Milky Way From Henry Coe State Park . Feb 29, 2016 - Explore CA State Parks's board "Henry W. Coe State Park", followed by 4364 people on Pinterest. I arrived to the visitor center safely just after 8:30 p.m. Quite a few people and photographers were already situated in and around the area. Managed within its boundaries is a designated wilderness area of about 22,000 acres (8,900 ha). The terrain of the park is rugged, varied, and beautiful, with lofty ridges and steep canyons. CA. It is the best out of all of the state parks to visit for stargazing not only because of the lack of light pollution, but also because it is open 24 hours a day all year round. Morgan Hill. Henry Coe State Park, California - Feb 28th 2017 Time lapseNote: at 3 seconds there's a shooting star. Equestrians also make use of the trails, though they account for less than 1% of all visitors. The sweltering summer temperatures in Henry Coe State Park have become reasonable. Henry W. Coe State Park is the largest state park in northern California and protects and preserves 87,000 acres of scenic hills and mountain ridges in the Diablo Mountain Range. Milky Way From Henry Coe State Park. It’s also stupid-close to the mish-mash of freeway mazes and sprawl that make up most of the Bay Area. Find the perfect henry w coe state park stock photo. In 1958 the county deeded the land to the State, which established Henry W. Coe State Park. As the summer progresses it … It was a nice mini, stargazing adventure indeed! The South Fork Orestimba Creek originates in the park, and is fed by Red Creek, Pinto and Robinson creeks, and Lion Canyon. Backpackers also have the opportunity to fish while in the park as several of the lakes support large populations of largemouth bass and bluegill. Description. I decided that if I were to go to Coe before the mud and swollen creeks became a factor, the time was “soon”. The park is considered mountain bike friendly from the Hunting Hollow entrance, since there are only a few miles of trails off limits to them (though this includes the whole of Orestimba Wilderness, but this is too far away for most bicyclists to reach on a day ride). The massive Henry Coe State Park has many adventures, but "beginners beware!" In reality, there is no evidence (stumps, historical accounts) that any significant logging took place, nor does the relatively wide extent of the stands and the great variety of age groups support a tree-planting theory. The North Fork Pacheco Creek also originates within the park, and it is fed by Mississippi Creek. After a leg-burning trek up to Willson Camp and Willson Peak, you descend gently on a … Other prominent shrubs and wildflowers include chamise (Adenostoma fasciculatum), toyon (Heteromeles arbutifolia), coyote brush (Baccharis pilularis), California sagebrush (Artemisia californica), eastwood manzanita (Arctostaphylos glandulosa), yerba santa (Eriodictyon californicum), buckbrush (Ceanothus cuneatus), California gooseberry (Ribes californicum), fuchsia-flowered gooseberry (Ribes speciosum), yellow mariposa lily (Calochortus luteus)[8] and Mountain Mahogany (Cercocarpus betuloides). Town. The park contains over 87,000 acres (35,000 ha), making it the largest state park in northern California, and the second-largest in the state (after Anza-Borrego Desert State Park). It was the home of Henry Willard Coe, Jr. and his family from 1905 until his death in 1943. Visitors must leave by Sunday evening or stay until the following Saturday opening. Photo about Scenic view of Henry Coe State Park, California, U.S.A. The principal donor was businessman J. Daniel McCranie. A chemical toilet is available just beyond the locked gate and water is available at Timm Springs. Motorized vehicles are prohibited in the backcountry; exceptions are law enforcement or maintenance staff, and a few dirt roads are designated rights-of-way for neighboring property owners and their guests. Day 2: Bear Mountain and Mississippi Lake. The lowest point in the main body of the park is the place where the North Fork of Pacheco Creek flows out, at about 710 feet (220 m) elevation, also in the southeast corner. Henry Coe also provides exceptional backpacking opportunities. Coyote Creek is fed by Grizzly Creek, the Little, Middle, and East Forks of Coyote Creek, Kelly Cabin Canyon, Grizzly Gulch (not be confused with Grizzly Creek), and Hunting Hollow. Stakes, a mile north of the park's northern boundary. See real-time park photos from Instagram, get information and directions, and make reservations. Please refer to the Henry W. Coe State Park page on California State Parks website for the latest news on park restrictions and closures. Coit, a Central Valley melon grower and cattle rancher, planned to use his new land for cattle grazing and as a deer-hunting preserve. Explore Mike.Sabina's photos on Flickr. Unlike many other Bay Area parks, there are no large stands of non-native trees or shrubs. As the summer progresses it will be higher in the sky earlier. The park expanded considerably in the early 1980s with the purchase of adjacent properties to the east and south (the Gill-Mustang and Coit ranches, respectively), bringing the size to 67,000 acres (27,000 ha)). Mike.Sabina has uploaded 322 photos to Flickr. Please drive slowly & yield to emergency personnel who remain in the area. Prominent ridges and peaks in the park, from west to east and north to south, include Pine Ridge, Middle Ridge, Blue Ridge (with Mount Sizer the highest point), Rock House Ridge, Bear Mountain, Bear Mountain Peak, Robison Mountain (not Robinson Mountain as it is too often misspelled), Rooster Comb, Palassou Ridge, Mahoney Ridge (and Mahoney Meadows), Willow Ridge, Pacheco Ridge, Mustang Peak, Walsh Peak, Willson Field Hill, Wasno Ridge, Burra Burra Peak, Willson Peak, Rock Springs Peak, and Phegley Ridge. From West to East, and North to South, they are: The park map also shows 1) Thomas Addition (near Mt. Indeed, many currently available state road maps still show the park in its 13,000 acre configuration. Getting There: Take the East Dunne Avenue exit off of US 101 at Morgan Hill and go east. The northern part of the park, including the Orestimba Wilderness, was swept by a massive wildfire starting on September 3, 2007. Further inland than many of the other stargazing spots, Henry W. Coe State Park offers phenomenal nighttime views since it is also further away from any city light pollution. As in all state parks, hunting is prohibited, but fishing is allowed. On rare occasions, creeks can be frozen over in winter. Large parts of the park are covered in chaparral and oak woodlands. Highlights include rolling hills, large oak … Henry W. Coe Park is the largest state park in northern California, with over 87,000 acres (135 square miles) of wild open spaces and about 250 miles of trails. Then the road got pretty winding as I traveled slowly and cautiously on E Dunne Ave from Morgan Hill to the Coe Ranch Visitor Center. Trip Overview: ~24 mile out and back backpacking trip from the Henry Coe State Park Headquarters to Mississippi Lake and back. Wildlife in the park is abundant. This is the time of year (spring) when the Milky Way is visible just before dawn. Common reptiles include western pond turtle, western fence lizard, northern alligator lizard, western skink, coast horned lizard, Pacific gopher snake, California kingsnake, western rattlesnake, ringneck snake, and western aquatic garter snake. It is also known as or encompasses the Orestimba Wilderness. You don't see skies like this back in the city, let alone be around 2,660 feet in elevation as well and also above the incoming low clouds and fog already blanketing the city of Morgan Hill below. A group of girls (who were camping) also were observed, fascinated by the skies and they even saw a few shooting stars, which unfortunately, I didn't see or capture on camera. The creeks are all seasonal; none of them flow year-round, though all have holes in which water may be found during all seasons. The night sky was absolutely amazing! Additionally, there are many ticks of several different species (though Lyme disease is rare in the area), as well as a few venomous rattlesnakes. So awesome! Waterfalls around Henry Coe State Park. [16], Learn how and when to remove this template message, California Department of Parks and Recreation, California Department of Parks & Recreation, California interior chaparral and woodlands, statewide special election of May 19, 2009, "California State Park System Statistical Report: Fiscal Year 2009/10", "Bandits, Brentwood, and the Wild Frontier", http://coepark.net/pineridgeassociation/planning-your-visit/visitor-centers-and-park-entrances/dowdy-ranch-visitor-center, "Parks department inks agreement to keep Coe Park open", "Henry Coe on governor's list of parks to close", "State parks to stay open, but with cuts in hours, staffing", The Pine Ridge Association at Henry W. Coe State Park, Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies, Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, Rosie the Riveter/World War II Home Front, California State Mining and Mineral Museum, Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument, University of California Natural Reserve System, Sweeney Granite Mountains Desert Research Center, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Henry_W._Coe_State_Park&oldid=998662123, Articles needing additional references from July 2008, All articles needing additional references, Wikipedia articles with WORLDCATID identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 6 January 2021, at 12:47. Most visitors at Coe Park hike or mountain bike on the numerous trails within the park. State/Province/Region. Note: Henry W. Coe State Park is often confused with Henry Cowell State Park, which has no trail camping. The ranch's road network was greatly expanded during this time. The most developed area is at Coe Headquarters located at the historic Pine Ridge Ranch. See more ideas about park, state parks, local parks. Coe is the only park in the San Francisco Bay Area where this is possible. No diving is allowed. This entrance is currently open only on weekends during the summer dry season. Summer is usually too hot and dry for most people to enjoy the area, though the nighttime weather is pleasant and the sky usually clear for star-gazing. Frog trail leads to Frog Lake, which houses giant frogs.China Hole trail and Manzanita point offer spectacular sweeping views of mountains, canyons and rugged terrains on all sides. Then once skies got dark enough, I started shooting Comet NEOWISE and the Milky Way (with me in the shots as well). I then headed back to my car right after 10:30 p.m. and did last-minute shots of the Milky Way (with me and my car as well lol). After joining the North Fork outside the park, it flows out to the San Joaquin Valley, where it joins the San Joaquin River. Besides its size, the park is notable for a mostly intact flora. Huge collection, amazing choice, 100+ million high quality, affordable RF and RM images. I carved out 3 days and 2 nights in the family schedule. Infrequent snowfall is light and usually persists for just a few days. By Mark Bristol. +/- 4,000 feet elevation with a starting elevation of 860 feet and a peak elevation of 2,680 feet. The park began as the Pine Ridge Ranch, a private cattle ranch of 12,230 acres (4,950 ha). CA. This is a good access for spring wildflower viewing. Day 3: Mississippi Lake to HQ, via Poverty Flat → Bikepacking Henry Coe State Park. Milky Way From Henry Coe State Park . US. Location: Hunting Hollow is 10 miles east of Gilroy in southeastern Santa Clara County. Low clouds and fog was seen rolling over the city of Morgan Hill/Gilroy below. All surface water in the park should be filtered before drinking to remove harmful organisms. [14], The park was previously one of several state parks threatened with closure in 2008. There was no traffic so the drive was smooth sailing on U.S. 101. Milky Way gazing tonight up at Henry W. Coe SP. The park protects part of the California interior chaparral and woodlands ecoregion. No need to register, buy now! US. Native trees which dominate the park include valley oak (Quercus lobata), blue oak (Q. douglasii), coast live oak (Q. agrifolia), canyon live oak (Q. chrysolepis), interior live oak (Q. wislizenii), gray pine (Pinus sabiniana), ponderosa pine (P. ponderosa), pacific madrone (Arbutus menziesii), California laurel (Umbellularia californica), California buckeye (Aesculus californica), white alder (Alnus rhombifolia), California juniper (Juniperus californica), blue elderberry (Sambucus mexicana) and California sycamore (Platanus racemosa). In the early 1990s the Redfern Ranch added some 11,000 acres (4,500 ha) in the south, and since 2000 lands to the west have been purchased for inclusion. The park is still growing. These were often made with insufficient forethought and often suffer moderate to severe erosion problems, or may be overgrown and difficult to follow much of the year. [7] All areas affected by the fire were re-opened to unrestricted public access on February 16, 2008. Henry W. Coe State Park has reopened for day use, camping, and backpacking following the Park and Crews Fires. [6] The person responsible for the fire came forward, pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge, and was ultimately ordered to pay $750,000 in restitution. Cañada de la Dormida independently reaches Pacheco Creek outside of the park boundaries. This largely undeveloped park welcomes backpackers, equestrians, mountain bikers, day-hikers, and anyone seeking solitude in a nearly untouched setting. Pacheco Creek . There may be smoke as firefighters continue operations. Mustang Peak is where the horses held at Paradise Flat or Mustang Flat were fed into a passing drove.[3][4][5]:399–467. Recently constructed single-track trails are usually maintained, and, in general, the closer one is to Coe Headquarters, the more such trails there are. Depending on rainfall and temperatures, the creeks generally flow from November to May. With the shorter days and one quick rainstorm a few weeks ago, autumn seems on its way. Big-berry Manzanita (Arctostaphylos glauca) reach remarkable size within the park (over 20 feet (6 m) tall) and can grow as either small trees or large shrubs. It is not unusual for as much as half of park visitors on a given day to be mountain bicyclists, though this is normally closer to 30%. Our Milky Way galaxy is filled with streams of stars, but one of them appears to be a family that includes nearly 500 relatives, according to a new study. Morgan Hill. 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