Mormon Rocks and North Etiwanda Preserve Field Trip

Thursday November 18, 2010

Crafton Hills College Physical Geography Lab Class

Meeting Time and Location

• Meet at the MacDonald's located at the 15 FWY and HWY 138, the address is: – 3230 Wagon Train Road, Phelan, CA 92371

• The meeting time is 2 PM.– From this location we will caravan into

Mormon Rocks.– Driving directions have been posted on

Blackboard and on the class website.

What is Required:

• You must bring a camera and a notebook.• You are required to take pictures and you

will create a photo journal.• A handout will be given when we meet

detailing what you will need to photograph.

• The following slides contain some information about the places we will be going.

• The last few slides are example photos so you can see how you can highlight and label items in your photos.

Mormon Rocks

The San Andreas fault runs nearly 400 miles from San Francisco out to the Salton Sea and Imperial Valley of Southern California.

Along the legnth through the San Gabriel Mountains, folding along the fault has occurred between the North American and Pacific Plates.

The result: interesting rock formations between the Antelope Valley (14) Freeway and the Cajon (15) Freeways along Highway 138.

The Mormon Rocks, Devil's Punchbowl. and Vasquez Rocks are all areas where underlying sedimentary rocks have been pushed through eroded soils from the San Gabriel Mountains to reveal themselves as very interesting and beautiful formations of smooth and sloping rock formations.

San Andreas Fault

In 1851, Amasa Lymand and Charles Rich led a band of Mormon settlers from Salt Lake City across the Mojave Desert. A smoother route (rather than the original Mojave Indian Trail) was needed to enter their "Promised Land", the San Bernardino Valley. For centuries, Native Americans had approached the mountains on foot and horseback along the Mojave River from the north. They continued up Sawpit Canyon near Crestline, and entered the Valley by Devil's Canyon behind the site of the present state college. Early explorers, including Jedediah Smith, Ewing Young and Kit Carson traveled this route. But with the gradual build-up of wheeled traffic as part of the young United States' westward expansion, "the box " or "El Cajon " began to acquire its importance for generations of Americans.

The Union Pacific, Southern Pacific and the Santa Fe railroads, US Highways 91, 395, 66 and 1-15, natural gas and oil pipelines, electrical power transmission facilities, and hydraulic facilities at Lake Silverwood, have made the Pass a virtual lifeline for the huge urban population of Southern California.

Today, 50 freight trains and four passenger trains push through the Pass daily.

Pockmarked and weather-worn though they appear, the Mormon Rocks are a series of cemented sandstone beds much more resistant to erosion than the surrounding gravel and silt sands.

Mormon Rocks is an area of sandstone blocks exposed to the elements through plate tectonics. Located along the San Andreas Fault in the San Andreas Rift Zone.

The formations are spread out for some distance along Route 138 and also onRoute 2, both roads leading to the town of Wrightwood. This area is one of the youngest and most active geological regions in North America.

North Etiwanda PreserveThe North Etiwanda Preserve was established as a habitat preservation area on February 10, 1998, when the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors accepted mitigation land from San Bernardino Associated Governments (SANBAG) for impacts related to construction of the 210 Freeway.

The initial 762 acres acquired for the North Etiwanda Preserve consisted primarily of a unique Riversidean Alluvial Fan Sage Scurb plant community and was purchased by SANBAG to be preserved as natural habitat for impacts to the Costal California Gnatcatcher and similar habitat consumed by the development of the freeway. Ongoing conservation efforts have enabled expansion of the Preserve to over 1200 acres.

***POINTS OF INTEREST***A. Remnants of Water

Delivery System B. Native American Cultural

Site C. Riparian Wetland D. Early Settlers Ruin E. Stone Terrace &

Shelterbelt F. Antique Pumping Station G. Water Gauging Station H. Panoramic Viewing Area I. Fresh Water Cienega J. Earthquake Fault Zone

From the 210 Freeway

Exit Day Creek Boulevard in the City of Rancho Cucamonga and head north. Proceed on Day Creek Blvd 2.2 miles until you reach Etiwanda Avenue. Day Creek will veer east and end at Etiwanda Avenue. Take Etiwanda Avenue north approximately .3 mile until the pavement ends. Continue on dirt road approximately 600 feet to the designate gravel parking area.

Directions:

The North Etiwanda Preserve is located at the northern terminus of Etiwanda Avenue in the foothill area above Rancho Cucamonga.

The Etiwanda Fan is home to a number of endangered, threatened, and sensitive species that include, but are not limited to, the Coastal California Gnatcatcher, Southwestern Willow Flycatcher, Least Bell’s Vireo, San Bernardino Kangaroo Rat, Bell’s Sage Sparrow, Rufous-crowned Sparrow, San Diego Horned Lizard, Los Angeles Pocket Mouse, Plummer’s Lily, and Mariposa Lily.

California Sage

San Bernardino Kangaroo Rat (Dipodomys parvus)

The Etiwanda FanThe Etiwanda Fan is located in the southwest corner of San Bernardino County California in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains and north of the City of Rancho Cucamonga. Although much of the fan has been altered by flood control practices, sand mining, and urban development, large areas of the Etiwanda Fan are minimally disturbed by human activities. North Etiwanda Preserve

Habitats on the Etiwanda Fan are composed of Oak Woodland, Chaparral, Coastal Sage Scrub, Alluvial Fan Sage Scrub, White Alder/Willow Riparian, Sycamore/Oak Riparian, and non-native grassland.

It is estimated that 75% to 90% of all Coastal Sage Scrub habitats have been extirpated from Southern California and the Etiwanda Fan is one of three remaining expanses of Alluvial Fan Sage Scrub.

Most imperiled of these is the Coastal Sage Scrub habitat and is sub-association of Alluvial Fan Sage Scrub, which are state threatened and rare natural communities.

In addition, the Preserve and surrounding lands also contain significant amounts of other rare and threatened habitats that include Sycamore Alluvial Woodland, California Walnut Woodland, and Fresh Water Marsh.

COASTAL SAGE SCRUBCoastal sage scrub is generally found on dry, rocky slopes of mountains and hillside below 3,000 feet in elevation. On the Etiwanda Fan, coastal sage scrub is found on the lower slopes. The Coastal Sage Scrub climate is characterized by annual rainfall of 10-20 inches primarily falling during the winter, hot dry summers, and an 8-12 month growing season with 230-350 frost-free days. Coastal Sage Scrub vegetation is less dense than chaparral and grows to 1-5 feet tall. Coastal Sage Scrub is a drought-adapted community. Coastal Sage Scrub communities have fewer fire-adapted plants than Chaparral and may take longer to recover after a fire. Indicator species include California Sagebrush (Artemisia californica), White sage (Salvia apiana), Black Sage (Salvia mellifera), California Buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum), Lemonadeberry (Rhus integrifolia), and California Brittlebush (Encelia californica).

Coastal Sage Scrub at Torrey Pines State Park

This photo was taken at Torrey Pines, notice the similarity between this area and the one at the North Etiwanda Preserve.

Alluvial fan sage scrub is a sub-type of coastal sage scrub found on the alluvial fans and flood plains of the coastal side of the San Bernardino and San Gabriel Mountains.

The climatic features of alluvial fan sage scrub are similar to those for Coastal Sage Scrub, but differ in the frequency and intensity of surface flooding that occurs within the habitat. The soil is a complex, unsorted structure of alluvium composed of boulders, rocks and sands.

The vegetation is less dense than that of coastal sage scrub when it occurs in river channels where it is subject to frequent flooding. The primary indicator plant for alluvial fan sage scrub is Scale-broom (Lepidospartum squamatum). Alluvial Fan Sage Scrub Communities have been severely altered by flood control activities that circumvent the periodic flooding necessary to maintain the habitat, leading to the gradual type conversion of this unique community type. The State of California considers Alluvial Fan Sage Scrub to be a very threatened and rare natural community.

All remaining significant expanses of alluvial fan sage scrub habitats now occur only in San Bernardino County, specifically on the Etiwanda Fan, Lytle Creek, Cajon Creek and the Santa Ana River.

ALLUVIAL FAN SAGE SCRUB

RIPARIANRiparian communities are found along side perennial (annual) or ephemeral (seasonal) watercourses. On the Etiwanda Fan, small remnants of riparian are scattered on the upper slopes and canyons.

The climate regime is the same as that for the surrounding communities with the exception of the moisture gradients afforded by the presence of the watercourse.

Indicator species include Fremont Cottonwood (Populus fremontii), Western Sycamore (Platanus racemosa), a number of willow species (Salix spp.), and Mule Fat (Baccharis salicifolia). The largest tracts of riparian in the North Etiwanda Preserve are found within Day Canyon and Etiwanda Creek. Over-story components in Day Canyon and Etiwanda Creek vary and may include White Alder (Alnus rhombifolia), Canyon Live Oak (Quercus chrysolepis), numerous willow species and Western Sycamore. Under-story components frequently consist of Poison Oak (Toxicodendron diversilobum), California Wild Grape (Vitis californica), shade tolerant shrubs, ferns and non-native grasses.

FIREThe wildfires of October 2003 burned nearly all of the vegetation on the Etiwanda Fan. Not discounting the tragic loss of life and property, the fire on the Preserve and Etiwanda Fan is not the ecological disaster it might appear to be. Biological systems are dynamic and resilient. And, fire is a frequent and natural component to many southern California ecosystems.

When left undisturbed after a major fire, the plant and animal communities on the Preserve and Etiwanda Fan will recover as they have always done in the past. Plant recovery can come from seed germination and crown sprouting. Many fire-adapted plants will re-sprout after a fire from the root crown at and below the soil surface. Re-sprouting can be immediate and generally results in the same pre-fire vegetative community.

When fire intensity is high, root crowns may not survive the intense heat. In these instances, plant recovery comes from the existing seeds bank. In most fires, recovery of the vegetative community comes from both crown sprouting and seed germination. How long the recovery of the vegetation communities will take can be highly variable and heavily dependent on fire intensity, amount of annual rainfall, the timing of the annual rains, and the absence of further large-scale disturbances.

Grand Prix Fire

Water

Water diversions and flood control change the alluvial scrub habitats and have played a large part in the destruction of this once abundant but now rare habitat.

• The following slides have photos that have been digitally highlighted to give you an example of how to properly label your photos.

These photos are examples of some of the plant species in the North Etiwanda Preserve.