The riches of spring

After having spent the majority of the morning going through my recent images of spring wildflowers, trying to firmly identify each of them, I can tell you without a doubt that I would have never amounted to anything as a botanist. I’ve been using three books and two computer apps, and I’m still not completely sure I’ve got all of […]

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Vernal pool prairie

The vernal pools appear dry, but the wildflowers are popping up everywhere. On my visit the other day, I saw mostly purple Vetch, yellow Hawkbit, and White Hyacinth. But as I continued to look, I also spotted Vernal Pool Goldfields, Little Quaking Grass, Checkerbloom, Valley Tassels, and even Downingia. The signs of life are definitely there to see, if you […]

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Ladybug land

When I first noticed these yellow-and-white irises growing wild at Lake Berryessa’s Steele Canyon Campground, I had no idea that ladybugs had already moved in and were making themselves at home. It was difficult for me to get close enough to see precisely how many of these bright red insects were there; but I did also spot at least a […]

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Taming the flames

As we headed over to Lake Berryessa on Tuesday morning, we were fully expecting to hit some kind of traffic delay on Highway 128 just beyond the town of Winters. I already knew that Cal Fire crews were conducting a controlled burn along the hillsides above Cache Creek on Monday and Tuesday; so it wasn’t a bit surprising to find […]

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The Adventure Continues… Fire Trucks

Just about everybody loves old fire engines, but most people aren’t in a position to collect them. In this episode of Visiting, Huell has a real adventure when he meets a dedicated collector living in Shadow Hills (a northeast suburb of Los Angeles) and explores the historic firefighting equipment that would later be put on display in the LA Fire […]

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Doggy Day 2022

It’s been a few years since I was last able to attend the annual Doggy Day dachsund races at Denio’s in Roseville. My last time was back in 2017, and the event has been on hiatus for the past two years. This year’s festivities were actually pushed back from their originally scheduled date of March 19 to April 23. But […]

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Loco for lupine

Most of the photographers hoping to capture the lupine at Folsom Lake right now seem to make a beeline for Beeks Bight, accessible through the Granite Bay entrance on the north fork. Very much like last spring, when we had a genuine superbloom, the social media posts have popped up and the news helicopters have been hovering. Visitors have been […]

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