Winter Walk: Checking Out Mountain House Creek Trail

East of the Diablo Range and West of the Central Valley is an unincorporated city called Mountain House, California. If you visit this town that is made up of residential villages, you’ll see some good-looking homes, clean environs and people and their pets on strolls. One of the best-kept secrets of this town has to be an almost-hidden creek. And a belt of green to go along with it (in the winter). Last weekend when the rains took a break, we pulled on our jackets and hit the Mountain House Creek Trail.

The sun was out and streaming through the bare branches, throwing light on the grounds that had turned green thanks to weeks of winter showers. The birds were out of their hiding and exploring the naked branches. And some little critters seemed to be looking for the wildflowers that have started to bloom. The reeds along the river bed were green in some parts and very dry in some parts where the creek thinned. For me, it was a lovely one-mile-stroll with the family and frames-and-frames of pretty pictures.

Mountain House Creek Trail

There are two trails here, one on either side of the creek. We took the paved trail and saved the unpaved one for the next time. 

Halfway down the trail, I came across an information board that told me that when the creek was restored, care was taken to set up three different terraces in the area. Then there was: the Lower Terraces or Marshland, the Middle Terrace or the Riparian Zone and the Upper Terrace or the Prairie. Each of these Terraces is meant to cater to different kinds of plants and animal life depending on the season, the water in the creek and moisture in the soil. The information there also told me a bit about the vegetation in the area and what to expect in the summer or draught time, and about the provisions for a flood, should there be one. 

Now, if YOU are ready to see the different terraces of the creek, the plants and the paved trail beside it, take a look at these pictures:

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