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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
- Dick Smith on Forest Access
- Smith's Pool
- When Rains Fall, Will USFS Close Our Forest? The Coming El Niño
- Mountain Lion Standoff, Santa Ynez Mountains
- Dick Smith Calling a Condor, Piru 1970
- Hiking Is Not A Crime
- Hiking Is Not A Crime; Hiker's PreCheck Forest Entry Pass
- The Pine Mountain Punisher: 22 Mile Day Hike
- Language of Forest Closure; Assault on an Ancient Right
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Latest Dispatches
- 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
- Mark of Conquest: Benchmark and Mortar
Lunar Phase
Tag Archives: Backpacking
Dick Smith on Forest Access
Kiddin’ around on La Cumbre Peak, the warm apricot glow of that slanted winter light. “And it was one of those days in the high pines when the sun and sweet breeze get into your underwear.” —Don DeLillo, Underworld (1997) … Continue reading →
Bald Eagle, Manzana Creek, San Rafael Wilderness
A friend captured this snapshot while sitting in camp creekside waiting for me to show up. We had left town at different times, arrived at the trailhead apart, and met up later in the afternoon. I arrived just in time … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara
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Tagged backcountry, Backpacking, Bald Eagles, Hiking, Los Padres National Forest, Mazana Creek, Nature, Raptors, San Rafael Wilderness, Wilderness, Wildlife
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2 Comments
Language of Forest Closure; Assault on an Ancient Right
Santa Ynez River once hosted the largest steelhead run in California south of San Francisco. “National Mall site approved for memorial to fallen journalists The site, which has a direct view of the Capitol, was chosen to evoke journalists’ role … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara
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Tagged Adventure, backcountry, Backpacking, Hiking, Los Padres National Forest, Native Americans, Nature, Outdoors, Santa Barbara, Santa Ynez Mountains, Wilderness
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6 Comments
Raking the Forest: Anderson, Trump, Kuyper
Yellow lupine on Pine Mountain, Los Padres National Forest, Ventura County (May 2025) I came across the first quote below back in 2019 when reading M. Kat Anderson’s extraordinary book, Tending the Wild: Native American Knowledge and the Management of … Continue reading →
Last California Grizzlies Seen In Santa Barbara National Forest? (1926)
“As a result of his 1903 visit to California, Roosevelt was to create the Santa Barbara National Forest out of the Pine Mountain and Zaca Lake Forest Reserves. This was the land that McKinley had set aside on March 2, … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara
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Tagged Adventure, Backpacking, Grizzly, Grizzly Bears, Hiking, Los Padres National Forest, Natural History, Nature, Santa Barbara, Wilderness, Wildlife
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5 Comments
