Tag Archives: Hiking

Condor Petroglyphs, Death Valley National Park

Posted on February 20, 2017 by Jack Elliott

Two men, a valley, and ten thousand foot peaks. “Who heard the Desert whispering? The gray prospector, hope-wandering that land of vacant sadness, saw through his burning thirst, where from far receding margins gazed the wrinkled ghastly ranges. . . And … Continue reading →

Posted in Santa Barbara | Tagged Archaeology, Death Valley, Desert, Hiking, History, Indians, National Parks, Native Americans, Petroglyphs, Rock Art, Travel | 4 Comments

Gaviota Coast Gallivants: Then Came the Fox

Posted on January 7, 2017 by Jack Elliott

June 2016 I take the kids to the zoo. It’s not a place I can appreciate any longer, but granny bought us a family membership. So we go. The kids scamper through the prison camp, er, zoological garden with great delight. … Continue reading →

Posted in Santa Barbara | Tagged Foxes, Gaviota Coast, Hiking, Landscapes, Los Padres National Forest, Mammals, Nature, Santa Ynez Mountains, Wildfire, Wildlife, Writing | 13 Comments

Tarantula Mating Season, Santa Barbara County

Posted on October 19, 2016 by Jack Elliott

No photos on this blog have ever been staged, but in the interest of honesty I’d like to note that this tarantula, found walking a few yards away, was placed atop this branch in order to allow a better snapshot. … Continue reading →

Posted in Santa Barbara | Tagged Hiking, Hiking (2), iPhoneography, Los Padres National Forest, Nature, Outdoors, Santa Ynez Valley, Spiders, Tarantulas, Wildlife | 5 Comments

The Mighty Chia Seed, Cuyama Badlands

Posted on October 3, 2016 by Jack Elliott

The Cuyama Badlands can be a wicked and terrible place for a human on foot with minimal supplies. Heaved aloft, scorched and desiccated, it’s a land clawed open and washed away by spotty cloudbursts that quench a sparse growth of piñon pine, juniper and sagebrush. … Continue reading →

Posted in Reference | Tagged Backpacking, Badlands, Chia, Chumash, Ethnobotany, Flora, Hiking, Native Americans, Nature, Non-fiction, Travel | 7 Comments

Scotland, Shifting Baseline Syndrome & Your Local Wilderness

Posted on August 9, 2016 by Jack Elliott

Glen Sannox as seen from Cir Mor Saddle, Isle of Arran, Scotland. Such scenic sweeping grassland is not natural, but in fact the result of human agency. “The British Isles, a Roman outpost located at the edge of European civilization, was … Continue reading →