It was not quite 6:30a when I reached the
starting point along Hwy 1. It was
still some 40 minutes until sunrise, but it was easily light enough to see
without headlamp. I started up the Rocky Ridge Trail, immediately becoming a
steep ascent, climbing hundreds of feet in a very short time. One has
fine views of the Pacific for much of the way.
Daybreak neared as I reached an 
overlook bench around 7a.
It was one of the finest 
view spots with a bench I've seen in
all the state. Beyond this, the slope levels out some as it continues east into
the interior of the park. 
Sunrise came as I dived into my pack for a
hat. 
The sun popped up brightly behind the grassy knoll almost
directly in my eyes. It wasn't until this moment that it was apparent to me
just how green 
the hills were, no
small surprise to me. I've been used to expecting Big Sur hills to be covered in
chaparral and perhaps some pines or oaks, the canyons steeped in redwood trees.
The abundance of grass for many square miles around the area was an unexpected
treat. It was too early yet for the height of spring flowers, but already there
were some 
popping up through the grass and others getting ready to
bloom in the next few weeks.
A sign
was found at a junction indicating the backside of the Rocky Ridge Trail
was closed due to landslides. This presented no problem to me as I intended to
continue east along a thinner trail labeled Peak Trail, although to what peak
this name referred to was somewhat obscure. 
The trail
continued for almost another half hour to the 
park boundary at a
fence on the east side. Curiously, there were 
some redwoods
growing high on the flanks of the hillside north of the
trail, possibly spring-fed, but looking wholely out of place. At the fence
boundary 
a sign
indicated the area beyond was off-limits, as expected, but it
also suggested that it was public property - possibly a newer acquisition that
had not been integrated into the park. Another fifteen minutes past the sign
gave another suggestion - 
cattle
were still 
ranging the area. For tax break
purposes, ranch land is sometimes ceded or sold to the state with stipulations
that grazing would be allowed to continue for some time, usually the life of
the rancher or a descedent. In any case, I found several dozen in a herd near
a spring where 
bathtubs were filled with water for the benefit of the
grazing animals. 
Leaving them undisturbed, I continued up, following
the ridgeline until I reached 
a ranch road in the vicinity of Palo
Corona. A 
picnic bench
was located near the road atop a grassy knoll. The views to Monterey Bay and
the surrounding hills were idyllic.
I followed this road south for about a mile to where it passes
just east of the summit, passing through 
a rickety gate
enroute. Some effort was taken to find a way past thick brush that
surrounds the highest hilltop. I eventually found a way through on the SE side,
rewarding me with a 
closeup view
of a large oak that occupied the highpoint.
Hunched over, there wasn't much else to see, surrounded by bushes reaching well
over head level. There was no cache or other notables to be found there. I
returned to the road and followed it down a bit to get a view down Portuguese
Ridge.
An old version of the topo map showed a trail along here, but I had no luck in
spotting a likely starting point to make my way down. I found
grass slopes on
the south side of the ridge that bypassed the chaparral-chocked ridgeline at
the top. From what I could see of
Portuguese Ridge, the lower half looked grassy
and easily manageable. A dense section in the middle looked to be the most
difficult, perhaps half a mile in length, probably less. I decided to give it a
go, figuring I had plenty of time to climb back up and return the way I came if
things got too difficult. The grass slopes on the upper section worked nicely to
bypass the messy top. 
A fenceline
I came to not far below the highpoint
indicated a property boundary between two ranches. Animal trails led along the
uphill side of the fence
and got me over to the ridgeline. I spotted
poison oak as soon as I reached the
ridge, necessitating some tiptoeing and high-stepping to avoid. In places it
would slow me down considerably, but it was never so dense as to present an
impregnable wall that would turn me back. I didn't mind stepping on the stuff
with my boots, but I avoided brushing against it even with the long pants I
wore.
As luck would have it,
an animal trail - or rather a series of these - ran down
most of the spine of 
Portuguese Ridge, mostly favoring the
shady understory on the northwest side. After crossing
a small creeklet, the grassy slopes and
forest understory had carried me as far down the ridge as I could before having
to confront the 
chaparral section.
This section was decorated with both 
flowers
and poison oak, dense brush on the sunny southeast side,
tunnelling understory
to the northwest. It took about 30 minutes to pass this section, perhaps a
quarter mile in total, and 
once through
it was as smooth sailing as I could
have hoped. Another half hour was taken in
descending the ridge and then
hiking the short distance to the summit of Puerta del Diablo.
A large cairn
marked the highest point with 
a second one
a bit lower on the south side where
a better view in that direction could be had. There was no register at either
location that I could find and I left none myself. The topo map indicates a
benchmark near the second cairn, but I did not find it - perhaps it was under
the cairn I had no inclination to disassemble. With the clear weather there were
fine views in all directions, Palo Colorado 
behind me, steep ridges
both 
north and south, the blue Pacific invitingly to
the west.
There seemed to be several possible ridges for descent from Puerta del Diablo.
I choose 
the ridgeline to the north, closest to
Granite Creek. There were faint
vestiges of animal trails decending the
ridgeline and I utilized these where I
could for the enjoyable descent down flower-studded, grass slopes. The route
provided an unusual vantage for viewing the Granite Creek Bridge from the east
with the ocean behind it. On the lower slopes an
old ranch road cut into the
ridge on the south side and I used this to descend the last portion. The road
circled
around the west and then 
north side as it dropped to
Granite Creek behind 
the bridge,
then continued north along the edge of the highway. 
Walls of poison
oak blocked my return to the highway only a short distance to the west and it
was necessary to walk several hundred yards to an open pastureland where
a gate provided a way back to the highway.
I had to walk 
Hwy 1 north between Granite and Soberanes Creeks to
get back to the car, a few extra miles worth. Along the way I passed by the
Marine Pollution Studies Lab at Granite Canyon,
fences keeping out the public.
Just north of this was a long inlet in which I spotted a number of
sea otters
frolicking. Poison oak starting at the highway effectively keeps out the curious
even had there been no fence. At 
Soberanes Creek
I left the highway briefly to
investigate the sound of a waterfall near the beach. Not as picturesque as
McWay Fall, but it was a neat
20-foot drop followed by a short cascade to the
beach. I was just able to scramble down the south side of the watercourse to
view it from the 
water's edge,
then an easier scramble back up the north side.
It was just before 11:30a when I finished my loop, making for a 5-hour total for the morning. Two hours later I was back in San Jose, before the kids were let out of school. A day well spent, indeed.