This is a working list, about which we make no guarantees at all until we officially release it. Use at your own risk!
Introduction and Explanation of Plant Trail Guides
Introduction
Highlights of This Trail
Fieldwork Dates and Summary of List Changes With Time
Botanical Trip Reports
The Plant Guide
Comments On Specific Species
Introduction This trail guide begins at the southern trailhead of the Rock Ridge Trail, which is a trail that cuts near the center of the Boulder Loop Trail.
To reach the trailhead, begin at the parking lot at the main entrance to Daley Ranch, which is at the southernmost part of the property, just north of Lake Dixon at the top of La Honda Drive in Escondido. The only toilets nearby are at Lake Dixon, which have running water. It is free to walk through the Lake Dixon entrance to use them. A porta-potty is at the Ranch House at Daley Ranch, but is not along this route.
There are two options to get to the Rock Ridge Trail:
- Take the Ranch House Trail, which is the paved main road of Daley Ranch, north for 0.7 miles to its intersection with the southern portion of the Boulder Loop Trail. Take the Boulder Loop Trail left for 0.4 miles to the signed Rock Ridge Trail southern trailhead. (Trail #1 to #3 to D on the Trail Map.)
- Take the Ranch House Trail, which is the paved main road of Daley Ranch, north for 0.25 miles to the utility easement on the left. Turn left on the dirt road, and then immediately right on the easement that heads north for 0.4 miles to its intersection with the Boulder Loop Trail. (Near the intersection, bear left at the Y-junction to avoid the very steep section of the easement road.) This easement is not shown on the official Daley Ranch Trail map, but essentially cuts off the bend to the east of the Ranch House Trail. At the Boulder Loop Trail, turn left and continue for 0.2 miles to the signed Rock Ridge Trail southern trailhead.
Both of these options have about 400 feet of elevation gain to get to the Rock Ridge Trail southern trailhead.
The Rock Ridge Trail itself is 0.60 miles in length, with 170 feet of elevation gain and 50 feet of elevation loss. A roundtrip from the south entrance of Daley Ranch is 3.4 miles with ~650 feet of elevation gain and loss using the first option; or 2.9 miles roundtrip with ~650 feet of elevation gain and loss using the utility easement.
The Rock Ridge south trailhead GPS NAD27 coordinates, are (33.17461,-117.05797). GPS coordinates of the entire trail, with cumulative mileages along the trail, are here. Note that the elevations in that file are from my GPS receiver, not from the USGS map, and hence cannot be trusted to be accurate. However, a quick check reveals that they are generally within about 10 feet of the elevations from the USGS map. Elevations in the trail guide below are from the USGS map, and are accurate.
Highlights of This Trail Some of the botanical highlights of this trail are:
Number of Unique Taxa On This Trail
The following histogram gives the number of trails in our database that contain each taxon on this trail. We had 90 trails in our database when this histogram was made; 2 of those trails, including this one, are at Daley Ranch. A number of "1" means the taxon has only been found only on this list, among all the trails in our database; numbers of "2" may indicate taxa found only in this area.
Number of Trails
Containing A TaxonNumber Of Taxa
On This Trail% of Taxa
On This Trail1 7 5% 2 9 7% 3 6 5% 4 2 2% 5 4 3% 1-5 28 22% 6-10 19 15% 11-15 17 13% 16-20 12 9% 21-25 10 8% 26-30 15 12% 31-35 4 3% 36-40 8 6% 41-45 11 8% 46-50 3 2% 51-55 3 2% Total Taxa 130 100% We found 8 additional species not in the above table, since they have not been fully identified yet. The unidentified ones are marked with ?, sp or ssp in the id? column in the guide, and do not have a number given in the #all column.
The taxa that are unique to this trail, or to Daley Ranch, out of our 90 trails on 2 April 2005, are:
Latin Name Common Name Distribution Centunculus minimus chaffweed This is found only in vernal pool and similar moist places below 950 m, and only in the SCo in Southern California, which is a disjunct from its main distribution in middle California. Horkelia truncata Ramona horkelia This is a RARE taxon in the JM, found only from 400-1300 m in the PR and n Baja CA. It is also on the Hidden Spring Trail at Daley Ranch. Juncus dubius dubius rush This is found only in the PR in Southern California, a disjunct from its main distribution from middle California to Oregon, including Death Valley. This appears to take the place of Juncus balticus, which seems to have a mostly complementary distribution to J. dubious. It is also on the Hidden Spring Trail at Daley Ranch. Mimulus palmeri Palomar monkeyflower See note below. Plagiobothrys collinus var. gracilis graceful popcorn flower Dry places; gen < 200 m; s SCo (near San Diego), ChI. We have var. fulvescens on one trail, at Mt. Hillyer in the San Gabriel Mountains. Plantago elongata long-leaf plantain Saline and alkaline places, beaches, vernal pools; < 200 m; CA-FP (exc CaR, SN). Psilocarphus tenellus var. tenellus slender woolly marbles Dry slopes on gen disturbed soil, rarely vernal pools; 10-2000 m; CA-FP. Ophioglossum californicum California adder's-tongue This is an Uncommon taxon in the JM found from 60-300 m only in SCo in Southern California. Its distribution ranges from the SN to Mexico, but is only seen in the early spring during rainy periods. Sagina decumbens ssp. occidentalis western pearlwort This is found in a variety of habitats below 2000 m, at SCo, ChI and PR in Southern California. Its distribution extends north to British Columbia. In addition, this is the only trail in our database in which some specimens of scarlet pimpernel, Anagallis arvensis, have white flowers. See note below.
Fieldwork Dates and Summary of List Changes With Time The following table gives the dates the trail was walked and taxa recorded. After each visit, the table gives the total number of taxa on the list and the breakdown of the taxa without positive identification. See Explanation of Plant Trail Guides to understand the symbols below.
Visit Date Visit # # taxa # "?" # "sp" # "~" # "ssp" 7/31/2004 1 82 0 3 1 2 4/12/2003* 2 87 0 3 1 2 3/29/2005 3 138 2 5 7 2 * The 4/12/03 fieldwork was part of a fast-paced hike with a botany class, and only noted a handful of species not found earlier on that trip on other trails. It is listed out of order in the above table since it was used only to supplement the list made on 7/31/04.
We thank an anonymous friend for her help with the fieldwork on 7/31/04.
Botanical Trip Reports
The Plant Guide Version for printing, without lines and other text on this page (6 pages)
Mile S # id? Common Name Latin Name #here #all 0.00 Begin trail guide at south junction with the Boulder Loop Trail, in grassland sometimes called "Boulder Loop Meadow"; elevation 1580 feet (480 m) 0.00 b 1 toad rush Juncus bufonius var. bufonius 99 / 9 2 0.00 c 2 slender woolly marbles Psilocarphus tenellus var. tenellus 2 / 1 1 0.00 c 3 *weak blue grass Poa infirma 2 / 1 2 0.00 b 4 slender tarweed Hemizonia fasciculata 30 / 5 12 0.00 b 5 *grass poly Lythrum hyssopifolia 20 / 4 2 0.00 b 6 *narrowleaf filago Filago gallica 99 / 9 44 0.00 b 7 *windmill pink Silene gallica 99 / 9 29 0.00 b 8 red maids Calandrinia ciliata 2 / 1 14 0.00 l 9 pygmy-weed Crassula connata 99 / 9 21 0.00 b 10 *scarlet pimpernel Anagallis arvensis+ 99 / 9 25 0.00 b 11 *long-beaked filaree Erodium botrys / 6 0.00 b 12 *rattail fescue Vulpia myuros var. myuros / 12 0.00 b 13 owl's-clover Castilleja densiflora+ 50 / 9 3 0.00 b 14 *red brome Bromus madritensis ssp. rubens / 48 0.00 r 15 popcorn flower Cryptantha intermedia / 23 0.00 r 16 San Diego mountain mahogany Cercocarpus minutiflorus 20 / 5 11 0.00 r 17 Spanish clover Lotus purshianus var. purshianus / 26 0.00 r 18 hooked skunkweed Navarretia hamata ssp. hamata 99 / 9 5 0.00 r 19 *wall bedstraw Galium parisiense 99 / 9 6 0.00 r 20 *tocalote Centaurea melitensis 50 / 5 43 0.00 r 21 *sow thistle Sonchus oleraceus / 30 0.00 r 22 rough-seeded blue toad-flax Linaria canadensis var. texana / 7 0.00 r 23 *soft chess Bromus hordeaceus 50 / 5 38 0.00 b 24 *smooth cat's ear Hypochaeris glabra / 30 0.00 r 25 slender combseed Pectocarya linearis ssp. ferocula / 3 0.00 r 26 graceful popcorn flower Plagiobothrys collinus var. gracilis 10 / 2 1 0.00 r (California buckwheat, Eriogonum fasciculatum var. foliolosum) 0.00 r 27 blue-eyed grass Sisyrinchium bellum 30 / 5 19 0.00 r (mouse-ear chickweed, Cerastium glomeratum) 0.00 b 28 dove weed Eremocarpus setigerus 10 / 1 24 0.00 r 29 western ragweed Ambrosia psilostachya 20 / 2 35 0.00 r 30 black sage Salvia mellifera 5 / 3 39 0.00 b 31 California-aster Lessingia filaginifolia var. filaginifolia 20 / 9 51 0.00 l 32 Mariposa rush Juncus dubius 50 / 9 2 0.00 r 33 hollyleaf cherry Prunus ilicifolia ssp. ilicifolia 10 / 5 12 0.00 l 34 deergrass Muhlenbergia rigens 10 / 3 20 0.00 r 35 poison oak Toxicodendron diversilobum 10 / 3 43 0.00 l 36 *ripgut brome Bromus diandrus 99 / 9 46 0.00 l 37 checkerbloom Sidalcea malviflora ssp. sparsifolia 50 / 9 26 0.01 r (Ramona lilac, Ceanothus tomentosus var. olivaceus) 0.01 r 38 ~ small-head field clover Trifolium microcephalum / 6 0.01 r Jct. illegal path to boulders; trail curves left 0.01 l 39 narrow-leaf milkweed Asclepias fascicularis 20 / 5 6 0.02 l 40 ? unk short-rhizomatous per like carex ? 50 / 5 0.02 l 41 ~ nodding needlegrass Nassella cernua / 11 0.02 l 42 *purple false-brome Brachypodium distachyon 30 / 3 5 0.02 r 43 chamise Adenostoma fasciculatum 10 / 3 37 0.02 l 44 *mouse-ear chickweed Cerastium glomeratum / 14 0.02 l (fragrant everlasting, Gnaphalium canescens ssp. beneolens) 0.03 r (California everlasting, Gnaphalium californicum) 0.03 l 45 fragrant everlasting Gnaphalium canescens ssp. beneolens 1 / 1 18 0.04 r 46 California buckwheat Eriogonum fasciculatum var. foliolosum / 48 0.04 l (Engelmann oak, Quercus engelmannii) 0.04 r (laurel sumac, Malosma laurina) 0.04 l 47 *slender wild oats Avena barbata / 28 0.04 r (climbing bedstraw, Galium nuttallii ssp. nuttallii; saw-toothed goldenbush, Hazardia squarrosa var. grindelioides) 0.04 l 48 rush-rose Helianthemum scoparium 30 / 5 11 0.06 l 49 Torrey's scrub oak Quercus acutidens 3 / 2 26 0.07 l 50 *nit grass Gastridium ventricosum 10 / 3 19 0.07 l 51 golden yarrow Eriophyllum confertiflorum var. confertiflorum 5 / 3 52 0.07 l (bush monkeyflower, Mimulus aurantiacus) 0.07 b 52 saw-toothed goldenbush Hazardia squarrosa var. grindelioides 10 / 5 34 0.08 r 53 meally white pincushion Chaenactis artemisiifolia 5 / 5 13 0.08 r 54 thick-leaved yerba santa Eriodictyon crassifolium var. crassifolium 5 / 2 7 0.08 r (Woodrat's nest) 0.08 l 55 Ramona lilac Ceanothus tomentosus var. olivaceus 10 / 3 8 0.09 r 56 ssp purple snapdragon Antirrhinum nuttallianum 20 / 5 0.09 r 57 sp suncup Camissonia sp. / 0.10 r 58 ~ common bedstraw Galium aparine / 40 0.10 r 59 laurel sumac Malosma laurina 3 / 1 40 0.10 r 60 sp Mariposa lily Calochortus sp.+ / 0.10 r 61 bird's-foot fern Pellaea mucronata var. mucronata 2 / 2 29 0.11 r (chaparral yucca, Yucca whipplei) 0.11 l 62 threadstem Pterostegia drymarioides / 27 0.11 l 63 seedling: Ramona horkelia? seedling Horkelia truncata? / 0.11 l 64 ~ everlasting nest-straw Stylocline gnaphaloides / 8 0.11 b 65 *Mediterranean pygmy-weed Crassula tillaea / 7 0.11 l 66 sp cotton-batting plant? Gnaphalium stramineum? / 0.11 l 67 *redstem filaree Erodium cicutarium / 53 0.11 l 68 ~ *brass-buttons Cotula coronopifolia / 4 0.11 l Jct. illegal path; switchback right. 0.11 l 69 mission manzanita Xylococcus bicolor 10 / 3 13 0.11 l 70 ~ small-flowered soap plant Chlorogalum parviflorum / 7 0.11 r 71 California filago Filago californica / 17 0.11 b 72 sp prostrate spineflower? Chorizanthe procumbens? 50 / 5 3 0.11 r 73 common skullcap Scutellaria tuberosa 20 / 3 2 0.12 r 74 sugar bush Rhus ovata 2 / 1 25 0.12 l 75 *prickly sow thistle Sonchus asper ssp. asper / 21 0.13 Local high point on trail; elevation 1620 feet (495 m) 0.13 l 76 ~ canchalagua Centaurium venustum 5 / 5 6 0.13 l 77 Palomar monkeyflower Mimulus palmeri+ 10 / 2 1 0.15 l 78 minute-flowered cryptantha Cryptantha micromeres 1 / 1 3 0.15 l Liverwort area 0.15 l (The "Phallus rock", aka "The Significant Digit") 0.15 l 79 wild-cucumber Marah macrocarpus var. macrocarpus 2 / 2 42 0.15 l 80 six-weeks fescue Vulpia octoflora var. octoflora 5 / 1 3 0.15 l 81 California buckwheat Eriogonum fasciculatum var. polifolium 1 / 1 16 0.15 r 82 wild celery Apiastrum angustifolium 30 / 2 12 0.15 r 83 meadow-rue Thalictrum fendleri var. polycarpum 5 / 3 5 0.15 r 84 western pearlwort Sagina decumbens ssp. occidentalis 30 / 3 1 0.15 r 85 few-flowered heterocodon Heterocodon rariflorum 10 / 3 2 0.17 r 86 California everlasting Gnaphalium californicum 2 / 2 41 0.18 r 87 milk maids Cardamine californica 15 / 3 8 0.18 r (southern honeysuckle, Lonicera subspicata var. denudata) 0.18 l 88 Parish's purple nightshade Solanum parishii 2 / 2 18 0.18 l 89 blue dicks Dichelostemma capitatum ssp. capitatum 10 / 2 44 0.18 r (scaly lipfern, Cheilanthes clevelandii) 0.19 r 90 coast-range melic Melica imperfecta 2 / 2 39 0.19 l 91 climbing bedstraw Galium nuttallii ssp. nuttallii 1 / 1 30 0.19 r 92 narrowleaf bedstraw Galium angustifolium ssp. angustifolium 1 / 1 44 0.19 r (Nice stand of mission manzanita, Xylococcus bicolor) 0.19 Switchback left. 0.20 r 93 toyon Heteromeles arbutifolia 2 / 1 44 0.21 l 94 bush monkeyflower Mimulus aurantiacus 2 / 2 41 0.21 l 95 southern tauschia Tauschia arguta 6 / 2 8 0.21 l 96 *Italian thistle Carduus pycnocephalus+ 1 / 1 13 0.21 l 97 silverback fern Pentagramma triangularis ssp. viscosa 5 / 1 6 0.21 l 98 scaly lipfern Cheilanthes clevelandii 5 / 1 3 0.21 l 99 California lace fern Aspidotis californica 3 / 1 9 0.21 l 100 California wood fern Dryopteris arguta 1 / 1 16 0.21 l The many lichens growing on the bark of the coast live oak here suggests it is a slow-growing dwarfed specimen, caused perhaps by the lack of soil available to its roots. 0.21 l 101 coast live oak Quercus agrifolia var. agrifolia 2 / 2 43 0.22 Local high point on trail, then a local low point on trail. 0.23 r 102 chaparral yucca Yucca whipplei 5 / 3 29 0.24 l (foothill needlegrass, Nassella lepida) 0.25 Local low point on trail; elevation 1600 feet (488 m) 0.26 l Ramona horkelia Horkelia truncata+ 10 / 3 2 0.27 Trail jags right. 0.29 Trail begins a steep climb. 0.29 l 103 California plantain Plantago erecta / 11 0.29 l (hollyleaf redberry, Rhamnus ilicifolia; seashore bentgrass, Agrostis pallens) 0.29 l 104 white-flowering currant Ribes indecorum 1 / 1 21 0.29 r 105 triangular-fruit sedge Carex triquetra 5 / 2 14 0.29 r 106 sp Mariposa lily Calochortus sp.+ 5 / 3 0.32 l 107 bicolored everlasting Gnaphalium bicolor 2 / 2 30 0.32 r 108 white everlasting Gnaphalium canescens ssp. microcephalum 2 / 2 35 0.32 r 109 California brickellbush Brickellia californica 1 / 1 28 0.32 l 110 tomcat clover Trifolium willdenovii 5 / 1 10 0.32 r 111 Bigelow's spike-moss Selaginella bigelovii 1 / 1 18 0.33 l 112 California chalk lettuce Dudleya pulverulenta ssp. pulverulenta 1 / 1 10 0.33 l 113 California sagebrush Artemisia californica 5 / 2 44 0.33 114 *wild oats Avena fatua 5 / 1 17 0.37 l 115 tuberous sanicle Sanicula tuberosa 10 / 2 2 0.38 l 116 ? unk tiny erect annual with alt shield-shaped leaves ? 10 / 1 0.38 r Wooden fence blocking off illegal trail; trail ends steep climb. 0.38 l 117 chaffweed Centunculus minimus 5 / 2 1 0.38 l 118 seashore bentgrass Agrostis pallens 20 / 2 5 0.38 r 119 bristly bird's beak Cordylanthus rigidus ssp. setigerus 10 / 3 25 0.40 l 120 long-leaf plantain Plantago elongata 10 / 1 1 0.40 Trail curves left. 0.40 r (a bonsai coast live oak, Quercus agrifolia; ladies fingers, Dudleya edulis) 0.40 r 121 strigose lotus Lotus strigosus 10 / 1 28 0.40 r 122 bajada lupine Lupinus concinnus 1 / 1 10 0.40 r 123 ssp deerweed Lotus scoparius / 0.41 l 124 matchweed Gutierrezia sarothrae / 6 0.41 r 125 coyote bush Baccharis pilularis 10 / 3 24 0.41 b 126 *starwort Spergula arvensis ssp. arvensis 10 / 1 2 0.43 l 127 southern honeysuckle Lonicera subspicata var. denudata 3 / 2 40 0.44 l 128 California adder's-tongue Ophioglossum californicum 10 / 1 1 0.45 r 129 Eastwood manzanita Arctostaphylos glandulosa ssp. zacaensis 2 / 2 11 0.45 l 130 Engelmann oak Quercus engelmannii 1 / 1 24 0.48 l Highest point on trail, elevation 1730 feet (527 m); (Large perched boulder looking like a mouse or tribble facing left, with elephant skin on the near side.) 0.49 l 131 Pacific sanicle Sanicula crassicaulis 1 / 1 19 0.50 b 132 Cleveland sage Salvia clevelandii 10 / 2 4 0.53 r 133 coastal goldenbush Isocoma menziesii+ 1 / 1 14 0.54 Trail makes a long 90° curve right. 0.55 l 134 leafy daisy Erigeron foliosus var. foliosus 3 / 3 36 0.57 Local high point on trail; trail curves left. 0.58 l 135 California bee plant Scrophularia californica ssp. floribunda 1 / 1 14 0.58 r 136 *common groundsel Senecio vulgaris 10 / 1 17 0.60 c 137 telegraph weed Heterotheca grandiflora 1 / 1 32 0.60 c 138 *Bermuda grass Cynodon dactylon 10 / 1 27 0.60 End trail guide at north junction with the Boulder Loop Trail; elevation ~1705 feet (520 m)
Comments On Specific Species Anagallis arvensis. Some of the plants here have white flowers, in addition to many with the usual salmon flowers. Both the JM and Munz mention that this species occasionally has blue flowers; neither mentions the possibility of occasional white flowers. However, many online pages mention white flowers.
Castilleja densiflora. The specimens here are nearly perfect var. densiflora except in one respect: the corolla is well-exserted, not included in the calyx. In particular, their calyx is 12-14 mm; the lower corolla lip is widened gradually, and the corolla pouches are longer than deep. An additional "problem" is that var. densiflora is not supposed to be south of Los Angeles County. (The San Diego County checklist only gives var. gracilis.)
The specimens at the Santa Rosa Plateau are even more troublesome to assign to just a single variety. They seem to have an intermixture of traits assigned to the two varieties.
As a result, we have decided to follow the example of Roberts et al in their Western Riverside County checklist, and Lathrop and Thorne in their Flora of the Santa Rosa Plateau, and simply call the specimens in Southern California by just the species name.
Calochortus sp.. The first specimen on the trail at mile 0.10 has a "V"-shaped leaf; the one at mile 0.29 has a "W"-shaped leaf. We have been told that these are the leaves of C. weedii and C. splendens (but don't remember which is which); we will be delighted to find out, when these plants bloom, if these species can be told apart by their leaves.
Mimulus palmeri. M. palmeri in the JM is the combination of plants from the Sierra Nevada and San Bernardino Mountains previously known under this name, with M. diffusus from the San Jacinto Mountains, Santa Ana mountains and northern Baja Mountains. The CNPS considers these two to be separate species, with M. diffusus a List 4 rare plant.
Carduus pycnocephalus. A single specimen appeared on the trail on 3/29/05, and we weeded it out.
Horkelia truncata. We found a large number of what appear to be seedlings of this species on the trail on 3/29/05; the first one is noted in the guide, as well as the first mature specimen. The mature specimen is not numbered as a new species.
Isocoma menziesii. The subspecies do not seem to be separable in Southern California. See Comments on the Jepson Manual and A Flora of Southern California by Munz: Isocoma menziesii.
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Copyright © 2003-2005 by James Dillane and Tom Chester.
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Comments and feedback: James Dillane | Tom Chester
Last update: 2 April 2005.