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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 Privateer; Subcontractor, Dept. of Unauthorized Forestry
- The Day Hell Hit Santa Barbara; Third Hottest Temperature Ever Recorded on Earth
- About
- On Adventure
- Rock Art Ramblin', Searching For Chumash Pictographs
- Petroglyph, Santa Ynez Mountains
- Matías Reyes, Santa Barbara Mission (1887)
- The Sisquoc Falls: A Little Known Region in California Explored (1884)
- Eating Poison Oak
- Raking the Forest: Anderson, Trump, Kuyper
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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

Tag Archives: Santa Barbara
Lost Hikers and Search and Rescue
A winter scene in the Santa Ynez Mountains, Los Padres National Forest. “No, I can’t say I was ever lost, but I was bewildered once for three days.” “I wouldn’t give a tinker’s damn for a man who isn’t sometimes … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara
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Tagged Hiking, Los Padres National Forest, Lost Hikers, Nature, Santa Barbara, Santa Ynez Mountains, Search and Rescue
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17 Comments
Fight With a Condor: Experience of a Forest Ranger in Santa Barbara County (1902)
Although the forest ranger mentioned in the newspaper article below is Joseph Montgomery, I wonder if it may actually have been a brief about Josiah T. Montgomery, for whom Montgomery Potrero atop the Sierra Madre Mountains is named. I do … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara County
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Tagged Condors, History, Los Padres National Forest, Nature, Newspapers, Santa Barbara, Sisquoc, Vultures, Wildlife
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1 Comment
Wilder Than I Thought
I stood daydreaming with my back to the river when a loud slap broke from behind me, the sound of something smacking the surface of the water. It was pushing toward 100 degrees and I had just climbed out of … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara County
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Tagged Adventure, backcountry, Beaver, Hiking, Los Padres National Forest, Nature, Santa Barbara, Santa Ynez River, Wilderness, Wildlife, Writing
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13 Comments
A Treasure Hunt For Chumash Pictographs and the Vicious Protector
A mural in Lompoc, Santa Barbara County depicting a seaside Chumash village scene. Little of what Bill said made reasonable sense. He stood on the other side of his termite infested, dry-rotted, wobbly fence, which was missing slats and had … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara County
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Tagged Adventure, Archaeology, Art, Blog, Chumash, Native Americans, People, Pictographs, Rock Art, Santa Barbara, Travel, Writing
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12 Comments
Gabe Surfing Sandbar, Hurricane Marie 8-27-14
Gabe Venturelli making it look easy. Good to see a friend, a Santa Barbara local, getting it like not many people do. In the middle of summer, no less. Pacific love. “Look at this shot of Sandbar yesterday,” my wife … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara
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Tagged Hurricane Marie, Hurricanes, Inspiration, Nature, Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Sandbar, Santa Barbara, Sports, Surf, Surfing, Video
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7 Comments













