Memory Monday, Week 120
August 2000 — Family gathering in Albia, Iowa.
Hiller Tunnel
We discovered the Hiller Tunnel at Malakoff Diggins State Park purely by accident, after we had already hiked most of the Diggins Loop trail and were hot, thirsty, and tired. Our main interest at that point was in getting back to the car for lunch — but once we noticed the sign, we didn’t hesitate before turning off the main […]
The Adventure Continues… Songbird of Manzanar
Yesterday I wrote about two very inspiring men who lived through the forcible relocation of Japanese-Americans during World War 2. Today I’m continuing that theme with this episode of California’s Gold from 2005. Manzanar War Relocation Center was located in the Owens Valley of the Eastern Sierra Nevada mountains, and although the camp barracks were dismantled long ago, the past […]
The art of endurance
I recently finished listening to an audiobook called Enemy Child: The Story of Norman Mineta, written by Andrea Warren. Norman Mineta was born and grew up in San Jose, California; in 1942 he was an 11-year-old Cub Scout when he and his family were sent to Heart Mountain War Relocation Center in Wyoming. After the war his family were very […]
Memory Monday, Week 119
August 2000, Restoration Days in Albia, Iowa — Nothing says summertime in small town America like a parade featuring the Shriners and their cars, both big and small!
At Chinese Gulch, Part 2
This was a section of trail I had been hoping to hike on our previous visit to Salt Point State Park in September 2019. During that trip I found a book in our rental house, The Hiker’s Hip Pocket Guide to Sonoma County, and took a few quick notes, which I’ve quoted below. Although, as I said in yesterday’s post, […]
At Chinese Gulch, Part 1
We spent a few days at the coast back in early September, and one afternoon our explorations took us along a quiet trail north of Stump Beach to Chinese Gulch. I’ve already shared a few of my photos from that hike, but there was so much more. Not too long after we crossed the wooden bridge, we found the trail […]
The Adventure Continues… Auburn
Every time I pass by Auburn’s old courthouse I want to stop and take pictures, but up until now I’ve never managed to actually do it. And even though a few things have changed in Auburn’s historic district since this episode of Road Trip first aired in 2003, watching Huell make the rounds has motivated me all over again. I’m […]
Memory Monday, Week 118
On her first trip back to Iowa in 2000, my mom spent a week and a half getting to know her half-brother, Everett, and his family. There were so many wonderful people to meet, and she also had the chance to revisit some familiar places from the years she spent there as a child. Of course, it still wasn’t nearly […]