Sunday, Feburary 5. Driving in through Fort Hunter Liggett involves crossing two fords like this one.

The first stop was the Wagon Caves area.

The Wagon Caves area.

Down the road, I was taken by all the sandstone layering. The gate to The Indians Ranch is visable ahead.

After checking out the campground (empty), I went back to the The Indian's Ranch area and began the walk back.

A plaque had the story.

But I was expecting an adobe, not a frame ranch house.

The back is adobe.

Peeking inside shows that the wood frame is built around the old adobe. It's being repaired.

Inside the Indian's Ranch abobe.

I let them rest.

Up a hill away from the house is the old cemetery.

The ranch house area from part way up.

The cemetery is enclosed in a fence and marked with a simple cross. No individual grave markers.

The view down to the oak savannah and toward the ridge that marks the divide between the North Fork and Arroyo Seco drainages.

Next, an excursion down Road 6 to the Salsipuedes Ranch bridge across the North Fork of the San Antonio River ...

... and the Carrizo Trailhead.

As the day faded, I made camp at the Santa Lucia Memorial Park Campground.

Tomorrow's destination: Pimkolam (aka Junipero Serra Peak, Santa Lucia Peak, and Sta'yokale). From here, it's just the high point on a large ridge.

Fire tonight with wood from home -- the first outdoors since 2009. Temperatures were in the mid 30's.

Monday, February 6. Today's hike up the Santa Lucia Trail to the Pimkolam summit began through this moist meadow.

Interesting outcrop, with a view of the mixed oak and pine forest. Blue and live oaks; gray pines.

40 minutes in lies an old tractor.

Arctostaphylos sp. (Manzanita). There were a few early flowers in this oak and pine woodland. Santa Lucia Mountains, February 6, 2012.

Solanum umbelliferum. Blue witch. Santa Lucia Mountains, February 6, 2012.