Category Archives: United States

La Jolla

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Though I still need to catch up on trips from last year, I’m posting this one now since it’s quick and easy.

September 25-28, 2018

I took a short trip to visit my friend Dede. We realized that it’s been four years since my last visit, too long. As usual it was very relaxing. I took daily walks on the beach and enjoyed wearing sandals.

Tuesday

Dede picked me up from the airport in the early afternoon. As soon as we got to her home, I headed to the beach. It’s about a 15-minute walk down and a 20-minute walk back up. I’m glad I went since this was the only sunny day I had at the beach during my visit. There is almost as much fog here as at home, but it’s warmer.

When I got back we enjoyed dinner on her patio. Her friend Victor barbequed ribs, and we enjoyed a bottle of red wine. For me, it’s a luxury to be able to eat outdoors in the evening.

Wednesday

 I took one of Dede’s three dogs, 90-pound Buddy, for a walk on the beach in the morning.  Dogs are only allowed before 9:00 a.m. and after 6:00 pm. Though he’s huge, he’s well trained and easy to walk. I’m not used to male dogs and counted 16 leg lifts at bushes and trees on our way up and down the hill.

In the afternoon, Dede and I took Buddy and a Ellie May, a small fluffy white dog, for a visit to a memory care center. Though some of the residents were not responsive, most perked up and were happy to pet them. When she’s a bit older, I’m hoping to train Sage, my almost year-old Border Collie, to be a therapeutic visitation dog.

Dede’s friend John later joined us for a barbeque at the beach. We had hoped for a nice sunset, but no luck. Given that it was mid-week and overcast we virtually had the beach to ourselves.  Salmon, corn on the cob, salad, and boysenberry pie, yum!

Thursday

We spent the whole morning glued to the tube watching the Kavanaugh hearing. Sadly things have not has changed much in the 36 years since Anita Hill bravely came forward. I broke away to take a long, leisurely barefoot stroll along the beach before attending a Veterans for Peace protest. They would like to see the Miramar airshow discontinued since it glorifies war.

Friday

I took Buddy for one last beach walk, then packed up and headed to the airport. My flight was delayed slightly due to fog in San Francisco, but was otherwise uneventful.

Bryce and Zion

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After Switzerland, I told myself that I would stay home and not travel for a while, but when Anne invited me to visit Bryce and Zion, I couldn’t resist. Though I’d been to both of these places, I‘ve been craving a return to red rock country. It was Anne’s first visit to both national parks and my first use of my Senior Parks Pass. Though I’m not quite ready to consider myself a senior, it saved us $30 per park. I’m glad to say that Anne was just as enamored of these colorful parks as I am.

Wednesday, Oct 18, 2017 – Getting to Bryce

We met at the airport and flew to Las Vegas, where we picked up and upgraded (from economy, which should be called sub-compact, to compact) our rental car; I’m the designated driver. It was overcast. We stopped in Mesquite for lunch; I ate my packed salad outside a fast food joint. We overshot the Bryce turnoff and ended up seeing a slice of Cedar Breaks on an alternate route. We got to park in time for a scenic stroll from Sunset to Sunrise Point before the sun set.

From there, it was a 15-20 minute drive to Tropic. We stayed at a place called Bryce Valley Lodging, best described as a collection of cabinettes lined up on a gravel parking lot, reminiscent at drive-in movie theaters (remember those?). We walked across the street to Hustler’s, where I consumed BBQ chicken, sweet potato fries, and soggy vegetables. 

Thursday, Oct 19 – Peep-a-Boo Loop

The sound of rain before dawn caused me to turn off the alarm, there wouldn’t be a sunrise today, at least not a colorful one. Fortunately, the rain didn’t last long, and we were able to do our planned hike (the one I took four years ago with no card in my camera).  The Queens Garden – Peep-a-Boo – Navajo loop is about seven miles; it took us five hours, mostly because we kept stopping to gawk and take pictures of the fantastical hoodoos.

We were tired afterwards, no longer acclimatized to hiking in the 8000-9000’ range (2400-2700 meters), so we found coffee for Anne at the general store, not the lodge as we first guessed. We skipped stopping at vista points and headed back to Tropic for an early dinner at Hustler’s. Afterwards a couple cats followed me around while I photographed sunset; there’s a nice view of the Grand Staircase out back.

Friday, Oct 20 – Bryce Sunrise to Zion Canyon

After convincing one of the cats that it couldn’t stay in our cabin, we drove back into Bryce to view the sunrise from Sunset Point. We stopped at Ruby’s Inn for breakfast after exiting the park, arriving early enough to beat the line. I ate everything I usually avoid: eggs, toast, and bacon. It’s been decades since I’ve ordered bacon!

We headed back east for a few minutes and reentered the park to hike appropriately named Mossy Cave. There were some nice red rocks and a small waterfall.

I skipped stopping at Checkboard Mesa after we entered Zion, regretting it when a herd of Bighorn Sheep walked by.

We found parking shortly before the tunnel and walked along the road to the Canyon Rim trailhead. I’ve done this three-mile hike many times over the years and still enjoy it. I’ve come to associate this trail with lizards, and sure enough I saw one this time too.

A long stretch of highway towards the end of Springdale is currently one-way, due to repaving or something. After a short wait we reached our hotel, where we parked and left if for the rest of the day. There is a free shuttle that runs through town, up to the park entrance. The stop near us, #7, was closed due to the construction so we walked to #6 and then kept on walking all the way to the park. Along the way, we stopped at a market to pick up breakfast and snack food, ate lunch at an outdoor table, and sampled beers at the Zion Canyon Brewing Company, licensed as a restaurant, not a bar. (There are no bars in Springdale). This meant that we could not order alcohol without food, so though not hungry we ordered an appetizer of hummus with veggies, with I promptly consumed. In Utah, draft beer can only be 4% (bottled beers can be stronger). We tried three, purchasing six-ounce samples since free ones aren’t allowed; they ranged from undrinkably bitter to “just right”.

We took the shuttle back to stop #6 and walked to the Quality Inn with a room bigger than our cabin in Tropic. I was too full to join Anne for dinner so she headed out on her own, returning quickly to report that the place across the street was too fancy and expensive; instead she snacked on munchies we’d picked up at the market.

Saturday, Oct 21 – Angels Landing

When we were planning this trip, I asked Anne if she’d be interested in hiking in The Narrows; she said absolutely not. I next suggested Angels Landing, while warning  her of the sheer drop offs. She surprised me and said yes. Both a little nervous after all the hype, we agreed to go and see how far we’d get.

We drove into park, parked at visitors center, and caught an 8:00 shuttle to The Grotto, our trailhead. We crossed the bridge and took the West Rim trail, zig-zagging up the cliff-side. It felt good to be hiking; I was refreshed and even Walter’s 21 wiggles didn’t seem difficult. From Scouts Landing (where Karen and I turned back four years ago) to the top was not as scary as it looked. Chains were installed in all difficult parts and we were early enough that peak crowds hadn’t yet arrived. The up and downhill climbers patiently waited for each other, passing in bunches. (Reminder for next time: avoid weekends). We spent a half hour at the top, which was larger than I expected, and though “only” 5,790 feet (1,760 m) the view is vast. By the time we returned to Scouts Landing for lunch, the stream of hikers arriving was backing up and they were starting to pass each other on the narrower, scary sections.

We considered taking the Riverwalk to the beginning of The Narrows, but were too tired to get off bus. Plus we didn’t want to risk having to stand for the 40-minute ride back to the Visitor Center, as could be the case with later buses. Instead we returned to Brew Pub and ordered a couple pints of Octoberfest, the beer we liked best yesterday. This time we split a salad (mixed greens, apples, cranberries, walnuts, cilantro dressing) – delicious! We walked back into the park to retrieve our car. After a rest and shower, we walked to Jacks Sport Bar for dinner – greasy sandwich and a bitter beer.

Sunday, Oct 22 – Weeping Rock

Anne joined me for sunrise. We again parked at the Visitor Center, this time catching a 7:15 shuttle to Canyon Junction, where we hung out for an hour watching the peaks around us light up. Back on the shuttle, we got off at Zion Lodge where we had breakfast (scrambled eggs and rye toast). Afterwards, we crossed the road and hiked to Lower, Middle, and Upper Emerald Pools. The lower, with water dripping over the rim, was my favorite. On our way back down, we turned onto Kayenata trail and walked above the river to The Grotto and then along the road to Weeping Rock. Only shuttle buses and bicyclists are allowed this far in the park, so we pretty much had it this scenic stretch to ourselves. We took the short walk up a paved path to Weeping Rock, where water seeps out of the sandstone and drips along a stretch of the cliff. We road the shuttle to the last stop, Temple of Sinawava, and once again considered taking the Riverwalk to the beginning of The Narrows, but we turned back in less than a mile, both too tired to want to walk further. My phone says we covered nine miles today, further than yesterday’s eight plus.

Back at the Brew Pub, we enjoyed our pints of Octoberfest and split the same salad as yesterday. This time it took 25 minutes to get through the construction backup. We rested at the hotel – I downloaded images, took a short nap, and showered, then risked the traffic and drove to The Spotted Dog for dinner. Fortunately, when we called earlier we were able to get reservations right after opening. It was the meal of this trip – red trout, veggies, and a flowerless chocolate dessert. Yum.

Monday, October 23 – Back Home

We ate the boring free breakfast and headed back to Las Vegas, detouring to the see more fascinating red rocks at Valley of Fire, Nevada’s oldest state park. It looks like the gods and goddesses have been playing with clay. Google got us to the off-off site car rental dealer from where we got a van ride to the off-site car rental center. Eventually reaching our terminal, we ate a late lunch before flying home, arriving a little, but not much, behind schedule.

Since my credit card was suspended, due to fraud detected while I was in Utah, I couldn’t use Lyft. Supershuttle had no shuttles so they sent me to Go Lorries. If you don’t mind being uncomfortably crammed in with others and wandering willy-nilly around the city for an hour or two, this is the way to go. I jumped out in the Castro and took a bus home from there. On the positive side, their vans are newer and don’t rattle like Supershuttle’s.

My roommate, Linda, shared her food so I didn’t have to go to the market for dinner. I was especially grateful since I had only a few hours to pack for my next adventure.  The cats and I enjoyed company for one night.

Rocky Mountains

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I just spent a week in Colorado, hiking in the Rockies with Lynne, in preparation for our upcoming trek in the Alps with two other friends. Coming from sea-level, the air was thin at 9000’ in Fraser Valley, a few hours northwest of Denver, and even thinner on our hikes above tree-line.

July 2 – Getting There

I flew to Denver, arriving in early afternoon. Lynne drove down to pick me up at the airport. It usually takes less than two hours to get to her family condo, but apparently a lot of people decided that Sunday was a good day to head out of town for the 4th of July, so it took almost an hour longer. This gave us plenty of time to chat. I was entertained by her story of her drive to Colorado via Oregon with her father, Jim, son, Tim, and cat, Lily. Needless to say, Lily was not happy about the idea. She nearly got lost and caused an unpleasant aroma along the way.

July 3 – Fraser Valley

Lynne’s dad had a sore tooth, so she called around and found an emergency dentist open on the Monday before a holiday. Tim agreed to drive his grandfather down to Denver, while Lynne and I stayed behind. Initially planning a four-mile walk for my first day at altitude, we ended up taking a 9-mile round-trip hike to Winter Park after discovering a set of trails near the condo. We stopped for lunch and a beer on our way back. Her father and Tim arrived hours later. Her dad’s problems turned out to be much more extensive than anticipated and he suffered for three hours in a dental chair.

July 4 – Cascade Falls

We dropped Lynne’s father off at her brother Jed’s place near Grand Lake, just to the southeast of Rocky Mountain National Park. We then spent much of the day hiking to nearby Cascade Falls, a 9-miles round trip. It was beautiful. We ate lunch at the top of the falls – apple slices with smoked gouda, olives, deli slices and Mary’s Gone Crackers – yum!

It started to drizzle on our way down and we heard thunder behind us, so I put away my camera, we put on our pack covers, and covered the last couple miles pretty quickly. We reached the trailhead in mid-afternoon with just enough time to drive back to Fraser, take a quick shower, and head back to Jed and Mia’s place with Tim, for a barbeque. After our tasty, filling meal, we enjoyed sitting outside watching the sunset.

July 5 – Rest Day

We had been planning to head up to Rocky Mountain National Park, but her dad wasn’t feeling well, so we enjoyed a welcome rest day. We went out to lunch, stopped at a couple stores, and I started sorting pictures. I also fixed my signature meal – Chicken Marbella and mashed sweet potatoes. It was appreciated by all and I packed up some for lunch the next day.

July 6 – Berthoud Pass

Tim dropped us off early at Berthoud Pass ,11’300’, and we headed uphill, breathing heavily. We had Lynne’s father’s pulse oximeter with us and at the top of the 1000’ climb up to the ridge my oxygen level dropped to 75%! A couple breathes from a small oxygen tank, which Lynne bought at the supermarket, and it bounced up into the 90’s, at least temporarily. It was lower than that most of the day. I hope my body is busy making red blood cells so I can breathe more easily in Switzerland.

We hiked through the tundra along the rolling ridge for hours, admiring the views. Colorado had a mild winter so there was less snow than usual on the peaks. (We more than made up for their moisture loss in California, with record rainfall that broke our 5-year drought). Seeking an alternate route to the one we took a couple years ago, our 8-mile hike grew to 13 miles; in the end, we backtracked and went down the initial route. My feet developed a couple tender spots. I got one taped, before we felt raindrops. Since we were still above treeline, I skipped taping other, leading to a blister.

When we got down to the Zephyr chairlift, it was not running due to thunder warnings. Fortunately, a shuttle bus arrived just as we did and we got a free, dusty ride down to the bottom. Exhausted, we called Tim for a ride rather than take a bus back to the condo. After a shower and brief rest, we went out to eat with her father. We shared a pizza and Greek salad at an outdoor patio. Our veggie pizza with basil white sauce on a thin crust was very good.

July 7 – Mount Evans

Lynne drove us up to the top of Mount Evans on the highest paved road in the United States. At 14,265’ (4,348 meters), Evans is only the 12th highest peak in Colorado. Her father waited in the car while Lynne and I climbed the last few hundred feet to the top, head pounding. The views were stunning. Given the gathering clouds, it was surprisingly sunny, warm, and calm at the top. On our way back to the car, it suddenly became cloudy, cold, and windy, and hail began to fall. On our drive back down the mountain, with windshield wipers swishing off sleet, we spotted both Bighorn Sheep and Mountain Goats. Nice. Back in Fraser, we all took naps to the sound of thunder, then woke up to sunshine. I looked for, but didn’t see a rainbow. Jim took us out for dinner. Thank you both for a great visit!

July 8 – Home

Lynne drove me down to the airport and I bid farewell to her and her father. They are spending the night in Denver, visiting old friends from when they lived here. My flight was on time and went smoothly. I entertained myself taking pictures of clouds and starting this blog entry. The cats greeted me when I walked in the door. I unpacked my bags, then repacked my backpack, ready for another hike.

Fort Lauderdale

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I spent three days in Florida with Harley and Nancy, whom I met in Cuba last year, before departing on a Caribbean cruise.

Nov 22 – Flight to Florida

I enjoyed seeing the diversity of the geography across our country on a non-stop flight to Fort Lauderdale. Harley and Nancy picked me up and took me to Mai Kai, a historic bar-restaurant filled with Polynesian themed artifacts; it felt a bit like the Tiki Room at Disneyland and I kept expecting the totem poles to break out in song.

Nov 23-25 – Thanksgiving in Florida

 Each day we toured part of Fort Lauderdale and the surrounding the area, including Hollywood, named after the city in California where a few of the old seaside bungalows still remain, though high-rises are rapidly approaching, and the gardens of the Bonnet House, it’s remaining 35 acres now surrounded by Fort Lauderdale; we glimpsed one of the small moneys that live in the trees.

We celebrated Thanksgiving in Lauderdale by the Sea, a town of human-scaled buildings with a darling beachfront. I joined a large gathering of Nancy and Harley’s friends in a backyard under a sprawling mango tree, my first Thanksgiving in shorts and sandals. In addition to turkey with all the fixings, there were plenty of side dishes and, for me, unusual desserts, such pumpkin bread pudding with rum sauce and mango key lime pie.

Art and Hiking in the Rockies

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I’m home from Colorado after attending an art class near Aspen and visiting a friend, Lynne, for a bit of hiking in one of my favorite mountain ranges.

Aug 1-5 – Art Class

 I attended a five-day Photo Encaustic class at Anderson Ranch Art Center in Snowmass. This is an amazing place with a dozen or so classes offered at the same time. I stayed in a dorm and ate delicious food in the cafeteria every day. The studios are open 24 hours a day, so it’s a chance to live and breathe art making with a group of like-minded souls. I took a walk before breakfast each morning, two days with blue sky, two with clouds, and one in the fog. Except for meals, I spent most of my time in the studio until bedtime.

8/6/16 – Rained out of the Maroon Bells

Lynne picked me up from the ranch last night. We checked into our hotel and had dinner at the Woody Creek Tavern, a causal place with a variety of food. Though the forecast wasn’t promising, we got up early and got to the Maroon Bells trailhead before sunrise. The rain started shortly after we headed out and without adequate rain gear we turned back. (This year is the first time I experienced morning rain in the summer here; usually the storms wait for the afternoon). We headed early to Lynne’s family condo in Fraser, stopping to buy ponchos on the way. They came in handy when we got caught in a thunderstorm while walking over to Winter Park for dinner.

8/7/16 – Byers Peak (almost)

When we woke up, we were thrilled to see blue sky (not what last night’s forecast called for), so we embarked on a tough hike, fulfilling Lynne’s dream to re-climb Byers Peak (12,800’) after thirty years. Unfortunately, the Forest Service moved the trailhead back a couple miles, almost doubling the distance and increasing the elevation gain to 3000’. We rented bicycles to ride up the fire road to the original trailhead, though we ended up walking at least as much as riding. We locked the bikes to a tree, and then hiked up along a narrow, root-filled trail to the ridge below the peak. We took a lunch break, then continued up the last mile. It was exhausting and the gathering clouds were making me nervous, so I turned back about a half-mile short of the summit. I strolled down to just above timberline taking pictures and admiring the view while Lynne continued to the top. Based on the pictures she showed me afterwards, I would have loved to be up there, but I wasn’t up to it at that altitude. We were happy to have the bikes at the end, covering the last mile and a half in minutes. Start to finish, our ride/hike took about seven hours.

8/8/16 – Rocky Mountain National Park

We spotted one distant moose, then came across a herd of elk on our way up Trail Ridge Road. That was exciting. We could hear the cries of the young ones who still had a few spots. We reached the top of the park in time to take a few pics before the rainclouds returned. We cancelled our planned hike and instead drove back to Monarch Lake where it wasn’t raining. We covered this four-mile loop in about an hour and a half; it’s amazing how much easier it is to hike (and breathe) on a relatively flat trail at “only” 8,400’.

We then stopped by to see Lynne’s brother, who lives up here part time, and picked up her dad to bring him back to the condo. He recently turned 90 and told us stories from his many visits to this area over decades. Though he now lives in San Francisco, he heart is still in Colorado.

8/9/16 – Home Again

I took one last stroll, down to the river along a new highly-switch backed trail, then spent the morning sorting photos and packing. Lynne drove her sister-in-law and me to Denver; it takes about two hours (outside of peak time). It was a great coincidence that we had flights departing 15 minutes apart. Lynne and her dad stayed in town to meet someone for dinner. My flight on Virgin America was much more comfortable than my flight out on Frontier.

Back in Colorado

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I’ve returned for an almost annual visit to one of my favorite states. The first phase of this two-week trip was visiting Nancy, my longest friend and her family. Details below pics.

7/27 – Getting There

 The space allotted per passenger continues to shrink. The tray table on my flight to Denver was so tiny it couldn’t hold my travel mug, the pouch too small to hold a book, and the seats didn’t recline. Given that my knees almost touched the seat in front, this was a good thing, however, it made it more difficult to nap.

Nancy picked me up and we drove north, first to her home in Fort Collins and then on to Cheyenne for a concert. The music was too loud even with earplugs, with way too much base. We left early (déjà vu, this happened last time). The volume was about right at the exit to the fairgrounds.

7/28-29 – Visiting Nancy’s Family

We cancelled our planned trip to a rodeo because Nancy developed a toothache and had to have a tooth extracted. That day I shopped and did a little planning for my next trip; it’s always great to have one on the horizon. The next morning I went paddle boarding for the first time in my life, with Nancy and Zach, her son, at Horsetooth Reservoir. I got up, stayed up and want to go again! I indulged in a pedicure while Nancy got her nails done, we tasted chocolate, and when out for yummy meals with Steve, her husband, and Zach.

July 30-31 – Road Trip

Nancy and I left her home early and drove several hours to reach the Crags Trailhead, east of Pikes Peak. The hike was rated “easy”, only five miles with 700’ elevation gain, however, the trail went up from 10,000’ and a couple days in mile-high Fort Collins was not enough to get acclimatized; I was breathing hard. We took it slow.

We had lunch in Aspen, then Nancy dropped me off in Snowmass where I will be attending an art class. I settled into my dorm room and finished selecting photos for this blog post.

Death Vally & the Eastern Sierra

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In March, I spent almost a week in Death Valley and the Eastern Sierra (sorry for delay; I got busy with the rest of my life and forgot to post this entry). I camped in Death Valley with twenty women, three men, and a cheerful nine-year old. The El Niño super bloom was past, but there were still flowers to be seen. See below the fold, i.e. after photos, for details.

Mirages on the horizon                                                                                                                                 red and ochre folds of earth                                                                                                                       warm breezes parch the arid land.

Ravens cry in the treetops                                                                                                                             coyotes yap in the distance                                                                                                                           a pair of grackles sings at dawn.

Desert Gold and other flowers                                                                                                                     dot the harsh landscape                                                                                                                           delicate petals protected in slot canyons.

Devil’s this and Devil’s that,                                                                                                                           badlands and craters                                                                                                                             golden walls and mounds of salt.

Three bright stars, among the millions                                                                                                       Orion’s belt.                                                                                                                                                   A nearly full moon, watches through the night.

Wind rustles                                                                                                                                                 invasive Tamarack trees                                                                                                                                 barely reaching tents nestled among them.

Another day, gusts                                                                                                                                     obscuring the view                                                                                                                                     coating everything with dust.

A row of photographers at dawn                                                                                                                 soft purple glow on snowcapped peaks                                                                                                   tilted striations of sedimentary rock.

Vast, not empty,                                                                                                                                           defined by wind and water,                                                                                                                           rapidly moving, and absent.

© Deborah Hall

3/25 – A Packed Car

I picked up Paget in mid-afternoon, then we drove to Oakland and picked up Carol. My Subaru was filled to the gills. Commuter traffic was starting by the time we left, so we didn’t reach Bakersfield until 10 pm where we spent the night in a cheap hotel.

3/26 – Furnace Creek

We got to camp shortly after noon, set up our tents, and then explored the valley. Carol has never been here before, so we took her to see some of the classic sights. No beautiful salt patterns at Badwater; they were apparently washed away in a big storm last fall. I wonder how long it will take nature to restore them. We got back to camp in time for a shower and swim before dinner: burritos.

3/27 – Hike in Golden Canyon

Though I’ve hiked in this canyon several times before, this is the first time I went all the way up to Zabriskie Point. It was a beautiful hike, definitely worth repeating. A thin cloud cover kept us comfortable. That night we shared a tasty potluck with our fellow campers, with Easter peeps for desert, and a lantern for a campfire.

3/18 – Hike in Fall Canyon

I drove north with a carload of hikers to this canyon north of Stovepipe. A totally different hike than yesterday, more sheer rock and not as colorful. We saw more darting lizards and pair of redheaded black beetles mating.

On the way back the wind picked up and the valley view turned gray. A few of us drove north to check out Ubehebe Crater. By the time we returned to camp everything was covered with a layer of dust (almost as much as at Burning Man). More than half our fellow campers packed up and headed home early. I went to dinner at the restaurant with Ellen, a fellow camper, and slept in my car, a needless precaution. A light rain cleared the air and the wind stopped around sunset.

3/29 – Death Valley to Lone Pine

I drove off while everyone else was still in their sleeping bags and watched the sunrise at Zabriski Point. It wasn’t the most colorful I’ve seen, but a pleasure to watch. After breakfast we packed the car and headed out, with our cracked lips and visions of clean sheets. We made one stop on our way out of the valley, for a short hike in Mosaic Canyon. I fell and broke my point-and-shoot camera, not the first time; I’m sure glad I paid for that extended warranty. We reached Lone Pine in the afternoon, in time for a scenic drive through the Alabama Hills to Manzanar, one of the Japanese internment camps. I hope we never repeat this sad chapter in our history. With one camera down and my Olympus running low on batteries, I shot many pictures with my cell phone.

3/30 – Alabama Hills to Lee Vining

Paget and Carol joined me for sunrise in the Alabama Hills. It snowed overnight and the Sierras were whiter than the night before. I love seeing the first light hit peaks. Then we headed north and went snowshoeing near Mammoth (covered in “Snow Weekends” blog post). I had a late lunch afterwards, a bowl of chili, and, to celebrate my birthday, a glass of wine. Afterwards they led the way to a small hot spring surrounded by snow-capped peaks. It was too hot to stay in long, but the view was wonderful. It was cloudy by the time we reached Lee Vining, so there was no sunset to see at Mono Lake.

3/31 – Mono Lake, then Home

I tiptoed out of the room before sunrise and drove over to Mono Lake. Other than one other photographer, I had the place to myself and spent a peaceful hour or two wandering through the tufa. One our way home, we stopped near Bridgeport for another hot spring soak. This time the temperature was perfect. We got back to the Bay Area before dark.

Snow Weekends

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El Niño didn’t deliver the anticipated whooper rainfall, but it did provide almost normal snowfall in the Sierras, which is much more than we’ve received in our drought-stricken state for several years. I was fortunate to get up to the mountains three times this season.

January 16-18 – Claire Tappan

Ten of the women in my hiking group stayed in a dorm room at this Sierra Club lodge near Donner Summit. It snowed every day so we left our cars in the lot and shoe shoed from the lodge each day.

February 5-9 – Echo Summit

Six of us rented a cabin near South Lake Tahoe. Most of us snow shoed every day. I also went down hill skiing for the first time in over a decade! I stuck to the green runs a bit more than the blue. I had a great time and hope to return next year.

March 30 – Mammoth

Last year I spent my birthday in New Zealand and Australia; this year I watched the sunrise above the Eastern Sierras, then snow shoed near Mammoth. (See upcoming Death Valley post for the rest of my activities this week).

Above San Francisco

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December 12

I didn’t go far, but I’m considering this travel since an airplane was involved. Alex finally collected on the present I gave him for his 30th birthday, one year ago today. We took a 45-minute seaplane tour over the Bay Area. The weather was not optimal, but the view was awesome. (I had to increase the contrast quite a bit to get usable pictures).

Thanksgiving in Virginia

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Nov 23 – Dec 1

It was 75o when I left Miami, 30 o when I landed in Virginia. Burr! (I forgot to pack a jacket and scarf, so I bought some the next day). My sister, Jennifer, picked Alex (my older son) and me up and drove us to her home in the middle of nowhere. I woke up each morning to the sound of a rooster crowing.

We took day trips to Richmond, Charlottesville, and Alexandria (too far, but Jennifer wanted to visit a dog breeder). We got out for a couple short hikes before the rain came. I spent much of time reading, sorting Cuba pictures, and watching too much television. There were ten of us for the Thanksgiving feast prepared by Jennifer’s boyfriend, Michael, including most of our grown children and a couple significant others. After dinner, we had a fun poker game (I lost). Their new dishwasher stopped working the day before Thanksgiving and the oven the day after, but Michael kept us well fed all week. Thanks!