Unforgettable Skyline

[Sally]

Yesterday was one of those magical days on Skyline for Ellen, Marilyn, and me. Aside from the fact that I was an hour late meeting the ladies at the trailhead because my commute from Temecula through Hemet was flooded at every turn, everything was perfect.

We started at the museum after 7:00 under the arch of a rainbow. I took this as an omen that everything was going to be OK after my frustrating commute. We immediately noticed how vivid the colors of the wet plants were. They had previously been dull and dried out. The lichen on the rocks had really plumped up and was very colorful. The bark on the ribbonwood and old burned brush trunks were dark and rich, making for sharp contrasting accents. And of course the rain always brings out the fresh herby scents. It was VERY humid, but the air temp was comfortable. The wet tread of the trail made for good footing.

By far the most stunning aspect of the day was the clouds. There were clouds all around us and they were changing so quickly that I would pull out my camera to capture a certain mood, and by the time I was set to shoot the picture the scene was entirely different.

For those of you who are curious, no, there was no snow. It didn't look as though the higher elevations got much snow either. It was kind of hard to tell because of the clouds.

Here are my pictures:
https://picasaweb.google.com/1009477359 ... directlink

[63ChevyII]

Great photos Sally (as expected ) !

[cynthia23]

What lovely photos! Sounds like a perfect day.

[Ellen]

Howdy All

It was a great day with wonderful friends

Sally, we're so glad that you found a way around the flash flooding in Hemet so that the three stooges could hike together.

I had sinus and ear surgery on Monday, so this was my first hike post-op. I felt like I was trying to hike through Jello. Fortunately, Sally and Marilyn didn't mind my slower pace.

Once our friend Diana passed us at the picnic tables, we thought we had Skyline to ourselves. At 7 K, we caught up to a group of about six people wearing long pants, long sleeves, etc. We were in shorts and t-shirts. As we passed them, they noted that we must hike this trail on a regular basis

Miles of smiles,
Ellen

[Andy]

Sally it looked like an awesome day on trail and those pics are making me jealous. And Ellen, I like your idea of post-op recovery

Loving this weather!

[Ed]

Sally,

Thanks for the no-snow report. It was nice to know what we did not have to pack on Saturday.

Ed

[smiles]

In a word... STUNNING!