There is a magical wildlife kingdom located in Soledad, California that is home to mysterious caves and a variety of edible fruit and plant delicacies.

It is known for its unique mountain shapes and rock formations in addition to a number of wildlife, most notably, the endangered California condor.

This place is called Pinnacle and it did not become an official national park until Jan. 10, 2013.

Pinnacle opens at 7:30 a.m. but if you get to the entrance before that time, there are no rangers in the booth collecting park entry fees.

In addition to the park’s majestic mountains, there is a forest of lush green trees blocking out the sunlight and the sound of water running down the river streams. You may also find yourself accompanied by several uninvited mosquito stalkers seeking blood donations in these forests.

After venturing up into the higher mountain elevation, all the mosquitoes tend to dissipate without saying goodbye like a vampire avoiding sunlight.

The mountainous terrains can be as unforgiving as the trails are rugged with sharp rocks that seem to be growing out of the ground. They can pierce any exposed human body part or cause sprained ankles.

Several distinct species of flowers are growing at different elevations such as yellow daisies, purple shooting stars and red cobweb thistles.

Kurry Wannagat, a commercial real estate agent who resides in Paso Robles, said she can smell the wildflowers.

“The smell of pines is (also) very strong,” Wannagat said.

The grass in the meadows hugging the side of the hills offers many visually appealing colors like green, yellow and brown.

There are sounds of birds chirping throughout the trail but it is quite rare to see their actual presence.

An owl hooting in the wind can be heard the closer you get to the mountain peak.

Haylie Gregory, a teacher visiting from Madera, said she could hear echoes throughout the mountain tunnels.

“I would hear other people’s voices and think that they are close but then find out that they are very far away,” Gregory said.

In the park, there is a lake called Bear Gulch Lake, which features a human-made bridge that is utilized as a dam wall to obstruct the flow of lake water from flooding into the nearby Bear Gulch Cave.

Camie Correa, a surgical technician and a Santa Maria resident, said Pinnacle is home to a variety of edible fruits and plant vegetations.

Correa provided a list of edible delicacies and her own taste experience:

1. Manzanita tree (Spanish translation of little apple tree) produces red apples but it tastes like sour green apples.

2. Miner’s lettuce: “It tastes sweet when it is smaller but becomes sour when it grows bigger,” Correa said.

3. Holly leaf cherry is a Prunus ilicifolia fruit that tastes sweet.

4. Wild elderberries: “It tastes sweet but when you process it then it becomes sour,” Correa said.

There is a flight of stairs next to Bear Gulch Lake that descends into the Bear Gulch Cave. A stream of water flows down the rock boulders neighboring the stairs simulating a waterfall.

There are two bat caves located inside Pinnacle National Park: Bear Gulch Cave and Balconies Cave.

Fourteen species of bats inhabit these caves, and these caves are closed at certain periods throughout the year when the bats are breeding and raising their babies.

Pinnacle is also home to the endangered California condors.

There were no cars at the entrance in the morning, however, if you leave the park after 3:30 p.m., you may witness up to 40 cars waiting in line in front of the ranger booth for an opportunity to enter this magical kingdom.