Hiking in Pinnacles National Park

Feeling the need to get away and do some real camping and hiking, we headed south toward Gilroy, garlic capital of the known universe (and more repulsive than ever (aromatically)), and then further, through Hollister, to Pinnacles National Park, only about 100 miles from Menlo. Pinnacles is the nation's newest NP, authorized in 2013, although it began as a national monument in 1908. Among those supporting its founding then were President TR, Gifford Pinchot, and David Starr Jordan. Pinnacles is not all that spectacular--it's nice, but not spectacular at all, if you ask me--and one suspects the history and pedigree have much to do with its new, much-upgraded status as a NP. Anyhow, after holding our noses and stimulating Gilroy's economy, we spent a pleasant evening at Pinnacles NP campground, visiting with a Dutch couple doing in the Americas what we did in Europe, and then we went out hiking the next day.

On the trail again

Thus

Much of the rock is a sort of conglomerate, an upthrust smack
in the middle of the San Andreas Fault

You don't want to be standing under the overhang when the Big One comes

Out of the canyon and approaching a clump of pinnacles

Thus

Interesting tree near where we had lunch

Climbing is permitted in the Park; this kind probably not encouraged, however

Pinnacly ridge

Ditto

A formation we dubbed "the castle"

Vicki in an arch; the CCC did much of the trail building and
improvement here; not pictured: some of the gorgeous stone
buildings they built, now used for Park staff residences

Interesting striation

View from the ridge crest

Intrusion?

View from the ridge crest; apart from the view, another reason for hiking up 
to the crest was to get cell reception (the visitor center and campground are 
in a deep hole) and to learn more about the storm moving in the next day 
(later known as the Pineapple Express); assessing the forecasts, looking at 
the terrain and evidence of previous flooding and at all the fallen giant oaks 
in the campground, we decided to save the rest of  Pinnacles NP for another, 
drier day, and drove back to Menlo  to weather the storm there