The “forgotten” 22nd Mission, San Antonio de Pala, was built in 1816 and serves the people of the Pala Village. Huell learns quite a lot about the history of the mission and the reservation, including a visit to a portion of the mission that is home to the Vivian Banks Charter School; the school is unique in being a public […]
I’ve seen so many turkeys strolling around this part of town for such a long time that these days I normally don’t bother photographing them anymore. But when a flock comes wandering down my street and stops right in front of my house, I can’t resist. Even though these big birds are now an all-too-common sight, it’s still a great […]
This week I have the last few slides showing some of our pets during 1978 through 1982. Sascha, who was part Siberian husky, came home with us when she was a fluff ball of a puppy with beautiful brown eyes. She spent most of her life outdoors, in our back yard; but she happily shared the property with Hondo, one […]
The disappointment of seeing ever-lower water levels at Folsom Lake on each successive visit is only just counterbalanced by the abundant wildflowers and the fact that, so far at least, everything looks very green and fresh. Now is the best time to get out hiking, before everything dries up and the temperatures start climbing beyond the magical springtime range into […]
This colorful sparrow is a new discovery for me, although they seem to live in the area year round. Both the male and female have similar markings. I found these while hiking around Peninsula Campground on the east shore of Folsom Lake.
Today I have an image of each of the three missions featured in Wednesday’s post, San Francisco de Asis, San Rafael Arcangel, and San Francisco Solano. Although I’ve never visited them, these three missions have been more interesting to me, partly because they are all in Northern California. These three missions perfectly illustrate the widely varying fortunes of California’s historic […]
It takes roughly an hour to make the long, winding drive from our house out to Peninsula Campground at Folsom Lake, although sometimes it feels more like half the day. The last 11.5 miles take you along a twisting one-lane road full of blind corners; I’ve had more than one close call when someone came rocketing toward me, using the […]
Huell winds up his tour of the 21 missions this week by visiting San Francisco de Asis, San Rafael Arcangel, and San Francisco Solano — all in the San Francisco Bay area. You may recall the Mission San Francisco de Asis from an episode I featured in October 2018; during that visit Huell learned that this mission contains one of […]
Many times when I’m hiking a dirt trail I have to control a serious impulse to stop every few feet and shoot pictures both ahead and behind me. That’s especially true if I’m walking through a peaceful woodland, if the trail is surrounded by greenery and wildflowers, or if it’s so full of curves, switchbacks, and punishing hills that it […]