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| Angelika/Mike Schilli |
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Michael During the time "between the years," at the end of December 2021, we drove two hours south to the small town of San Juan Bautista and from there took day trips to Pinnacles National Park, which is an hour away from there.
At first, with mixed weather and even some rain, there was hardly anyone in the park, and for two days we went on tours without encountering many people. But on the last day, the weather forecast suddenly predicted sunshine, and it was as crowded as Munich's Stachus. Since we arrived only around noon, we weren't even allowed to park at the trail head. The offered shuttle, with lines of people waiting at the Visitor Center stop, was too crowded for us, so we trudged twice three kilometers from the parking lot to the trailhead and back. Not a walk in the park, and in the summer, I wouldn't even consider visiting this park, as you probably wouldn't be able to move an inch due to the influx of day tourists and hordes of climbers.
As the main attraction besides the amazing mountain panorama of Pinnacles National Park, two hiking trails lead through really deep, winding, and pitch-dark caves in the mountain. Some parts of these caves are equipped with steps and are easy to walk through, while other parts have been left in a more "primitive" state, as the head ranger at the Visitor Center put it. Even in the well-developed caves, hikers sometimes have to squeeze through narrow crevices or waddle deep in a crouch under rock overhangs. Definitely not for hikers who suffer from claustrophobia.
On the third day, we dared to take the circular route that led through the "primitive" Balcony Cave. Since it was raining, albeit not heavily but noticeably at times, some sections of the cave filled with water. We were faced with the decision to either return the same way or grit our teeth, march through knee-deep water with our hiking boots, and complete the circular route. We encountered a family who had carried their children through the flooded cave, so we knew that although we would get wet, we would make it to the other side alive. We decided to go for the cold bath.
We were quite shaken as we waded through several knee-deep flooded cave passages, and at times, with our waterlogged shoes, had to duck under low rocks, but we made it to the exit just fine. There, we briefly took off our shoes, wrung out our soaking wet socks, put everything back on with gritted teeth, and hiked the remaining five kilometers back to the car on the circular route. Memories of my time in the military came flooding back!
By the way, I had brought a rod lamp normally used for car repairs for the cave, and it was very useful because in the winding cave passages completely cut off from daylight, you can't see your hand in front of your face. A real adventure with a good outcome! However, as mentioned, only doable in really bad weather, because otherwise masses of day tourists turn the popular national park into a fairground.
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