Vertical Zonation in the the San Gabriel Mountains

As you rise from the Los Angeles Basin up through the San Gabriel Mountains, everything changes. On the cismontane side of the range, water evaporates off of the ocean and then rises as it hits the mountain wall. It condenses before it crosses the crest and falls as rain and snow. This creates a desert on the farther, transmontane, side of the range. The changes in rainfall, temperature, and elevation result in strata of different plant and animal communities in a process known as vertical zonation. Join us on an exploration of the different habitats and species that make the San Gabriel Mountains so diverse. We will travel from Bob’s Gap Road to the top of Pine Mountain on the transmontane side of the range and up San Antonio Canyon on the cismontane side from Padua Park to the top of Mt. Baldy, the highest peak in the range.

Meet…