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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
- Matías Reyes, Santa Barbara Mission (1887)
- Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island: A Female Robinson Crusoe (1897)
- Mono Narrows Camp
- White Ledge Peak, Santa Ynez Mountains
- Old Cold Spring Tunnel (1897)
- A Treasure Hunt For Chumash Pictographs and the Vicious Protector
- Bedrock Mortar On Munson Creek, Pine Mountain
- Rock Art Ramblin', Searching For Chumash Pictographs
- 'Akaka Falls, Hawaii & Cliff Climbing Goby
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Latest Dispatches
- 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
- Mark of Conquest; Benchmark and Mortar
- Hat Tip to the Selfless Samaritans In Service to Others
- The Intelligence of Coyote Tobacco (Nicotiana attenuata)
- The Journey of a Root (1907) and Plant Intelligence
- Santa Barbara County Morels
- Hollyleaf Cherries Golden Morph
- Barefoot Prints In Volcanic Ash, Hawaii (1790)
- Skinny-Dipper Detained, Cuffed and Cited at Montecito Hot Springs
- Red Horny Toad
Lunar Phase

Category Archives: Santa Barbara
Chumash Rock Art, Santa Barbara County
These Chumash paintings show little wear from the elements over the last several decades. They are presented here without alteration, but for a slight intensification of the existing natural color. They measure roughly about twelve inches in length. The pictographs … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara County
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Tagged Archaeology, Art, Chumash, History, Indians, Los Padres National Forest, Native Americans, Pictographs, Rock Art, Travel
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6 Comments
Matías Reyes, Santa Barbara Mission (1887)
“Old Matías Reyes lived in Mission Cañon. He used to bring wood to town and sell it.” —Santa Barbara: Tierra Adorada, A Community History (1930) In her book, “Canyon Voices: The Nature of Rattlesnake Canyon (2006),” Santa Barbara resident Karen Telleen-Lawton … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara
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Tagged Backpacking, Camping, Hiking, History, Old Mission, Photography, Rattlesnake Canyon, Santa Barbara Mission, Steelhead, Travel
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4 Comments
Mastodon & Mammoth Sign: Reading Trees in the Santa Ynez Mountains
Santa Ynez Mountains “Elephants’ habit of snapping or uprooting trees could explain why species such as oak, ash, beech, lime, sycamore, field maple, sweet chestnut, hazel, alder and willow can regrow from the point at which the stem is broken. … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara
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Tagged Hiking, Hiking (2), History, Los Padres National Forest, Mammoths, Nature, Santa Barbara, Santa Ynez Mountains, Wilderness, Writing
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4 Comments
Arlington, Cathedral, La Cumbre Peaks Scramble & More
The stairway to Arlington climbing out of Mission Canyon. “Genji climbed the hill behind the temple and looked off toward the city. The forests receded into a spring haze. ‘Like a painting,’ he said. ‘People who live in such a … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara
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Tagged Arlington Peak, Cathedral Peak, Hiking, Hiking (2), La Cumbre Peak, Los Padres National Forest, Nature, Pics, Santa Barbara, Santa Ynez Mountains
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10 Comments
Sage Hill Wildflowers
California poppies on Grass Mountain, Zaca Ridge, Figueroa Mountain 3-26-2016 Around these here parts, in a mild climate with little to no snow, the wildflower blooms mark one of the few striking signals of seasonal change. The go-to sites in Santa … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara
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Tagged Hiking, Hiking (2), iPhoneography, lupine, Nature, Photography, Pics, poppies, Santa Barbara, Travel, wildflowers
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6 Comments













