This weekend we took out the backpacking packs, loaded them up with gear and went on a hike in the Los Padres National Forest. We hiked the McGill Trail up to the McGill Campground. I was carrying about 27 lbs in my pack. This was a nice starter trail with a moderately graded incline to begin getting used to carrying extra weight before our backpacking trip on the Mt. Whitney Trail. I also started using my backpack to train at the gym. At least one day per week, I wear it with 30 lbs and do exercises like squats, lunges and step ups. It’s all been very beneficial. Hiking with the extra weight takes some getting used to, but the McGill Trail is a lovely trail through a beautiful pine forest and I enjoyed myself nonetheless. Once we arrived at the campground, we chatted with the camp hosts before sitting down at a picnic table and making lunch with the Jetboil stove. We took a nice rest before loading up again and heading back. It was nice and cool up in the mountains. When we got back on the freeway to head home, my car gauge read 101 degrees! I was happy to have spent the day in the mountains!
Read MoreThis Sunday we hiked the McGill Trail to McGill Campground in Los Padres National Forest. We started out at the north trailhead just off Cuddy Valley Road. The trail climbs a little over 1,500 feet in 3.5 miles at a moderate grade. As soon as we started up, I immediately began to see Coronis Fritillary, Speyeria coronis butterflies. There were tons of these bright orange beauties fluttering along the sides of the trail! There were also many different species of Blues, the tiny thumbnail butterflies that most people probably walk right by without even noticing. It was a warm morning, and I tried to catch a few shots along the trail without zapping my energy by spending too much time in the hot sun. It’s very easy to get caught up trying to get that perfect butterfly shot and forget the sun is blasting down on you. Plus we still had a lot of mileage to cover to reach our destination. We wanted to make it up to the campground before my husband’s HAM radio club would be wrapping up their field day weekend at 11 am. As we got higher in elevation, the wind picked up and helped keep us cool. I believe it was around 10:30 am when we made it to the campground. We said our hellos to the radio club and then took a nice, long relaxing break at one of the picnic tables before heading back the way we came. The McGill trail is a beautiful trail. It’s also popular with mountain bikers, and on this day we passed maybe a handful of riders who were very courteous of us and let us know how many others would be coming along the trail. This was our second visit to the Los Padres National Forest. It’s a very lovely area that we will continue to explore and I really enjoyed this trail.
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