Twice in a Lifetime

Twice in a Lifetime

As I’ve confessed before, I’m a bit of a wildflower junkie.  Last year (March 2016) I read an article about the once in a generation ‘superbloom’ in Death Valley. So I dropped what I was doing, took off for Stovepipe Wells and got a pretty good, below sea level,...
Big Basin, Big Trees

Big Basin, Big Trees

The big trees can be hazardous… I spent so much time looking up instead of at the trail beneath my feet that I stumbled at least 15 times on the ten miles of trails we hiked through Big Basin Redwoods State Park. But you can’t help yourself. As the trails put you...

Fields of Gold

    Well, actually, you have to work a bit before you get to the fields of gold. Before that, there’s a 7 mile washboard road that’s a field of dust and gravel. Especially if you find yourself 50 yards behind another car that’s heading to the same place....

Best Views, No Bull

Toro County Park, dammit. It took two, seven-mile hikes to get it right. The first time I set out on foot at Toro County Park I parked right there at the front gate. I really should have driven up to the 3rd parking lot, which would have put me on the trail past all...

Garland Ranch: I Can See for Miles

  For the past few years I’ve been driving past Garland Ranch Regional Park a couple of times a week and have always wanted to hike up to the top just to see what it was like.  Not a big bucket list item, just a minor fitness challenge, sort of like hiking...