Featured Hike is on April 3 at Pinnacles National Monument with Robert and Steve

The rolling chaparral and dramatic rock faces of Pinnacles National Monument inspire loyalty in visitors, from picnickers to rock-climbers, and from stargazers to cave explorers. Pinnacles is visually stunning, as anyone who has seen the smooth orb of the moon glide from behind the crags of the High Peaks can attest, or who has watched the flashing black and white wings of acorn woodpeckers as they tuck acorns into the thick bark of gray pines. This striking beauty is attributable, in part, to the Monument's geologic formations, showcase chaparral habitat, finely intergrated ecosystems, and protected native plant and animal diversity.

Established in 1908 to preserve the incongruent and beautiful rock formations for which Pinnacles is named, the Monument originally protected only 2,060 acres. It now encompasses about 26,000 acres in the southern portion of the Gabilan Mountains, one of a series of parallel northwest-trending ridges and valleys that make up the Central Coast Range.

Pinnacles National Monument, located near the San Andreas Fault along the boundary of the Pacific Plate and the North American Plate, is an excellent example of tectonic plate movement. The Pinnacles Rocks are believed to be part of the Neenach Volcano that occurred 23 million years ago near present-day Lancaster, California, some 195 miles (314 km) southeast. The giant San Andreas Fault split the volcano and the Pacific Plate crept north, carrying the Pinnacles. The work of water and wind on these erodible volcanic rocks has formed the unusual rock structures seen today.

Fault action and earthquakes also account for the talus caves. Deep, narrow gorges or shear fractures were transformed into caves when huge boulders toppled from above, and wedged in the fractures before reaching the ground. These boulders became the ceilings of the talus caves that now entice not only people, but also several kinds of bats.

Along with chaparral, there are woodland, riparian, grassland, and rock and scree habitats here, all also subtly intergrated. It is the variability of Pinnacles' topography, weather and microclimate, and the location of the Monument at the edge of intersecting ecosystem zones, that allows for the diverse vegetation and intricate mix of habitats found here. These diverse habitats in turn support a rich fauna – especially of birds, reptiles and bees. According to Western scientific knowledge, Pinnacles' 400 bee species represent the highest bee diversity per unit area of any place on earth.

The Pinnacles National Monument is one of three current release sites in the United States for the California condor, which last flew over the Monument in the 1980's.