Pinnacles–Our Newest National Park

Hi everyone! We have a lot of catching up to do so let’s get started.  Last December a friend and I visited Pinnacles National Park, California, our newest National Park. Pinnacles is the fifth smallest park encompassing approximately 26,606 acres. It is about 50 miles inland from the coast and 80 miles south of San Jose in the Gabilan Mountain Range. It is also only a few miles west of the San Andreas Fault which we’ll talk of later.

In 2003 Pinnacles joined the California Condor Recovery Program when the bird was close to extinction. The park currently co-manages 86 wild condors in central California. It is also home to a number of threatened species including bats, amphibians, and reptiles. I sure hope we see a condor today on our walk to the pinnacles! Check out the green rock used to make the welcome sign.  We’ll discuss geology as we go and, of course, the famous fault.

Entrance

Let’s go, lots to see . . .