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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
- Fish Falls, Santa Ynez Mountains
- Petroglyph, Santa Ynez Mountains
- On Adventure
- Rock Art Ramblin', Searching For Chumash Pictographs
- Matías Reyes, Santa Barbara Mission (1887)
- Eating Poison Oak
- The Ice Can Stove: A Brief History
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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
Barger Canyon Arch
Looking through Barger Arch toward Santa Barbara. A coast live oak tree obscured for most of my life this frontside feature of the Santa Ynez Mountains. Arroyo Burro Trail, which cuts the mountainside nearby, was one of the first trails … Continue reading →
Posted in Santa Barbara
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Tagged Arches, Barger Canyon, Hiking, Inspiration, Landscapes, Los Padres National Forest, Musings, Nature, Photos, Santa Barbara, Santa Ynez Mountains
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4 Comments
Gladiator Games of Bulls and Bears: A California Blood Sport (1800s)
This post is the first entry in a series of four: Second: Gladiator Games of Bulls and Bears: Recollections of Jacinto Damien Reyes (1880) Third: Gladiator Games of Bulls and Bears: Lassoing Grizzlies (1904) Fourth: Gladiator Games of Bulls and Bears: Sport … Continue reading →
Posted in California
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Tagged Bear Baiting, Bears, Blood Sport, Bulls, Grizzly, History, Non-fiction, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Ventura
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3 Comments
Condor Point
Condor Point There had been a spring up there at one time. Condor Point Spring seeped up through cracks in the sandstone, flowed weakly across the mossy slab of bedrock and into a long, broad concavity. The steady trickle puddled … Continue reading →
Posted in Nature, Santa Barbara County
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Tagged Central Coast, Condor Point, Condors, Dos Pueblos Canyon, Ellwood Canyon, Gaviota, Goleta, Hiking, Mountains, Naples, Ocean, Pacific, Santa Barbara, Santa Ynez Mountains, Silhouette, Sunsets, Vista, Vultures, West Camino Cielo
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6 Comments
Goleta at Dusk From the Mountain
A sunset view overlooking Goleta from Gibraltar Road atop the Santa Ynez Mountains.
Posted in Santa Barbara County
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Tagged Gibraltar Road, Goleta, Santa Barbara, Santa Ynez Mountains, Sunsets
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1 Comment
The Origin of the Name “California” and the Island Myth
The Origin of the Name “California” “There ruled on that island of California, a queen great of body, very beautiful for her race, at a flourishing age, desirous in her thoughts of achieving great things, valiant in strength, cunning in … Continue reading →
Posted in California
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Tagged Cartography, Cortes, Gulf of California, Maps, Nicholas de Fer, Santa Barbara, Sea of Cortes
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16 Comments













