Great Hikes (and Camping): Wind Wolves Preserve

If you’re looking for a place in the southern half of California to hike or camp that features few people, running streams and waterfalls, and a wild land full of wildlife, head to Wind Wolves Preserve. As word gets out this place it won’t feel so remote very long.

Set aside by Wildlands Conservancy in 1996, photos from our recent June trip best illustrate its specialness. Kudos to the Conservancy and their mission – I’ve visited four of their 12 preserves now and they do such a great job. (See my Oak Glen Preserve and Whitewater Preserve write-ups)

Here’s what I love about Wind Wolves:

Remoteness: Aside from some working archaeologists we had the campground to ourselves, and saw zero to very few people on the trails.

About a mile off the turnoff from highway 166, the Wind Wolves entry sign signaled this would be a different camping experience

Green and lush in the spring, the hills in June have a different beauty (taken from the campground)

This is a springtime view of the preserve, a time most visitors come to view the wildflowers (courtesy, Windwolves Preserve)

Nice Campground: Camping at the San Emigdio Campground was hot but quite bearable with numerous and entertaining birds in the tree cover, and running water in streams and even a waterfall within walking distance.

The archaeologist team was camping in San Emigdio campsites 5 through 8

Our campground #4 with the irrigation stream running through the campground attracted numerous birds (and therefore raptors)

Trees in the campground (a red-tailed hawk family hung out in the tree to the right)

San Emigdio’s Campsite 3 (beautiful but we were a little worried about dead limbs falling from the oak tree)

Gorgeous Scenery and nice hikes

Plentiful Wildlife: In 24 hours, although we didn’t see condors or the preserve’s famous tule elk, we saw hawks, a dozen species of birds, deer and a beautiful California Kingsnake

Not exactly wildlife but ‘Big Bovines’ greeted us on the way in to the preserve

This hawk was part of a family of Red-tailed Hawks that hung out in an old cypress type tree

Numerous nesting Cliff Swallows under the ramada

Beautiful ramada in The Crossing Picnic Area – this is where the swallows were nesting

One of a flock of Western Kingbirds, again in the campground

This killdeer and his/her? mate had 4 babies and was forever doing his dragging wing thing. We even witnessed the pair mating.

Saying goodbye on the way out of the preserve

Comments

Natalie Tejeda
January 31, 2017 at 4:36 am
How much did you guys pay to camp out here? And what do I need to do to book my camping ground?
- Linda Richards
  February 3, 2017 at 6:29 am
  We made a reservation via email – [email protected]– although in the off-season there should be no problem getting a campsite there. Sorry I don’t remember the cost but it didn’t seem like much.

Here’s what I love about Wind Wolves:

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