A coyote stops and stares as it makes its way along an animal trail. Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS lens with the EOS-7D. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +1/3: 1/1600 sec. at f/5.6
Recently I visited Arastradero Preserve in Palo Alto on a sunny afternoon. There were many warning signs posted about coyote encounters, telling hiker to keep their children with them at all times. I didn’t think much of it as I headed into the foothills. I was out to hopefully get some hunting raptor shots, and whatever else might cross my path. About half way through my hike, I rounded a bend in the trail to see this coyote making its way down a small animal trail. It saw me right away, but seemed rather nonplussed about my presence. I quickly took the opportunity to get several shots as it paused in a patch of sun.
A coyote stops along an animal trail to stand in a brief patch of sun. Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS lens with the EOS-7D. ISO 800. Evaluative metering +1/3: 1/1600 sec. at f/5.6
After a brief pause, the coyote turned and continued down a hill and stopped in the dark shadow of an impenetrable thicket. There is set down and proceeded to groom itself, scratching and biting at invisible pests. These were the longest views I’ve had of a coyote before, and I marveled at how many of its mannerisms were so close to domesticated dogs.
I was happy for this surprise encounter, as I had only ever seen coyotes before in the early morning or at dusk. In future outings, I hope to see a bobcat, or possibly even a mountain lion.
A couple of months ago I wanted to photograph some of the great waterfalls in Big Basin State Park at their highest water flow. My brother Jake was kind enough to join me for the hike, and put up with me taking photos along the way. We hiked the Berry Creek Falls loop, which is one of the premier hikes in the park. The loop is about 10 miles, with the waterfall section about half way through.
The day was overcast and drizzly – perfect for forest photography. The trail out to the falls meandered through a coastal redwood forest, with massive trees on either side of the trail.
The trail winds between massive redwood trees
Eventually the trail meets up with Berry Creek, which ultimately makes several drops on its way to the Pacific Ocean, creating a series of waterfalls, each with their own unique characteristics. The waterfall below is Golden Cascade, which is actually made up of two sections – upper and lower cascade. The upper cascade seemed to glow a dull orange in the soft filtered light of the forest.
The golden-orange color of upper golden cascade derives its name from the brown algae living on the sandstone
At the very bottom of the cascade was a small pool surrounded by a mud bank and the root system of a fallen giant. Water poured over the bark of a long-dead log. Because the mud bank surrounded the pool on all sides, in order to get this shot, I set up my tripod sideways, with the legs sticking into the soft bank behind me. I held the tripod against the slope so that the pressure kept if from moving. From this tight angle, my widest lens couldn’t cover the entire falls. In order to compose the picture, I used a panoramic stitching technique to combine five total vertical photos.
Green surrounds the lowest section of Golden Cascade along the Berry Creek Falls trail, Big Basin Redwoods State Park
Finally we came to Berry Creek Falls, the tallest (and most picturesque) waterfall along the loop. There is a nice observation deck about halfway up the falls that offers the hiker a good view.
Picturesque Berry Creek Falls plunges 40 feet, Big Basin Redwoods State Park
After this point the trail ascends up the other side of the ravine from the falls. There is a point at a bend in the trail that offers a great view of the falls through the forest. The shot below was another panoramic composite of about 7 photos. Once stitched together, it created a TIFF file of over 1 GB (an 81 megapixel image), which allowed me to make a 20 x 60 inch print.
Berry Creek Falls can be seen through the lush redwood forest, Big Basin Redwoods State Park
Finally, the trail connected up to Waddell Creek and followed it up-river. After witnessing the waterfalls, this creek bed was no less scenic. Lush green moss and ferns blanketed the rocks and soil along the creek as the trail wound back up the mountain.
Waddell Creek flows through a green forest along the Berry Creek Falls trail, Big Basin Redwoods State Park
As we climbed away from the creek, a soft rain came down and cooled us on our final ascent. Overall, it was a perfect time of year and a perfect day on which to experience the park. The weather kept most hikers away, giving us long stretches of this normally busy trail to ourselves.
