Hiking Wind Wolves Preserve | SoCal Wilderness Hiking near LA

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This hidden gem of a place is located only two hours away from Downtown Los Angeles. Known as a refuge for a variety of wildlife, Wind Wolves Preserve boasts an impressive wilderness for hiking and camping. On this trip, I have a terrifying encounter with a rattlesnake while I stupidly look for other animals like bears, mountain lions, bobcats, and elk. I went on this trip during the late spring, just after the wildflowers had bloomed and died. Much of the green grass faded into a majestic gold but it was still beautiful. My final goal was to make it to the reflection pond, but during one of California's worst droughts, I was out of luck.

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Tags: Hiking,Bushcraft,Wind Wolves Preserve,Southern California (Governmental Jurisdiction),Park,Los Padres National Forest (Protected Site),Bakersfield (City/Town/Village),Survival Skills (TV Genre),Rattlesnake (Organism Classification),National Park (IUCN Category),Mountain,Canyon,Mountains,Backpacking (Sport),Outdoor Recreation (Interest),Outdoor Education (Literature Subject),Travel (TV Genre),Nature Documentary (TV Genre),Camping (Literature Subject),Nature (TV Genre)

Video Transcription

and then and then I started bolting today I had does one of Southern California's hidden most gems just south of Bakersfield since it was only a two-hour drive from Los Angeles I knew I had to check it out tucked away in the Los Padres mountains wind rules preserved is a private conservation Park open to the public when you arrive they ask you to sign a guestbook they also ask for a small donation which is very fair because you're treated with amazing views and a free shuttle that runs all through the park I parked my car in the lot right next to the gate you're really not allowed to go any further so this is where all the cars are I checked my map and decided to go down to San and Megiddo trail my end goal was to make it to a reflection pond about five or six miles away from the parking lot in the distance I could see a trail that led to a viewing area of all the elk within the park the park itself has around 200 elk which roam freely I continue down the trail that I was following to a place called Ravens Landing now as a game of Thrones enthusiast I was a little excited to see what this view might have to offer so I'm out here a twin wolves preserve which is just south of Bakersfield one of the things that really attracted me to this place was just how open and grassy everything is you know usually I'm used to the desert or in some mountain regions but this is just straight grass kind of looks like Iceland honestly along the trail I noticed there was grape soda lupine which gives off the fragrance of grape soda if you smell it since it was a flower in park ladybugs definitely were abundant eventually I made it to the top of Ravens Landing and although there were no wildlings in the distance I did see a crow flutter up above

it seemed like part of the trail was covered in a fluffy white snow when in fact it was just the cotton would be starting to bloom this time of year the landscape changed all around me and I was surrounded by broadleaf trees I crossed a creek and I felt like I was back in Ohio shade surrounded me and I felt cool refreshed and ready to hike a hundred more miles but as I continued to the treeline broke and I was back in the grasslands again apparently there are an elk 200 elk out here there are bears mountain lions Bobcats it's got to be about line though I really want to see a mountain lion to me I don't think there's anything cooler than seeing a mountain lion but I think we have to get a little bit deeper in before we can see that sort of thing windmills Preserve is known for its abundance and wildlife so it's not without reason that you couldn't expect to see some type of animal there but in addition to big animals there is definitely a plethora of small insects as well like these monarch butterflies I did this hike in late spring and because of that much of the wildflowers had already died off by then but the green grass had turned this majestic shade of gold which seemed to cover the entire landscape that's the sound of a crow it's really cool it's like this clicking noise something like that if you think you're getting too big of a head and you really just need to be humbled i really suggest going to this place you're hiking through this amazing valley with walls surrounding you on either side it really puts things in perspective by showing you how small you are in the grand scheme of things it's a really humbling humbling experience so I have a record for a while because I sat down my tripod to get this cool shot when I came back my entire tripod was covered in these bugs I call your wigs they're about 20 of them or so and ah they were all over my tripod and I didn't realize it so I put my tripod on my back and I started feeling all these crawls and you know those little buggers are this big I don't know if I've seen the last of them but I'm ready to burn everything in my backpack to make sure it is all right where am i oh I'm at the Willows picnic area campground those must be the Willows as an Ohio University along I really appreciated that trailhead but as I continued I seemed to get an ominous side from a gateway in front of me there is a rustling in the bushes and I really wanted to see what it was that was a rattlesnake well that was a rattlesnake I thought I heard something over there

I want a little closer and then I just heard and then I started bolting well I guess that's why they say keep to the trail I'm gonna be a little jumpy from now on I'm also gonna look to take a different way back then weren't kidding though there's stuffing a lot of animals here I began hearing some bars in the distance and I looked see these white specks of these green hills as I got closer I realized that they were sheep I came to a crossroad I decided that I wanted to go up to the ridge to see what I could see we became pretty apparent that I had missed the wet season for the reflection pond but the sign said that there was a Native American site in the distance so I decided to check it out I like people but I also like to be alone and away from it all you know I just moved to LA and living in LA is much different than living in a place like Ohio la is just sprawling a city and to me it's kind of amazing that they're all this you can have you can have so many millions of people living close together but then you have spaces like this where there aren't people for miles I feel like if I was stuck in such a clustered city Costard place I'd have to be out here every weekend I'm surprised that I'm the only one out this far I think the move to California has definitely been an interesting part of my life I was lucky enough to get a job out here in a field that I want to be working in but as great as that is I left a lot of friends behind

Andrew Robbie brighter some of my best friends there's a whole lot more to I'm also lucky enough to have some friends out here too so I've never really gone hiking alone like this until I moved down here part of its relaxing another part of its lonely alright it's time to call it quits more or less and head back probably take a different way see more scenery that sort of thing I took my time hiking down the hill I really wanted to take in as much as I could despite its name there are no wolves and wind wolves preserved it gets its name from when the wind brushes against the leaves and the grass and makes it seem as if wolves are running through it it's not really something you can capture on camera

you kind of have to be there to see it for yourself I found my way back to the main road and decided to take the short way back along the way I was greeted by a happy hummingbird looking for nectar and the flowers as well as some amazing cliff sides

despite having bugs crawl down my back and almost steppin on a rattlesnake this was probably one of my favorite hikes I've done in Southern California finishing the hike left me very satisfied but as I began to drive back I began to get excited because I knew this was the same road that I would be taking in a few months to go to Yosemite to see Andrew Robbie and Brian it's about time they come to Southern California and I'm glad that I can finally show them what this land has to offer