Most of the trail between Mt. Pinos and Mt. Abel is in old growth pine and fir. One exception is this area of downed trees near the Cerro Noroeste road. The brushy plant with yellow flowers is rabbitbrush (probably Chrysothamnus viscidiflorus).

From today's run to Mt. Abel and back from Mt. Pinos on the Vincent Tumamait Trail in Los Padres National Forest.

The afternoon was hot, and the hill was not easy. I plodded up the rutted dirt road, watching my footfalls, and glancing upward from time to time. It was one of those days when hills grow long and steep, and sweat stings your eyes.

Part way up the grade, I caught a glimpse of two deer crossing the road. I didn't get a good look, but thought it might be another buck and doe, like the pair I recently encountered in Topanga State Park. I stopped running, pulled out my camera, and walked slowly up to the point where a game trail left the road.

I was expecting the pair to have dissolved into the brush, but apparently they had not seen me. They were about halfway up a rounded hill, backlit by the sun, and partially hidden by dried grasses and mustard stalks. The buck's head was down, and the doe's ears fluttered nervously to and fro.

Suddenly the buck's head shot up. As I watched, the animal's silhouette grew impossibly tall. His thick neck extended from heavily muscled shoulders, projecting an iconic image of dominance that was amplified by his formidable, multi-tined antlers.

Awestruck, I snapped what photos I could, and then turned and began to slowly jog up the road. Periodically I would stop and turn, and see if the deer were still in sight.  As I crested the climb, I could just make out the pair on the top of the now distant knoll.

Tree poppy (Dendromecon rigida) on Temescal Ridge Fire Road, on the way to the Hub in Topanga State Park.

From a run in March of the Will Rogers - Temescal Loop in the Santa Monica Mountains.

A sib of the ultralight SpeedCross 2, the Salomon SpeedComp trail running shoe trades the "snow and mud rated" lug sole of the SpeedCross 2 for a high traction tread reminiscent of a low profile, high performance tire. The result is a fast, lightweight shoe that should perform well on most trails and in a variety of conditions.

Mine arrived yesterday and I took them out for a 7 mile spin at Ahmanson Ranch. There were no surprises -- the SpeedComp ran very similar to the SpeedCross 2, with good shock absorption and cushioning for such a lightweight shoe.

In addition to the outsole tread, there are a few other differences in design. The toe cap of the SpeedComp extends further back along the welt, and the sole wraps up over the sides of the cap, providing additional protection on rocky trails. A heel pull-tab has also been added.

My pair of SpeedComps (US 9.0) weighed in at a light 22.6 oz.

Update 09/21/08. Did the 14 mile Bulldog Loop in the SpeedComps today. This course is mostly ungroomed dirt road, but there is also some rocky single track, a section on exposed sandstone, and even a little pavement. The SpeedComp was comfortable, nimble, and it's traction on the rocky sections was impressive.

Related post: Salomon SpeedCross 2 & adidas Response Trail 14

When running in the Trippet Ranch area of Topanga State Park, more often than not, I see mule deer browsing among the oaks along Eagle Springs Fire Road, or along the Musch Meadow Trail.

On Sunday's Trippet Ranch loop, these deer were near the Musch Meadow Trail. The young buck appeared to be taking more than a passing interest in the doe. The breeding season for mule deer varies widely, and begins as early as mid-September in some locations.

Here is a zoomed view of the doe and buck.

Related post: Musch Trail Mule Deer

Fall color is not as widespread in chaparral as in some other plant communities. This vividly colored poison oak is along the Garapito Trail in Topanga State Park.

From a run of the Trippet Ranch Loop from Marvin Braude Mulholland Gateway Park at the southern end of Reseda Blvd., in the San Fernando Valley.

Related post: Poison Oak, Ferns Along the Garapito Trail

Following are brief descriptions, Google Earth images, and a Google Earth KMZ file of several trail runs at Ahmanson Ranch -- now Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve. These are shorter courses, generally on dirt roads, that extend as far west as Las Virgenes Canyon. Some longer runs in this area are listed in the Santa Monica Mountain Conservancy Open Space section of my Google Earth KMZ Files of Trail Runs page.

Sometimes growing as large as a supermarket cherry, the sweetish, thin-pulped fruit of hollyleaf cherry (Prunus ilicifolia) is a favorite snack of coyotes.

These are on the Chumash Trail in Rocky Peak Park. This is the first year since the 2003 Simi Fire that there has been a sizable hollyleaf cherry crop along the trail.

It is commonly reported that an "acid treatment" in the digestive tract of a coyote or bird is required for germination. However, according to the University of Texas Native Plant Information Network Native Plant Database, fresh seeds require no treatment.

Related post: Holly-leaved Cherry

Ka-ree... Ka-ree... Ka-ree...

I heard the angry cries at least a quarter-mile away. The screams were incessant. Running along the dirt road, I emerged from a grove of oaks and turned west -- running down a short hill and then up another. Cresting the rise, I paused to search the parched terrain.

The Winter rain season had been the driest on record, and Summer heat was now oppressive, abusing the animals and desiccating the chaparral. A few clouds cluttered the sky, but they would bring no rain. The cries continued.

Ka-ree... Ka-ree... Ka-ree...

The screams seemed to be coming from a group of rocks and oak trees near the campground. I left the road and slowly walked through the brush in the direction of the shrill shrieks. As I approached, the intensity and urgency of the screams increased. Intimidated, I stopped.

KA-REE... KA-REE... KA-REE...

There was not only fury in those cries, but a warning.

To my left, something stirred. Slowly I turned and looked down. For a moment I just stared. Rabbit lay face-down against a rock, twitching. Up in the oak tree, Hawk continued his irate cries.

KA-REE... KA-REE... KA-REE...

Suddenly, there was motion to my right, and Bobcat bolted from the brush. Hawk swooped in pursuit. His broad tail flared and wings twisted one direction and then another, as he followed the abrupt zigs and zags of Bobcat through the rocks, up the hill, and out of view.

KA-REE... KA-REE... Ka-ree... ka-ree...

Afterward: This encounter occurred during a run at Sage Ranch Park in July of 2002. I continued my run, and when I returned about 30-40 minutes later, the rabbit was gone. The photographs were taken during the encounter.

Adjacent to Las Virgenes Creek, not far from the cattails of Linear Green, is a sizable plot of western ragweed. On a recent run I noticed several tufts of fluff caught on the ragweed and backlit by the afternoon sun.

Investigating, I found the source of the tufts about 15 yards away -- a patch of bull thistle -- an invasive weed that is found throughout the U.S.

Like a dandelion, bull thistle seeds are attached to a downy pappus, and can be dispersed by wind. The rate at which these plumed seeds fall through still air is quite low -- less than 1.5 ft/sec. This is slower than the minimum sink rate of a high performance sailplane. For a given plant height, the lower the sink rate, the farther the seed can potentially be dispersed from the parent plant.

Even though the plumed seed of bull thistle (Cirsium vulgare) is much larger and heavier than a dandelion's familiar tuft, it is reported to have about the same ratio of plume area to seed weight. This is a key factor affecting the sink rate. However, the bull thistle's seed is reported to sink at about a 15% slower rate than the dandelion's. This may be attributable to aerodynamic and structural advantages of the secondary branches found in the plume of the bull thistle, but not in the dandelion's.

Related technical papers:

Diaspore Size, Shape, and Fall Behavior in Wind-Dispersed Plant Species
Glenn R. Matlack
American Journal of Botany, Vol. 74, No. 8 (Aug., 1987), pp. 1150-1160
Botanical Society of America

The Aerodynamics of Plumed Seeds
D. F. Greene and E. A. Johnson
Functional Ecology, Vol. 4, No. 1 (1990), pp. 117-125
British Ecological Society

One hundred degrees
A willowed stream
Late afternoon sun
And linear green.

Study of cattail leaves in afternoon sun.

From a run to Las Virgenes Creek from the Victory trailhead of Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve (formerly Ahmanson Ranch).

From a run at Ahmanson Ranch (now Upper Las Virgenes Canyon Open Space Preserve).