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Coyote Ridge Wildflowers and Vistas, 2/20/22 by Ronald Horii
Coyote Ridge is an 1,859-acre preserve owned and managed by the Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority (OSA). It's on the ridge east of Hwy 101 above the Coyote Valley between San Jose and Morgan Hill. It's a very environmentally-sensitive area that's not open to the public, except for special events. It's famous for its spectacular spring wildflower displays and its rare and endangered plant and animal species. Its signature species is the Bay checkerspot butterfly. In the spring, the preserve is open on selected days for self-guided visits, by reservation-only. On 2/20/22, I went to a training session for OSA docents to help with the upcoming open-access days. Afterwards, we were allowed to explore the preserve on our own. There are 2 main trails leading up to the top of the ridge: the North Access Trail and the South Access Trail. They are both very steep in places. My old knees can't handle the steep parts, so I went up the North Access Trail to just below the start of the steep section. It's early in the season, but the wildflowers are starting to come out. The recent warm weather may have spurred the wildflowers to start blooming early. On the other hand, the lack of rain has slowed down the growth of the grasses, which have already started to dry up. If we don't get more rain soon, the wildflowers may still be blooming, but against against a background of dry grass. Here are pictures of what the flowers look like now. They aren't out in huge numbers yet, but hopefully will be later.
Here's more information about Coyote Ridge: https://www.openspaceauthority.org/visitors/preserves/coyoteridge.html ................. My Coyote Ridge pictures: http://www.rhorii.com/#CoyoteRidge
Coyote Ridge is an 1,859-acre preserve owned and managed by the Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority (OSA). It's on the ridge east of Hwy 101 above the Coyote Valley between San Jose and Morgan Hill. It's a very environmentally-sensitive area that's not open to the public, except for special events. It's famous for its spectacular spring wildflower displays and its rare and endangered plant and animal species. Its signature species is the Bay checkerspot butterfly. In the spring, the preserve is open on selected days for self-guided visits, by reservation-only. On 2/20/22, I went to a training session for OSA docents to help with the upcoming open-access days. Afterwards, we were allowed to explore the preserve on our own. There are 2 main trails leading up to the top of the ridge: the North Access Trail and the South Access Trail. They are both very steep in places. My old knees can't handle the steep parts, so I went up the North Access Trail to just below the start of the steep section. It's early in the season, but the wildflowers are starting to come out. The recent warm weather may have spurred the wildflowers to start blooming early. On the other hand, the lack of rain has slowed down the growth of the grasses, which have already started to dry up. If we don't get more rain soon, the wildflowers may still be blooming, but against against a background of dry grass. Here are pictures of what the flowers look like now. They aren't out in huge numbers yet, but hopefully will be later.
Here's more information about Coyote Ridge: https://www.openspaceauthority.org/visitors/preserves/coyoteridge.html ................. My Coyote Ridge pictures: http://www.rhorii.com/#CoyoteRidge
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