Saturday, May 26, 2012

Las Trampas Regional Wilderness, CA

I'm lucky to live so close to Las Trampas Regional Wilderness and its 4,636 acres of open space. Once you are there, you really feel like you are far removed from the urban hustle and bustle just a few miles away. There are several entrances to the park, but my favorite is at the end of Bollinger Canyon Road in San Ramon. And my favorite hike is along the stunningly scenic Las Trampas Ridge. 

Luckily for me, the older Z gets, the more he likes to hike, and since I don't hike by myself anymore, he makes a great companion - although he does tend to hike at a much brisker pace than I do; hey, I do have to keep an eye out for photo ops and stop frequently to take advantage of them, right? That slows me down a bit! Now put on your hiking boots and let's go. This one only takes 1.5 hours...







If you go here, be sure to take the Mahogany Trail off of the Las Trampas Ridge Trail. It goes through particularly pretty terrain.

Mission Carmel, CA

I can't get enough of California's wonderful missions. I've been to nine of them that I can recall and have a goal to visit all of them eventually, so that's twelve more to go. 

However, I particularly like San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo, named for the Archbishop of Milan, and I try to visit it every time I'm in the Carmel-Monterey area. It's simply beautiful. No wonder there's always a wedding underway when I show up! Strolling around the lovely grounds always makes me feel like I am back in Mexico, too. 

There's so much to photograph at Mission Carmel, and this time the weather was on my side - no May gray or June gloom, which this area is famous for...











This particular mission was founded in 1770. Today it is an active Catholic parish and has an interesting museum and a small elementary school on its grounds - what a nice place to go to school, eh? Have you been to any of California's missions?

Click HERE to see photos from my visit to this area a couple of years ago.

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA

Carmel-by-the-Sea has long been a popular weekend destination for those of us living in the San Francisco Bay Area. It's the perfect place to forget about your troubles, worries, and stress and just relax and soak in the beautiful natural surroundings. It's the quintessential, charming beach enclave. It can be a bit on the pricey side, but if you're lucky and plan ahead, you can often snag an internet special and save yourself some money, which you'll need once you get there! 

That's exactly what we did in early May. Along with three other couples, we booked ourselves into the delightful Briarwood Inn, just a few blocks from the main shopping area along Ocean Avenue. So what is there to do in Carmel? Well, come take a look, but leave your car behind, put on your walking shoes, and grab your wallet...

Carmel Beach is popular for its pristine sand and waters... 
 
 
 
 A stroll along Scenic Drive will definitely bring on some housing envy - these places may be small, but they're worth millions...
 
 
 
Here's our little inn...
 
 Carmel has loads of restaurants, shops, and art galleries... 
 
 
 
 
 Maybe you remember Carmel's former mayor - Clint Eastwood? 
Here's one of his restaurants, Hog's Breath Inn. We ate there and it was quite tasty...
 
Window shopping anyone?
 
 
 
 
 
Carmel loves flowers...
 
 
 
 
 Even the fire station is cute...
This is only a small sampling of what Carmel has to offer. You can get in your car and in a very short time find yourself at Pebble Beach or Monterey to the north or Big Sur to the south. Summertime can bring on the fog; we were lucky and had brilliant sunshine our entire stay. If you're ever touring the central coast, make sure to check out Carmel-by-the-Sea. And if I ever win the lottery, that's where you'll find me!

Saturday, May 19, 2012

Along Interstate 5

I've been relying more and more on my little iPhone for my photography needs. I always have it with me, and it's just so handy to use. The quality certainly isn't the greatest, but it really allows for more spontaneous photography. 

A while back I added Instagram to my iphone aps. It's a fun way to take otherwise ordinary shots and turn them into something a bit quirky or moody. I love it and use it all the time. (If you happen to be on Instagram, you can follow me and I'll follow you back. My username is finlandia).

Here is a short series of iPhone shots that I collected as I was driving, or rather sitting in the passenger seat, from Anacortes to San Ramon along Interstate 5 in April. In case you've never driven that route, it's quite a lovely drive and passes through a multitude of scenic landscapes. 

Come along for the ride...

Sunrise near Mt. Vernon...
Seattle Space Needle...
 Entering Oregon...
 Passing the big rigs...
 Remember these? 
Found at a rest stop in Oregon...
Farmland north of Eugene...

 Approaching Mt. Shasta...
 A pretty rest stop...
Weed, anyone?
Hope you enjoyed the ride! Do you have a favorite iphone photo ap?