Hiking to the top of Half Dome

The infamous cables, straight up the rock face for the final push to the summit

Going straight up!

The last 500 feet of the Half Dome hike (17 miles roundtrip) are the craziest.  You're faced with a shear rock wall of granite that you looks unassailable.  And yet, the cables which were installed almost 100 years ago (proper upkeep along the way), are a great way to get up there.  You pretty much pull yourself up, with 2x4 pieces of wood every 10 feet or so at the poles.  Gives you a spot to stand without worrying about slipping down, and take a breather, or let someone pass.  That's right, the cables are a two way path, despite being about 4 feet wide.  People need to figure out who goes first and where to move to the side with their packs on.  Tight squeeze!  Sometimes it's just easier to to sit and get most of your body out of the way and rest your feet on the pole:

It's a solid workout, but the views up top are worth it, to go with major feeling of accomplishment which hits you on top.  The 360 degree views of Yosemite are some of the best out there, although most people would prefer to look at the glorious Half Dome instead of be on top of it.  Being 4,800 ft off the valley floor, you get a whole new perspective of the park.

One of the iconic pictures on top of Half Dome is out on a ledge overlooking the valley.  You're out there on a ledge with pretty much nothing below you, feeling on top of the world.  Here I am flexing the muscles, having conquered the dome:

Kicking back with the feet over the edge

So yeah, it's worth the trip to the top, even when you're climbing the cables and look down:

See if you can find the people standing at the base of the cables (they're mighty small)

And of course, there's that happy feeling when you've made it back down off the cables, knowing that you accomplished and saw greatness on top:

Half Dome

That's me in the red shirt overlooking the valley almost 5000ft below

Just spent 3 days in Yosemite, with the highlight being hiking Half Dome.  An unbelievable hike, with some of the best views I've ever seen.  The last part of the hike is up a shear cliff, where you use cables to help pull yourself up the granite face.  Once believed to be "perfectly inaccessible", it is now limited to 300 people per day.

Here are a few pictures from the top, with more to come soon.  Such an epic hike, and great time in Yosemite, there will be several posts about this majestic National Park.

Exploring the central coast

 Here are a few pictures from some road tripping north of Santa Cruz.  Perfect beaches off the highway, out of sight, that you have to walk through fields of brussel sprouts to get to.  Can't beat a beach with few people in the middle of summer.  Hope you're enjoying yours!

My local beach

Spent the day at the beach, straight relaxing, soaking up a beach without the masses that come in the summertime.  Just a simple 7 minute walk from the house, and you're there, just a wee bit o paradise.

Devil's Peak - Big Sur

First I hiked peaks

Then I camped by a river

 Back in Big Sur, hiking, camping, swimming and this time, swatting flies.  Hiked to a couple of peaks in the area, in the early summer heat full of blue skies and a light ocean breeze.  Truly magical up there as always, and after sweating it up, a dip in the Little Sur River was quite rewarding.

Most California visitors know about June Gloom, which was in full effect along the coastline.  When I turned up Palo Colorado road, it was a foggy 54 degrees.  After 8 narrow, curvy miles up the road, way above the fogline, the temperature was at 73 and sunny.  Perfect for some outdoor adventures.

After parking the car, and loading up a daypack, I hiked up Skinner Ridge with views over the trees, hills and fog covered ocean.  After a dip down into a valley, it was straight up Devil's Peak to an open meadow with views such as this:

Then around the bend, and up to the next peak, Mt Carmel (4417 ft) which used to have an telegraph pole stuck in the ground at the apex for climbing for higher views.  Or so it showed it a guidebook from 1988.  While the pole had crumbled over the last 25+ years, there was still a large granite rock to climb to the top for complete 360 degree views.  This was my turning around point, two peaks over 4000 feet, and time to head back to the parking lot and switch packs.

Grabbing my large pack with my tent and sleeping bag, and filling up the water, I hiked 2.5 miles down to the Little Sur Camp, with views of the amazing Pico Blanco mountain up above.  I would be camping at it's base, among pine trees, poison oak and the sound of numerous cascading waterfalls in the river.  After setting up the tent, it was straight into the river to wash off the dust of over 12 miles.  Fresh water never felt so good.  Such a peaceful spot, with birds, water rushing over rocks and myself.  Read a bit, ate a bit, and slept a lot.

Next morning I hiked out, drove back to Santa Cruz and went to work.  That's how I roll.  Totally worth the trip down there to kick it with Mother Nature in Big Sur.  Always a pleasure.

Rainy season is over, the dryness is kicking back in

Up in the wilderness with the numerous mountain ranges that make up Big Sur

Peace and quiet at the Little Sur River

                                 


I took off early Monday morning to have time to cruise through Big Sur.  I would be going to the southern section, a good couple of hours away by car.  After passing Monterey and Carmel, I was in Big Sur country, full of crazy rocks, waves, towering redwoods, wildflowers, epic mountains and a whole lot of empty space to be explored.  This is one of the best places in the whole world, encompassing the ocean, the mountains, the rivers, the valleys all in one place.

I hiked the Prewitt Ridge Loop trail, heading up through switchbacks opening up onto epic views of Sand Dollar Beach and the coastline.  At the first fork I went right (found out later I should've got left) which led me through thick foliage for a good hour of rough hiking through an untamed trail.  At my first break, I checked out my calf that felt like it had been scratched through my pants.  One side showed no scratch, the other side, well, that's where the tick had buried himself.  Used the old fashioned fingertips method to get that bugger out.  With the fighting through the bush and the tick, I was about done with the rough hiking, and I looked and saw this ridge with an oak tree in the distance.  That place looked amazing, so I headed there to set up camp.

Such a perfect spot for a campsite, right off of a trail (which I would later learn was the correct trail).  Set up camp and soaked up the view.  Straight relaxing and living it up with Mother Nature with no one else within a few miles.  Can't beat that.  Perfect way to spend time in Big Sur, especially after hiking on the wrong trail.

Sometimes you have to tilt the earth to see it all

Camping in paradise

Just a snippet from a perfect campsite overlooking the epicness that is Big Sur.  If only every Monday was like this...

Springtime

Here's a short video from my backyard, full of Monarch butterflies going crazy with the blossoms.  Feels good in that California sunshine!  And if you can't get a good quality feed, believe me, there were tons of butterflies for most of February flying around the eucalyptus grove behind my house and when those blossoms came out, they went nuts.

Hiking time!

Another epic day of hiking in Big Sur.  I checked off 4 hikes from the amazing "Day Hikes Around Big Sur" guidebook in one day.  Almost 4000 feet elevation gained over 8+ miles in those hikes.  Great views, sights, sounds and smells along the way.  On an overcast day that turned quite sunny, there was almost no one else hiking, making for a perfect experience with nature.  Always good to get away from everything, lose that cell service and get your hike on.

Big Sur is a perfect blend of the dry Southern California hikes, mixed with the foresty hikes of Northern California.  There are those tall redwoods, the wild sage shrubs, yucca, numerous California oaks and the classic state flower, the California Poppy.  The coastline is rugged, and heads straight up hills and mountains, going inland through canyons filled with trees and creeks.  It's an area that no matter how many times you visit, you have to pull over and enjoy the view numerous times.  Love that place.

The first hike was the Boronda Trail, a "very strenuous" hike that gained 2,500 feet in 2.5 miles straight up to a camp overlooking the ocean.  The sweat was pouring, and in between green meadows full of wild mustard and poppies, there were scattered oaks on the way up.  Here are some pictures:

Big Sur: California coastline and Poppies

Straight up!

More pictures

More visuals from the day down in Big Sur:

Stormy, rough tide at Garrapata Beach in Big Sur, with the waves kicking in crazy aqua blues every few sets.  It was going on high tide, and the waves kept taking over the beach and rolling around the beach with a strong current, mesmerizing the viewer.

Big Sur Coastline

100+ year old tunnel through a mountain to the beach

Wine country

When a friend asks if you want to go wine tasting in a limo through Napa, you do whatever you can to get work off.  And then head up to SF to meet up with everyone and then head in style through wine country.  That's what happened this Valentines Day.  A perfect, sunny day, full of laughter, early 2000s music and wine.  Quite the shenanigans around estates/villas/mansions.  Got sophisticated with an amazing picnic lunch on the grounds of V. Sattui, to complement their full selection of wines only available at the estate.

Here are a few photos from the day:

Picnic at V Sattui Winery

Robert Mondavi Winery

Gloria Ferrer Vineyards

Cause you love those seals!

HEARST CASTLE

What the common folk down below see looking up top on the "enchanted hill"

So a trip to the southern section of Big Sur wouldn't be complete without popping in to see the rich, grandeur of Hearst Castle.  William Hearst waited til both his parents passed, and he gained full control of the property and family moneys to start building this "ranch". It took almost 30 years, underwent many renovations along the way, such as expanding the outdoor swimming pool twice.  There are still a few unfinished parts, but overall, it is nuts.  So much of Europe and past histories are there, along with ornate designs built under a century ago.  Truly a gem, it is worth the stop on any California trip.  If you are in the area, that is.  Not exactly close the main spots in the state, it is often the focal point of trips, as well as the elephant seal sanctuary nearby.  Here are some pictures:

La Casa Grande, his house on the hill.  Spanish church styled bell towers are easy to see from all over

Casa del Sol, known for epic sunsets over the ocean.  Yes, this is one of 3 guest houses

Palms, blue skies, and California's largest private home

Busty!

The infamous Neptunes Pool, twice enlarged and now under a new renovation

One of the wildmen guarding the front door to La Casa Grande

Average dining room in California

Private theater that seats 50.  Watched some home videos with Charlie Chaplin and other famous people from the 1930s

Sekhment, an ancient Egyptian god with the head of a lioness and bust of a woman.  Oldest art on the premises

Hola!

The indoor swimming pool, underneath the tennis courts.  He designed it so you dive into the night sky, and then come up into the beach, a reverse of sorts