We came in from 25 to 146 from Hollister on the east side of the park and parked at the Old Pinnacles Trailhead. It was crowded and it's a good thing my Honda Fit is small or we would have had to find a place elsewhere. To start the hike, we went up High Peaks Trail because we wanted to gain our altitude first thing, while it was (maybe) a little cooler in the morning. But man, it gets really hot out there. I think this would be a better spring hike for sure!! Then we followed High Peaks Trail to Tunnel Trail, and then around to Juniper Canyon Trail and the Chaparral Ranger Station. Some picnic tables made it a nice place to eat lunch, but there isn't any shade. The last part of the hike took us along the Balconies Trail through the cave (or you can go around the cave if you forgot your flashlight) and then back on Old Pinnacles Trail, which was flat and partly shaded for the last few miles of the hike. Why in the world they have a zillion trail names I'm not sure...
Next time we visit I think I would like to go to the southern part of the park into the Bear Gulch area. It's probably a lot busier than the section we were in though. I'd like to see the other cave, though it was closed when we visited because of the bats.
Here's some pictures from the hike. Truly some funky rock formations around here!
Jay forced us to take a picture in that tunnel... And after that the caves came....
Make sure you SQUEEZE!!!
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