Crystal Cove 10

Posted on May 23, 2003 in Nature Photos The Orange

The tubular tink of a Chinese lady using trekking poles to walk the length of No-Name Ridge is one of the memories that I have of Crystal Cove. That and the name of one of the trails, Rattlesnake Canyon, which I gazed up within an hour of sunset and marked for a future walk. And the windswept hills and the coyote brush. And the flowers that erupted off the last summit before the retired ranch road dropped back to the visitor center. All these, too, are Crystal Cove though there is no sea water in El Moro Canyon.

What does El Moro mean? If you accept the spelling as it is, the English for this landmark is “Canyon of the Moor”. The word “morro” is similar, however: it means a lip or a headland. The “brow of the headland deep in thought” that I mentioned the other day is the first squiggle in the curving line that runs from Long Beach to this spot. I believe that even early navigators and American invaders typoed. I believe this is the Canyon of the Headland.

As always, click on the picture to view the gallery.