This morning, I was curious whether Whittemore Gulch was open since traditionally it's closed for the winter but I was surprised to find it was open last week. Even though it rained, I guess it didn't rain enough to close it again. I've been wanting to ride it for a while, I don't think I rode it at all last year, and with week straight of rain on the way, this was going to be my last chance. I'm pretty binary. I either have a really solid idea of what I want or no idea at all. Today I was a man with a plan. The weather forecast was weird (but turned out to be accurate). It was supposed to be warm at the start and then around 1p, the temperature was going to drop quite a bit. Well it started off kind of chilly which made me bring all the layers. I did a lot of taking off and putting back on layers throughout the ride but I'm glad I had them all because by the time I got to Whittemore Gulch (until the end of the ride), I needed all the layers. I don't know if it was because it was cloudy or cold, or maybe both, but the wildflowers petals weren't open. I think they were noping the cold. And some of the fields that were covered in wildflowers have now been plowed so they're all gone, sadly. Purisima Creek was a couple degrees colder and I was debating whether to put layers on because I was going to be climbing. Eventually I put them on but then the sun came out and it got warmer on the climb. I should've shed layers earlier because I got too sweaty. Later, along Skyline, that would be an issue. I didn't really want to push up Purisima Creek Trail but it almost seemed easier to push. The ground was a bit soggy so that was adding some resistance. It made me wonder whether Whittemore Gulch was worth the climb. Speaking of Skyline, it was cold at the top, and got foggy towards the north parking lot of Purisima. I basically put all my layers back on again. Whittemore Gulch was fantastic. It seemed to be in better condition than how I remembered it so I think some work has been done on the trail. I stopped a lot to take photos but the descent still went by too fast.