Friday, April 6, 2012

Another Earthroots Adventure!

"Friends! Gather 'round. Today we will embark on a journey to the geothermal San Juan hot springs of Casper's Wilderness Park!"  Last week we took the hour car ride to Casper's Wilderness Park in South OC. We had two great nature enthusiasts who led the tour. We went up hills and down hills, stopping frequently to point out "scat" or interesting animal prints in the dirt and long grass. We saw many different colorful wildflowers, including a few rare species that even our guides couldn't name. Plenty of red ants and beetles scurried around the area we hiked in; we were told that rattle snakes liked to sunbathe close by but we never encountered any. We crossed a stream, which many splashed in after the long hike, and continued up a steep slope which lead to a small creek where Allie spotted three tiny mice nesting in between a little crack in a tree. At the end of our adventure we came back to the picnic tables by the parking lot and shared our favorite part of the day.





Here is a tall candle-like plant which is sometimes called a "Jesus Candle".


Allie, holding a Jesus Candle flower.

We've reached the hot springs!


–> There I am :) –>




While we sat there, one of our tour guides (named Meg) told us a story similar to The Frog Prince.

Allie made an anklet out of a reed of grass.


There are the mice in the tree! It is kind of hard to see but if you look at it sideways you can see and eye



One of the boys there was an experienced young photographer!

The last leg of the journey! Walking through the stream to the parking lot!

~March 2012~
Photographs and posting by Micayla


*For more information on Earthroots adventures, contact Jodi Levine at Earthroots Field School.

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