BOS to SFO

As a former geographer, I never tire of marveling at the changing landscape of our planet, so it's always a treat to get stuck in a window seat on an airplane, especially when the views aren't obscured by heavy cloud cover. Come along for a quick flight from Boston to San Francisco...

Did you recognize any of these places? Hope you enjoyed the flight!

The Presidio - San Francisco

For Father's Day a group of us decided to head over to San Francisco and find a spot on the beach at the Presidio. The weather was gorgeous and the views spectacular. While my friends vegetated in the warm sand, I walked around and captured some shots of the highlights of this national treasure...

First stop was Fort Point, right under the Golden Gate Bridge...

Then I strolled back to the beach along Crissy Field...

Just a short hike from the beach is the entrance to the Golden Gate Bridge. There are fantastic views along the pathway leading to the visitor's center...

So much to see and so little time. I'll have to go back. Click HERE to find out more about his wonderful recreational area.

Yosemite National Park

I made it back to Yosemite before the summer heat and crowds set in. What a perfect time to arrive: great weather, snow capped mountains, and waterfalls flowing at their peak. My hiking buddy and I used the pleasant Yosemite View Lodge in El Portal as our home base and spent three glorious days exploring the park.

The Yosemite View Lodge offers convenient, comfortable,

and clean lodging just a few miles

from the Arch Rock Entrance...

As soon as we dropped our stuff off in our room,

we headed into the park...

The Volvo is still going strong...

First stop...Bridalveil Fall...

Here's looking the other direction across the valley

at Ribbon Fall...

Skyviews...

Biking is a great way to get around...

Wonder if those two guys knew who was behind them...

The picturesque Chapel...

Sentinel Bridge...

Yosemite Falls...

That's me with Half Dome...

Half Dome - it wasn't open yet to climbers...

One of the meadows near the Chapel...

Watching the climbers scale El Capitan is a fun pasttime...

Those little dark specks are the crazy rock climbers...

El Capitan - 7,569 ft...

Looking toward Bridalveil Fall and the Cathedral Rocks...

Photographers waiting along the Merced River

for just the right shot...

The next morning we hiked up to

Vernal Fall and the Emerald Pool...

Vernal Fall...

Lots of mist from the falls...

The view from the top of the fall is well worth it...

Emerald Pool...

Looking back down the trail...

Dogwood in bloom along Tenaya Creek...

We took another hike to Mirror Lake...

The next morning we headed to Wawona and

stopped at the Tunnel Viewpoint...

Wawona Hotel...

We had enough energy left for one more hike

up to Mariposa Grove to see the giant Sequoias...

That's me and my hiking buddy...

Yosemite is always a fun adventure with terrific hiking trails. If you'd like, check out my photos from my visit during the autumn.