9-16-15

Cerro Alto 

Most all the berries are gone , however there is still some Coffee Berry left . Deer , bear and coyote love this food , but as I mentioned in an earlier post , food is in short supply so the critters are adventuring onto busy hiking trails for food . Be alert you might bump into a bear in the evening . .

Remember my dog ran a bear off trail near the summit a few nights ago . If you hike in late evening make some noise by talking , striking brush etc . Carry Bear spray . 

photos below --coffee Berry , deer scat , small bear scat .

in the earlier post see large bear scat .

Cerro Alto cool weather

9-15-15

Cerro Alto  and cool weather .

Finally we have cool weather in the early after noon . 65 degrees and colder  at the summit . I hiked with a couple of friends , Bob and Jim , great hike , much fun . we met a hiking birthday party near the summit .The birthday group is in the following photo and video . The birthday girl is the lady in the blue her name is Courtney , Lindsey is in the pl;aid shirt , the red shirt is Sophia Evens and the you gentleman is there to see to their safety , my poor hearing did not hear his name however he did give it in the video below . All of the group are Cal Poly students . Enjoy !

Note , I asked the group if they had seen the bear scat in the photo below , they responded that they did see it but were not that it was bear scat , so this was a teachable adventure also .

Happy birthday Courtney !

below is a large bear scat , the photo of my hand and the stick indicates the depth of this scat ,

the berry photo is what the bear was feeding on   ( Catalina Cherry ) or Prunus ilicifolia 

it grows wild and is sweet when ripe .

A few days I posted a photo of a medium size scat near the summit that was very fresh and I saw the bear late in the evening . Be aware that there is bear activity on the trails now  especially in late evening . Nap time for the bears is approaching and the food supply is very limited this year and that is why these bears are adventuring out onto the busy trails .

Cerro Alto and Wild Life

1. The below posted berries are Catalina Cherries or Holly Leaf Cherry 
2. ( Prunus ilicifolia )
3. These are the berries  shown in the bear scat below 
4. The scat I photographed  a couple of days ago near the summit of Cerro aAto 
5. There are very few berries left on the mountain and the ones that are left are near the top . 
6. I also saw a bear near the summit a couple of days on the same day I took this photo .
7. the bears are moving around after dark .
8. 
   
9. 

Cerro Alto and hot weather

Hiking with dogs in hot weather .

I don't mean to preach or lecture , but I feel this subject is very important fpr those hikers that hike with their dogs :

Sierra ( my 3  1/2  year Shepard mix ) have hiked together  daily since she was 10 weeks old , We back pack several times a year . We average over 40 miles weekly on steep trails rain or shine and we have learned a few things about hiking in hot weather  . The photo below was taken in San Diego Co. and speaks for itself .

I have witnessed many times dogs suffer heat exhaustion and stroke while hiking a hot trail .I have seen a dog die of same !

Cerro Alto mountain is in San Luis Obispo  Co and in the summer , can get very hot . 

I hope the following information is of some help :

• Fitness matters in both humans and dogs . The more fit you are  , the cooler you will hike in warm weather .
• Dogs can not cool as easily as humans .  They sweat thru their foot pads and thru their tongue .
• We don't hike when temperature  is above 83 degrees in the shade , you can bet the sun will be at least 15 degrees hotter .
• Sierra carries   a minimum  of 34 ounces of water  for a 6 mile adventure  . Longer hikes . she carries 64 oz.  Sierra weighs 80 lbs .  on a 6 mile adventure she will,drink at least 32 + ounces and on longer trips it depends on the heat  . I have seen her drink 90 ounces  on a 4000 ft. elevation gain .
• On long hot hikes I carry up to 180 oz. and have used all , some of which was used to cool Sierra with baths .
• When we get caught in 100 degree weather , I cool Sierra with water baths done under frequent breaks under shady chaparral  . I bathe her feet also , this helps !
• Not ---- hunting season is not yet over so when hiking in national forests have the dog wear a bright color vest or back pack . Sierra wears a back pack every day . Two years ago , Sierra was shot while hiking Cerro Alt in August . See photo below .
• be a responsible dog owner .

Note worthy is the fact that when Sierra was shot with a 30 cal bullet , she was wearing a green color back Pack and was approximately 10 feet ahead of me on the trail .

The bullet traveled approximately four tenths of a mile and struck her in the right shoulder  and did not break the bone .

Cerro Alto morning hike

Cerro Alto morning hike 9-10-15

To beat the heat , I hiked Cerro early am 

7:30 am temperature was 75 degrees .

I enjoyed the morning sounds of birds chirping .

Sierra ( my dog ) was magestic by morning light .

I exited the trail at 10:30 am and the temp was 85 degrees .Perfect !

Cerro Alto

Wednesday 9-9-15

Sotter than hell on Cerro Alto ,so I hiked late from 5 PM to 8:15 pm .

I climbed slowly  the temperature was 92 at the start . The decent was beautiful with dark trails and red sky . The 80 degrees breeze felt good in the dark . The night sounds were enchanting and spooky at  the same time . I hiked the last mile with a lighted head lamp . I feel so lucky to have sierra to watch my back . 

I had the mountain alone .

Cerro Alto

Cerro Alto  on Labor Day 2015

Cerro alto Mt . located on Hwy 41 between Morro Bay and Atascadero Ca. 

I expected this to be a busy day on the mountain and found it to be hot and quiet but 

definitely an eventful and beautiful evening . I started my hike at 5 PM and descended  the mountain at sunset exiting at dark with a lamp lighted .

I met only two hikers and they were at the summit , My dog Sierra loved them .

Two young school teachers from south county SLO

They will introduce themselves in the short video below .

video Introduction below

upon descending the mountain I enjoyed beautiful sunset images .

I am also including a couple of shots I enjoyed today 

The bear scat here is a berry shown with my finger pointing at same .

Near the top and after sunset Sierra stopped me on the trail and started growling and barking 

as she does when she encounters a predator animal . sure enough , I looked up 

in time to see the rear end of a bear running away into the bushes , a scare , yes but 

always a welcome experience !