive 60-foot drop along Montgomery creek in Shasta-Trinity National Forest near CA-299.

AllTrails.com describes the trail as a .4-mile, lightly trafficked out & back along Montgomery Creek (Trinity County) that features a waterfall and is good for all skill levels.

The trail is primarily used for hiking, walking, nature trips, and birding and is best from March through October. Dog-friendly.

For directions, CLICK HERE.

Bigleaf maple, Potem Falls, Shasta-Trinity NF (10/23/19) Laura Jean

Laura Beeson scores a First Report and Hike of the Week, plus the above maple is red, a rarity for bigleaf maple. We’ll have to see more.

  • Potem Falls (1,246′) – Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!
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Hamilton Branch/Lake Almanor

Hamilton Branch, Feather River (10/26/19) Jeff Luke Titcomb

The Hamilton Branch of the Feather River drops from Dyer Mountain into Lake Almanor.

The designated census area or community of Hamilton Branch has 587 residents beside this stream which is considered to be exceptional for fly fishing.

In late October, Hamilton Branch is edged with firey orange color from oak, willow and maple. Plumas County color spotter Jeff Luke Titcomb scores a First Report for Hamilton Branch, and what a beauty it is.

  • Hamilton Branch, Lake Almanor (4,505′) – Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!
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Boca Panorama

Logan Alexander used a Moto Z3 camera phone in panorama mode to create this image of Boca Reservoir and score a First Report for this location. Aspen are at peak.

Boca Reservoir is on the Little Truckee River, 27 miles southwest of Reno near I-80.

  • Boca Reservoir (5,614′) – Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!
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Marble Mountains

Marble Mountains Wilderness Area (10/6/19) Leor Pantilat

Class in Session. So, who here has heard of the Marble Mountains?

No, the Marble Mountains of which I’m speaking are not in Vietnam, nor Southern California. Those are different ranges with the same name. The one I’m thinking of is in Northern California’s Siskiyou County.

Technically, they’re the northwest portion of the Salmon Mountains. Familiar, yet? No?

Maybe this will help … They’re a sub-range of the Klamath Mountains. Did I hear a “Huh!?”

Still cold? Here are some tips: the Marble Mountains area was one of the first four “Primitive Areas” designated in America (1931), became a Wilderness Area in 1953, and the Pacific Crest Trail passes through it.

Believe me. When I first learned of the Marble Mountains I was scratching my head, too. I’d never heard of them.

Bigleaf maple, Marble Mountains (10/6/19) Leor Pantilat

Images sent today by Leor Pantilat show a range deserving of greater recognition. The problem is, the Marble Mountains are in a state with 352 mountain ranges. So, it’s understandable that you might not have heard of them.

Wikipedia reports that more species of conifer (17) live in proximity there than any place else in the world, including the Brewer’s spruce; incense cedar; Western Juniper; white, subalpine and Shasta red fir; Engelmann spruce; mountain hemlock; Pacific yew; and whitebark, knobcone, foxtail, lodgepole, sugar, ponderosa and western white pine.

CaliforniaFallColor.com has mentioned the Marble Mountains previously, but Leor’s is the first report showing fall color there.

  • Locust, Marble Mountains (10/6/19) Leor Pantilat
  • Dogwood, Marble Mountains (10/6/19) Leor Pantilat
  • Bigleaf maple, Marble Mountains (10/6/19) Leor Pantilat
  • Marble Mountain Wilderness Area (10/6/19) Leor Pantilat

Bigleaf maple are Near Peak and lighting the Marble Mountain Wilderness Area’s remarkable conifer forest with yellow and gold. Dogwood are patchy and grasses from 6,000′ to 7,000′ are colorful. Peak should arrive within a fortnight.

Moving on … So, who here has heard of the Chemehuevi Mountains?

  • Marble Mountain Wilderness Area (3,000 to 5,000′) – Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW! – Bigleaf maple.
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Humboldt State Changes Colors

  • Red Maple, College Creek Dorms, HSU (10/5/19) Michelle Pontoni
  • Maple, HSU Police Bldg (10/5/19) Michelle Pontoni

Humboldt State University’s school colors are green and gold, Michelle Pontoni tells us, but in autumn the Arcata campus looks more like USC with all the red and gold.

Near the University Police building, one of the tallest evergreens on campus towers over maples that hang with golden leaves. The change has happened so rapidly, that Michelle expects returning students to be surprised by the color change when they resume class today.

She writes, “One vibrant red maple stands among others still green lining both sides of Harpst Street outside the College Creek dorms, with a quarter moon hovering low in the southern sky.”

  • Ivy, Harry Griffith Hall, HSU (10/5/19) Michelle Pontoni
  • Ivy, Harry Griffith Hall, HSU (10/5/19) Michelle Pontoni

Usually, the busy intersection of Harpst and B streets resounds with hundreds of students passing each hour, but all that could be heard this past weekend was the “tiny rustle of leaves and just a whisper of wind near empty tables outside ivy-covered Harry Griffith Hall. There, the ivy seems almost animated, crawling up the wall in varying shades of green to red.  Nearby, hydrangeas in blue, pink, and white join the spectacle.  While, beyond lively crimson maple leaves are glimpsed between the greens and golds.

Pontoni recommends walking the Humboldt State campus in Arcata to appreciate the show, though the school is nicknamed Hills and Stairs University (HSU) for all the ascents and descents that students make during their matriculation.

One thing’s certain, color awaits around every building and up every staircase at HSU, and Michelle Pontoni scores a First Report for her colorful description of autumn in Arcata.

  • Humboldt State University, Arcata – Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!
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Silver Lake Is Looking Golden

Silver Lake, Plumas County (10/3/19) Michael Beatley

Silver Lake near Meadow Valley looks nothing like its surrounding landscape. Plumas County is a forested place with bigleaf maple, mountain ash, aspen and lots of conifers.

Though Silver Lake, (see above) looks like it might better fit, tucked away in one of the granite canyons of the Eastern Sierra. That’s partly because the lake sits just below the Pacific Crest Trail, north of Spanish Peak. So, it is truly part of the High Sierra, even though classified as within the Shasta Cascade region.

Color spotter Michael Beatley scores a First Report for Silver Lake by sending the images he took this morning. He drove upon a USFS dirt road, that he describes as “well maintained” and “accessible by car,” six miles from Bucks Lake Rd. to Silver Lake.

  • USFS road to Silver Lake (10/3/19) Michael Beatley
  • Mountain Ash, Silver Lake (10/3/19) Michael Beatley

Beatley says the deciduous trees and plants have yet to show much color, though the warm morning light reflecting off the conifers in the top photo made it appear that they are changing, though they aren’t.

  • Silver Lake (7,200′) – Just Starting (0-10%)
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How Sweet It is

Sweetwater Mountains (10/1/19) Bob Simms

Jackie Gleason, an early television sitcom comedian’s famous exultation was, “how sweet it is!” When it comes to fall color in Mono County’s Sweetwater Mountains, it surely is.

Outdoor broadcaster Bob Simms (KFBK1530 Sacramento) passed through Mono County last week to find little happening, then returned today to share these photos taken in the Sweetwaters.

Bob scores a First Report for the area (the first time anyone has reported fall color for a location), and that’s surprising, considering how widely Jeff Simpson, Alicia Vennos and other Mono County color spotters venture. Perhaps that’s because the Sweetwaters are only accessible by 4WD vehicle or pack animal.

The Sweetwater Mountains straddle the California/Nevada border, within Toiyabe National Forest and separate the West Walker River from the East Walker River.

I’m sure the rivers are what attracted Bob, as he’s a formidable angler and the consummate outdoorsman.

CLICK HERE to listen to last Saturday’s “Outdoor Show with Bob Simms in which we spoke about California Fall Color. Start the podcast at 21:00 to hear the report.

Better yet, tune in to KFBK 1530AM Saturday mornings from 5 to 8 a.m. or listen to his podcasts to hear his thorough reports on California’s outdoors and fishing.

  • Dunderberg Meadows (10/1/19) Bob Simms
  • Sweetwater Mountains (10/1/19) Bob Simms
  • Aspen, Sweetwater Mountains (10/1/19) Bob Simms
  • Aspen, Sweetwater Mountains (10/1/19) Bob Simms
  • Dunderberg Meadows -Patchy (10-50%)
  • Sweetwater Mountains – Near Peak (50-75%) GO NOW!
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Pioneer Gets a First Report

Antelope Creek Drainage, Pioneer (9/29/19) Lyle Gordon

Color spotter Lyle Gordon scores a First Report for Pioneer, which until now had been bypassed.

Lyle found bigleaf maples just starting along Antelope Creek at 3,700′.

Pioneer is one of those places that has generated its own pseudo history. Pioneer Station, a rest stop along CA-88, is often thought to have been a Pony Express station, but it never was.

The Pony Express route traveled through El Dorado County, to Amador’s north. Instead, the rest stop was established in 1925, long after the Pony Express ceased to exist.

Still, it is a favorite place to eat for travelers driving CA-88. And now, Pioneer gains true history as the first sighting of fall color this year in Amador County.

  • Antelope Creek Drainage, Pioneer (3,700′) – Just Starting (0-10%)
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