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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
- The Origin of the Name "California" and the Island Myth
- Lower Lion Canyon, Sierra Madre Mountains
- About
- Santa Barbara Shore Whaling (1870-93)
- Meadow Camp (Dick Smith Wilderness)
- Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island: A Female Robinson Crusoe (1897)
- A Treasure Hunt For Chumash Pictographs and the Vicious Protector
- Language of Forest Closure; Assault on an Ancient Right
- Dick Smith Calling a Condor, Piru 1970
- White Ledge Peak, Santa Ynez Mountains
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Latest Dispatches
- Lobster Poachers?
- Dick Smith on Forest Access
- Old Mission Sycamore Whacked Again
- Bald Eagle, Manzana Creek, San Rafael Wilderness
- When Rains Fall, Will USFS Close Our Forest? The Coming El Niño
- Language of Forest Closure; Assault on an Ancient Right
- March of the Mustard; The Spread of Noxious Weeds
- Mark of Conquest II: Benchmark and Mortar
- Save Old Mission Sycamore … __ __ __ …
- Raking the Forest: Anderson, Trump, Kuyper
- Initials of J.D. Reyes (1907)
- Last California Grizzlies Seen In Santa Barbara National Forest? (1926)
- Eccentric Artifact, San Marcos Foothills Preserve
- Fog Drip Morels
- Naming Santa Barbara’s Modoc Road
Lunar Phase

Category Archives: Santa Barbara
The Great Valley Oak Death Rattle, Fish Creek Camp
‘Tis yet another devastating blow. Like the death of the live oak of Mono Narrows Camp. The immolation by wildfire of the disjunct relictual stand of Ponderosa pine along Dry Lakes Ridge. And so too the palisades of tall timber … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara
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Tagged backcountry, Backpacking, Hiking, Hiking (2), Los Padres National Forest, Nature, Outdoors, Santa Barbara, Travel, Wilderness
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2 Comments
The Case For Renaming Los Padres National Forest
“I love the feeling when it falls apart.” –Red Hot Chili Peppers, Desecration Smile “By virtue of and pursuant to the authority vested in me by the act of June 4, 1897, 30 Stat. 1, 11, 36 (U.S.C., title 16, … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara
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Tagged Chumash, Hiking, History, Indians, Landscapes, Los Padres National Forest, Native Americans, Pictographs, San Rafael Wilderness, Santa Barbara, Santa Ynez Mountains
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3 Comments
Ancient Artifact: Eccentric Chipped Stone Crescent
“Orr recalls only surface finds of crescents in the Santa Barbara area of California. He states that crescents have been found in late sites but feels they are early intrusive crescents brought in by the late inhabitants of the sites. … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara
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Tagged Adventure, Anthropology, Archaeology, Artifacts, Hiking, History, Los Padres National Forest, Native Americans, Public Lands, Santa Barbara, Wilderness
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1 Comment
Condor Man
Sespe Wilderness The condor soared for hours on its nine-and-a-half-foot wing. The great vulture had drifted one hundred miles without a single flap floating on plumes of heat blowing skyward, the radiant land shimmering under the sun far below like … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara
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Tagged Adventure, Condors, Fiction, Hiking, Los Padres National Forest, Nature, Nature Writing, Public Lands, Santa Barbara, Wilderness, Wildlife
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1 Comment
Lion’s Mane, the Smart Mushroom
“H. erinaceus can be considered as useful therapeutic agents in the management and/or treatment of neurodegeneration diseases.” A comprehensive review of the therapeutic effects of Hericium erinaceus in neurodegenerative disease (2014) “Hericium erinaceus, an edible and medicinal mushroom, displays various … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara
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Tagged Backpacking, Foraging, Hiking, Lion's Mane, Los Padres National Forest, Mushrooms, Nature, Public Lands, Santa Barbara, Wild Foods, Wilderness
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3 Comments













