Several weeks later we return to check out the vernal pools and historic adobes.
Vernal pools:
These shallow pools fill up temporarily from winter to spring. The presence of fairy shrimp and other minute crustaceans, laying eggs and hatching, define these pools as vernal. (en.m.wikipedia. org)
Our trek to the adobe houses takes us through grassland prairie, coastal sage scrub, and oak woodlands.
These 2 buildings are the oldest structures in Riverside County, CA. The Moreno adobe was constructed in 1845 for Juan Moreno’s crew of cowboys whose task was to herd cattle through the Santa Rosa plateau.
According to an 1846 map, the adobe consisted of 4 rooms and sat upon 48,000 acres known as the Santa Rosa Rancho. Pio Pico, the last Mexican governor of the California territory, granted this land to Juan Moreno. In 1884 a severe winter storm washed away 3 of these rooms. In 1885 the US Attorney General challenged the right of Moreno to own these lands. Unable to afford the court fees, Moreno sold the Santa Rosa Rancho to Agustin Machado in August of this same year. The price was $1,000 plus $500 worth of cattle. Machado built the larger adobe for his ranch hands in 1885.
A 400 hundred-year-old tree shades this area and a quaint picnic area separates the adobe bunkhouses.
(Except for pictures, information above comes from the Santa Rosa Plateau web site at rivcoparks.org)
We head back via the Adobe Loop Trail that leads us on a picturesque hike.
We even experience a tenaja!
Riparian wetlands are low lying areas where gravity accumulates pools of water called tenajas. (rivcoparks.com)
Captured Candids of Cute Critters:
Noisy crows building a nest in a palm tree:
The woodpecker flew away before I could snap a picture, but who knew this bird loved the bark of palm trees?
wandering gypsy Laurel 