In doing a bit of research for this Earthcache I was told about
Lowe mountain. Lowe mountain is an excellent spot to view the
Morro's, a chain of extinct vocanoes, that run through San Luis
Obispo County.
The Morros, also known as the Seven Sisters or the Nine Sisters,
are nine peaks that stretch from Morro rock in Morro Bay to Islay
Hill just South of San Luis Obispo. And a possible tenth 'Morro',
Davidson Seamount, lies Northwest of Morro Bay deep in the Pacific.
Other information that states Davidson Seamount is not of the Morro
series but was formed in the same time period.
The Morros are a chain of extinct volcanoes that have eroded
down to the plugs of hardened lava in the "necks" of the peaks. The
volcanic cones have eroded away since they stopped erupting some 20
or so million years ago.
All of them are volcanic plugs dating from the early Miocene
20–25 million years ago. All formed as an abrupt change in the
local plate tectonic forces which opened this area up to
rhyodacitic volcanism. The sticky, high-silica lavas of the Morros,
which once were the deep cores of volcanoes, contrast vividly with
the surrounding sedimentary and metamorphic rocks of the Franciscan
formation.
This is a strenuous hike or bike ride of about 8 miles round
trip. It took me about 2 hours to ride in and less than an hour
back. Be aware there are some steep areas where you might likely be
pushing a bike instead of riding. The road is well graded and in
fair to good condition.
Parking is at waypoint N35 21.004, W120 37.900 near the top of
Cuesta Grade just on the North side as you pass the Cuesta Grade
sign, just past the callbox. If you are coming from the North you
will need to cross over the crest and drive about 1.8 miles down
the grade until you are able to legally cross over and turn around.
Just be careful of the Northbound traffic. There is parking near
the gate or alongside the highway. You will need to crawl over a
barbwire fence and if you are biking this trip you will need to
lift your bike over the fence. The gate is locked but it is legal
to walk or ride the road. The first 3/4 of a mile is about the
hardest and it gets better after that but not easy. If you are in
decent shape physically you should have no difficulty. (I'm 59 and
am not an athlete by any means.)
You will find this a gorgeous hike/ride. The view of the area is
stupendous! The day I biked this it was sunny but had some haze and
even so I could see from Morro rock to Point Sal.
You will pass through interesting geological areas, the rocks
convoluted and twisted are part of the Monterey Formation and
include mudstone, chert, and a variety of chert informally known as
"porcelainite" because it looks like porcelain. These are
sedimentary rocks that was laid down beneath the Pacific Ocean in
layers millions of years ago. You can see where the rocks have been
bent, twisted and at times mutilated into an mass where layers are
hard to define.
You will pass through a stark, blackened area where the many
black, dead, skeletal trees will remind you of the awesome Highway
41 wildfire that burnt through here that began on August 14, 1994.
When it was over, 49,000 acres and 43 homes were destroyed.
For those of you that want to continue on past the cache the
road continues about 3 miles or so until it reaches a locked gate.
That is the end of public access on Lowe Mountain road. But if you
are hiking and want more, just about 1/2 mile past the cache is a
hiking trail that will take you as far as Lopez Lake.
I want to thank Tony Garcia, professor of geology at Cal Poly
San Luis Obispo for his guidance and suggestions for this
Earthcache.
I would like anyone who has knowledge of geology or earth
sciences to email me any suggestions, corrections, pictures or
attaboys for this site. It has been fun setting it up and I hope a
quality addition to Earthcaches.
To claim this earthcache tell me what you see if you look in the
general direction of Northeast (I think NE, anyway you will
know).