Today I present some images from a couple of different October hikes in the same area along the American River’s south fork at Folsom Lake. The vibrant hues of spring may have been long faded, but there was still plenty of color to be found — in the Yellow Monkeyflower with its bright red spots, the scarlet Toyon berries, and […]
Mendocino County has such a beautiful coastline that it can be frustrating when we often find access blocked by private property and “No Trespassing” signs. I’m really grateful that the California Coastal Commission is always working to protect the state’s coastal habitats and to improve access to beaches and bluffs. Whenever we get over to the coast for a few […]
Colors, details, and wide vistas — all found on an autumn hike by the shore of Folsom Lake, on and around the Monte Vista Trail. I sometimes wish I could have seen this area before the building of Folsom Dam. It’s clearly very rich in history as well as plants and wildlife.
Some images from my Folsom Lake hike, starting from Granite Bay and heading toward Doton’s Point, in early November this year.
Just because summer is over and the water levels at Folsom Lake are low doesn’t mean there is no life or color along the shoreline. There is always plenty of both, if you can take the time to slow down and look around.
Per Alton Pryor’s book Historic California: Its Colorful Names and How It Got Them, the word Tehachapi is “the Indian name for a creek … recorded in 1853.” After the railroad was built across the mountains in 1876, “Southern Pacific Railroad transferred the name from the old wagon route to the railroad pass.” Several train tunnel openings are visible from […]
How is it possible that it’s been nearly three years since I last hiked at Doton’s Point, on Folsom Lake’s north fork? I can’t believe so much time could have passed already — but it was high time for me to get back out there. Or at least I thought so, until I arrived at Granite Bay and found Park […]
I didn’t shoot a great many photos when we visited Clear Lake last September, but I did take the time to stroll along the lake shore in Nice one morning and found some gorgeous flowers and waterfowl.
It’s been awhile since I hiked the Monte Vista Loop, and we picked a day that was pretty much perfect. It had rained overnight, so there was enough lingering dampness to keep down the dust and prevent the burs and foxtails from being too bothersome. I also didn’t intend to hike the full 3-mile loop, but there was so much […]