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“He may be just a tramp, a guy that likes to roam about this great country without any special aim, just to thank the Lord for these beautiful mountains.”
-B. Traven, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
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“. . .here, where there are still the silences and the loneliness of the earth before man, . . .”
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Recently Read
- Eating Poison Oak
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- Indian Head Test Pattern (1939)
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Latest Dispatches
- Otter Point, Gaviota Coast
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- California Name Origins: Joseph Wood Krutch, The Forgotten Peninsula (1961)
- The Extraordinary Rains of August 2023
- Howling Coyote, San Marcos Foothills Preserve
- Repatriation of Native American Remains and Artifacts
- The Mysterious Three Stone Stack
- A Sea of Debris and Plastic Microtrash
- The Twelve-Inch Experience, Baron Ranch Corridor
- Figueroa Mountain Bug Bloom
- Discreet Sensitive Habitat Signage, Sespe Wilderness
- Indian Head Test Pattern (1939)
- Spring Potrero Mutilated, San Marcos Foothills Preserve
- Big Bummer At Baron Ranch: Trashing the Place To Save It
- Renaming Los Padres: Names Of the 1930s
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Monthly Archives: April 2020
Wind Poppy (Papaver heterophyllum)
Rancho Nuevo Canyon, Dick Smith Wilderness (Early May, 2012) “It is possible to be indifferent to flowers—possible but not very likely. Psychiatrists regard a patient’s indifference to flowers as a symptom of depression. It seems that by the time the … Continue reading →
Long Lost Trail Discovered, Hiking In A Time Of Lockdown And Distancing
Jack-in-a-crack doing what he does. Wandering. Searching. Hunting. Looking. Seeing. Sometimes discovering. Looking to get my hike on, and so surveying various trailheads through my car window during the COVID-19 governor’s lockdown order, I saw more cars parked than expected, … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara
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Tagged Adventure, Archaeology, Artifacts, Hiking, Hiking (2), History, Los Padres National Forest, Nature, Santa Barbara, Santa Ynez Mountains, Wilderness
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19 Comments
Baby Blue Eyes Wildflower
A single baby blue eyes now blooming in the folds of the Santa Ynez Mountains, standing tall and strong though alone, maintaining proper social distancing from family and friends in the background, beneath a blue spot of sky above. Happy … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara
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Tagged Hiking, Hiking (2), Los Padres National Forest, Nature, Outdoors, Pics, Santa Barbara, Santa Ynez Mountains, Wilderness, wildflowers, Wildlife
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4 Comments
The Sign
Santa Barbara backcountry The men emerged at dawn from the confine of darkness with strained faces wet and ruddy as writhing newborns and the forested land materialized before their bloodshot eyes by the minute in the lightening day, ever larger, … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara
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Tagged Adventure, backcountry, Backpacking, Fiction, Hiking, Nature, Non-fiction, Outdoors, Santa Barbara, Wilderness, Writing
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12 Comments
Farewell To The Rock, Gibraltar Party Place
El Roca Grande circa 1909 overlooking the Santa Barbara littoral, Pacific Ocean and Santa Cruz Island in the distance. Note the metal poles and cable handrail. “In the 1970s this was The Place. Well, if you were a teenager on … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara
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Tagged Adventure, History, Landscapes, Los Padres National Forest, Non-fiction, Outdoors, Rocks, Santa Barbara, Santa Ynez Mountains, Travel, Writing
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2 Comments
Jack Elliott's Santa Barbara Adventure 