The Creek Beat: Winter Solstice On Mount Diablo

Since I love Mount Diablo and smile fondly on the winter solstice, the Saturday morning hike I spotted in an online calendar seemed like a perfect blend.

The trek, called the Winter Solstice Saunter, was put together by the Mt. Diablo Interpretive Society and the Greenbelt Alliance.

We departed shortly after 9:30 a.m. from the staging area in Mitchell Canyon, my favorite part of the mountain.

The 5-mile loop criss-crossed up to Twin Peaks and then returned home through the peaceful canyon east of Eagle's Peak.

I like doing something special on the winter solstice -- something to enjoy nature and soak up the sun.

That's because from today until the summer solstice in June, the daylight hours will gradually get longer and longer.

Ancient societies celebrated the winter solstice after their autumn harvest because it meant the sunlight that relied on so heavily was returning.

On Saturday, as we walked up the trails, I tried to momentarily forget about the current California drought and enjoyed the sunshine that was pouring forth on such a beautiful December morning.

Along the route, I learned quite a few things from our tour guide, Ken Lavin of the Greenbelt Alliance.

I learned that mistletoe is a semi-parasitic plant that steals nutrients and water from the tree to which it attaches itself.

I also learned there are three types of pine trees on Mount Diablo. The two most common are the gray pine and the Coulter pine.

Mount Diablo is as far north as Coulter pines grow. These trees also produce the heaviest pine cones on Earth.

The Coulter pines and the oak trees are all about the same height in Mitchell Canyon. That's because they're all the same age. They sprouted after a 1977 fire on that side of the mountain wiped out the Coulter pines and oaks that were there then.

The gray pines survived and there are still some with black marks on the lower parts of some of the trunks. I've been on this trail close to a dozen times and I had never noticed the black markings before.

There are also three types of manzanita bushes growing on Diablo. One of them, the Mount Diablo manzanita, grows only on our mountain. Nowhere else in the world.

Lavin also showed up the spot where a tarantula community lives. They aren't out and about now. The holes to their dens have been intentionally covered up.

They'll be back out sometime in September. I'll have to return then. Perhaps on the autumnal equinox.