Placerita Walk

Murphy and I went to Placerita Canyon. It used to be my favorite spot in the Santa Clarita Valley, but then a brush fire burned through there a year or two ago and I hadn't been back since. I didn't want to see the fire damage.

I decided to go back and it wasn't as bad as I expected. The oak trees were mostly untouched and the grass was as beautiful as ever. It's hard to believe that this is only about 5 minutes from my house.

That's Murph walking down the trail. He's so good that he can pass other people and dogs and not even acknowledge their presence.

Placerita is where gold was first discovered in California. Some of the miner's cabins still survive. Here, only the fireplace is still standing.

Murph's favorite activity is lying down in the creek. In the sandy bottom, there were tiny glints of glittering gold. I tried picking up some flecks, but they were too tiny to handle. It's illegal to pan for gold and I doubt that there is enough there to make it worthwhile, anyway.

This is what a happy dog looks like.