See more photos…
Stile Ranch Trail Wildflowers, Santa Teresa Park, 3/28/21 by Ronald Horii
On 3/28/21, I for a hike on the Stile Ranch, Mine, and Fortini Trails in Santa Teresa County Park in San Jose to check out the wildflowers. This loop has some of the best wildflowers in the County Parks. This year has had below-normal rainfall (39% of normal so far for San Jose), which seems to have caused the wildflowers to be blooming late or be diminished all over the area. Since the Stile Ranch Trail is a wildflower hotspot, I went to see how it's been affected. The reason the trails here have so many wildflowers is because the hills are covered with serpentine rock, particularly near the tops. Native plants have evolved to grow in serpentine soil, while non-native plants have a harder time growing in it. That gives the native plants an advantage. To see what the Stile Ranch Trail looks like in a wetter year (4/2/19), see: https://www.facebook.com/ronald.horii/media_set?set=a.2272966799393496&type=3
This was the Stile Ranch Trail on 4/3/18: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1764304953593019.1073742353.100000405933924&type=1&l=8d089cf46f
This is from 3/14/15, when the wildflowers came out early due to warm weather and record rains: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.901903196499870.1073741894.100000405933924&type=1&l=c5effbaaa3
To get to the trailhead, take McKean Road south in the Almaden Valley, turn left on Fortini Rd., left on San Vicente Ave., and you'll see the parking lot for the trailhead. Here are park information, directions, and maps:
https://www.sccgov.org/sites/parks/parkfinder/Pages/SantaTeresa.aspx
On 3/28/21, I for a hike on the Stile Ranch, Mine, and Fortini Trails in Santa Teresa County Park in San Jose to check out the wildflowers. This loop has some of the best wildflowers in the County Parks. This year has had below-normal rainfall (39% of normal so far for San Jose), which seems to have caused the wildflowers to be blooming late or be diminished all over the area. Since the Stile Ranch Trail is a wildflower hotspot, I went to see how it's been affected. The reason the trails here have so many wildflowers is because the hills are covered with serpentine rock, particularly near the tops. Native plants have evolved to grow in serpentine soil, while non-native plants have a harder time growing in it. That gives the native plants an advantage. To see what the Stile Ranch Trail looks like in a wetter year (4/2/19), see: https://www.facebook.com/ronald.horii/media_set?set=a.2272966799393496&type=3
This was the Stile Ranch Trail on 4/3/18: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1764304953593019.1073742353.100000405933924&type=1&l=8d089cf46f
This is from 3/14/15, when the wildflowers came out early due to warm weather and record rains: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.901903196499870.1073741894.100000405933924&type=1&l=c5effbaaa3
To get to the trailhead, take McKean Road south in the Almaden Valley, turn left on Fortini Rd., left on San Vicente Ave., and you'll see the parking lot for the trailhead. Here are park information, directions, and maps:
https://www.sccgov.org/sites/parks/parkfinder/Pages/SantaTeresa.aspx
