From the Archives -- The Pinnacles

Today is another post from the Take 25 to Hollister archives. It's the first one I wrote about the Pinnacles before it became the Pinnacles National Park.  FYI: The post is slightly edited for today.

Pinnacles National Monument

(originally published September 17, 2008)

 

My mom loves to visit the Pinnacles. It reminds her of the Philippines. I don’t know if it’s the starkness of the mountains, the smell of the air, the feel of the breeze, or the way the sun warms your body as you trample along the trails. She’s never said. I just know that besides her gardens, the Pinnacles National Monument provides her with a sense of calm.

The Pinnacles is about 30 miles south of Hollister. It generally takes us (the Husband and I) about 45 minutes, but that’s because we are old farts who like to rubberneck the scenery. Not to worry. The traffic is sparse, but you do need to pay attention to curves the nearer you get to the park. You head south out of town on Highway 25. Depending on the time of day, we may stop at Flapjack's Country Café in Tres Pinos for breakfast. That’ll be a story for another day.

According to the scientists, the Pinnacles is actually part of the Neenach Volcano that erupted waaaaay down south near Lancaster, California. The volcano was split by, yes, the San Andreas Fault. Over 23 million years, more or less, the Pinnacles was slowwwwwwwwly carried northwesterly to where it stands today. At the same time that it was inching up, wind and water carved out the spires and crags that someone in modern-day history decided to call the Pinnacles. Then President Theodore Roosevelt came along and established it as a national monument.

This year, the U.S. National Park Service celebrated the monument’s 100th anniversary. Since 1908, it has grown from 5,000 acres to approximately 26,000 acres. (Thank you ranchers and rancher descendents.) The park service is currently developing a general management plan for the next 15 to 20 years. Public input is appreciated.

You can do a lot of things at the Pinnacles. Depending on the time of year, you can scramble through talus caves, which are home to Townsend’s big-eared bats. But you can't go through 'em if the bats are there. You can bring your ropes and things and climb on the spires themselves. And of course you can hike easy paths and not-so-easy ones, which may make your hands sweat at certain HIGH points. If you’re lucky, you can see a California Condor or two circling above you. You can also hang out at a picnic table and enjoy the day, while the rest of your party are getting sweaty and tired.

There are actually two entrances to the Pinnacles National Monument. The west gate is off Highway 101, near Soledad. You can’t drive west to east through the park. But you can easily hike through it. Camping is on the Hollister side only.

Hmm, I think it's time to take out the hiking shoes.

From the Archives -- The Organic Farm Stand

I'm posting articles from my archives for the next few days. This one is about purchasing fresh organic vegetables from the Pinnacle Organic Farm on Saturdays in 2008, which we still do today. FYI: I edited the original piece.

 If It's Saturday, It Must Be Farm Day

(originally published on October 25, 2008)

We live in an agricultural area where some organic produce is grown. Yet, when the Husband and I moved to Hollister five years ago, one of the things I really missed about living in the big city area was being able to buy organic produce year round. Ironic, isn't it?

Between May and late August, we are fine. The local farmers market comes to downtown Hollister every Wednesday afternoon. It’s a small market, which seems to get smaller each year. The unfortunate thing about farmers markets is that the cost of fruits and vegetables are higher than in the stores. I think it’s worth paying the extra pennies for lettuce, tomatoes, squash, onions, potatoes, apples, artichokes, and so forth to feel, smell, and taste them the way that they are created to be.

A couple of winters ago, we learned that the Pinnacle Organic Farm(part of the Phil Foster Ranches) in San Juan Valley opens it farm stand every Saturday morning. FYI: Phil Foster Ranches sells its certified organic produce to Whole Foods Markets and other grocery shops. The farm stand is open year round, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. It's located on Duncan Avenue, between Bixby Road and Lucy Brown Road.

We go to this farm stand almost every Saturday. Early or late, it doesn’t matter. The produce is fresh. If some things are low, just ask, and they’ll replenish the stock if they have more on hand.

I wrote a note back in September that we had bought potatoes, onions, garlic, yellow cauliflower, watermelon, cilantro, carrots, apples, zucchinis, and a few other things for just over $20. I would've spent much more for the same amount, if I bought the food at a Whole Foods Market.

Other farm stands in the area are Bertuccio's Market/The Farm and Casa de Fruta. Along with produce, which may or may not be certified organic, they sell other food products. Casa de Fruta also offers fun activities for kids and adults.

Today is Saturday. We’re off to the farm.

From the Archives -- Drought!

My blogging brain is spent from participating in last month's Blogging from A to Z April Challenge with both Take 25 to Hollister and The View from the Top of the Ladder.  So, for the next several days, I shall post past stories from my archives. 

Do you recall that we were going through a "significant" drought throughout California from 2007 to 2009? Significant is in quotes because that's how the California Department of Water Resources described it. I'm wondering if we even got out of that drought condition from back then. What do you think?

A little bit of thunder and rain. Yippyy!!

(originally published October 19,2008)

A loud Ka-POW! woke me up early yesterday morning.

“Is that thunder?”

The Husband reassured me it was. I was happy. It has been a long while since I had heard something like that.

A few seconds later, I heard a steady beat on the roof. “Is that rain?”

“Yes,” said the Husband. “Rain.” Deliriously joyed, I fell back to sleep.

Unfortunately, the next time I woke up, the day was brightly shining. The ground and pavement were wet so that was good. Needless to say, the plants were happy, happy.

You bet rain is a big thing. We're going through a d-r-o-u-g-h-t, again. Normally, the rain would’ve stayed throughout the whole weekend and maybe even into the following week. For now, we look at the billowy clouds with hope.

Z is for. . .

Zip! Zap! Zee!

The challenge is done. No more thinking in ABC. Hooray!

Tomorrow, we shall be back to regular programming. Which is uhm I dunno.

By the way, there are still a few windmills around Hollister. This one is at the Suncoast Organic Farm on Southside Road, where the Husband and I stopped to buy a pint of yummy lemon gelato. Talk about a zip-a-dee-doo-dah, zip-a-dee-ay taste!

Click here to find other A to Z challenge participants.

Y is for. . .

Year.  And, that year was 1965!

Why 1965? Because I found the Polk's Hollister City Directory on the reference shelf at the local library.  So, here we go into the way back machine.

The estimated population in April, 1965
Hollister: 8,000
San Benito County: 19,700

Weather in April, 1965
Average temperature: 58.7 degrees    Range: 44.7 degrees to 72.5 degrees
Rainfall: 1 inch

Protective Services
• Hollister Police Department employed 11 policemen and 1 matron.
• Hollister Fire Department employed 5 full-time firefighters and had 19 volunteer firefighters and 5 fire trucks.

Churches: 13 of them

Schools: 1 junior college, 1 high school, and 3 public K-12 schools (within Hollister)

Public Transportation: Greyhound station and Southern Pacific depot

Health Services
• 12 physicians
• 4 pharmacies
• 2 hospitals
• 1 veterinary hospital

Businesses
• Bank of America was the only bank in town.
• 2 loan companies
• 17 grocery stores
• 14 restaurants
• 10 taverns
• 16 gas stations
• 2 jewelers
• 9 clothing shops
• 3 department stores (J.C. Penney, Baughman Department Store, and Schulze's Department Store)
• 3 furniture dealers and 2 used furniture stores
• 11 apartment buildings

Personal Services
• 10 barbershops
• 11 beauty shops 

Entertainment: 2 movie theaters, 2 parks, 1 bowling alley, and 1 family billiard room

Lodging: 5 hotels and 3 motels

Click here to find other A to Z challenge participants.