Hiking in the Upper Arroyo Seco

Saturday we went hiking in the upper Arroyo Seco. The week before had gone from temperatures in the 60s to 99 and back to the 60s. It was pleasantly cool for our hike which was mainly along the stream under the trees. We hiked to Switzer Falls. Switzer was a fellow in the early 1900s had a fashionable camp up in the canyon, to which vacationers would come from Los Angeles, hiking and hiring pack animals to carry their belongings. Then they'd eat in the camp dining hall and stay in the cabins and dance on Friday and Saturday evenings. The camp is long since gone. In its place are invasive plants planted to fill in the understory - english ivy, periwinkle, blackberry, I even saw a rose plant. We brought a picnic lunch and had a great time. A very relaxing family Saturday.

Chris had time to kick back on a rock by the stream. The camel-back hydration system is like a water bed for your head.

It's great going hiking now-a-days when no one cries to be carried.

This is Switzer Falls. It goes way down.

I was nervous getting this close for a picture.

You can see where I was standing in the previous picture in this shot from the other side of the canyon. I was just to the right of the stream where it leave the pool to plummet down the rock face.

It took some rock climbing to get to the pool above the falls. Now my worry is that Davis or Nathaniel will remember it when they are teenagers and go back there with friends and without good judgement. It is really steep.

But, they'd never do anything foolish to get hurt. They always know what they are doing. Even more so when they are teenagers, I'm sure. (Can you sense my reticence about Davis' impending 13th birthday?)

Nathaniel wanted to spend a lot of time climbing and exploring. He does not consider speed hiking enough of an outing.

And though I kept telling him not to, he ended up walking across the chasm on a log anyway. Is it a good thing boys don't tell their mothers about all the dangerous things they do as they grow up? Maybe.