Off the beaten track

Spring is an excellent time to explore around the shores of Lake Berryessa, as we recently did on our day trip during the first week of April. I discovered this unobtrusive trail near the Lupine Shores campground — guarded by a rather suspicious ground squirrel — which took me around the headland in a wide loop. I found the peace […]

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Osprey love

After recovering from a drop in numbers some 25+ years ago, Ospreys seem to be thriving again in Northern California. I see them frequently whenever I visit Clear Lake or Lake Berryessa — especially in February through August, when they’re always busy nesting and raising their young. On our recent day trip to Steele Canyon at Lake Berryessa, I noticed […]

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Scenes from Steele Canyon

A couple of days ago I drove over to Lake Berryessa with the Big Guy, and we spent the day at Steele Canyon Campground, near the south end of the lake. There is so much to explore all around this gorgeous lake that anytime we go over there, I find something new! Of course, my very favorite time of year […]

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On the far side

Our cold gray January weather isn’t exactly motivating me to get outdoors and start moving; I’m already longing for warmer weather. But for some reason this morning I started thinking back to early last May and the week we spent in Napa County, west of Lake Berryessa. We were almost exactly equidistant from Clear Lake and Berryessa. I found the […]

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Picking up the pieces

It’s been awhile since I last posted anything, and I’m just now starting to recuperate from the craziness that was my Christmas and New Year’s. Highlights included a trip to Texas and the Big Guy spending a few days in the hospital there — thankfully, his usual state of health has returned! I realized this morning that I have quite […]

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Beautiful Berryessa

It was early May, with cool temperatures and the skies threatening rain. At the end of a 2-hour drive from home, we did some exploring along the west shore of Lake Berryessa and found only a handful of other people — and no one at all in this quiet spot. The wildflowers were abundant, and the day seemed just about […]

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The scenic route

Last month as I was heading home from Clear Lake, I decided to explore a completely different route. This took me to Middletown, in the southern end of Lake County, via highway 29, and then southeast through Napa County, along the back side of Lake Berryessa. These were small two-lane roads, completely new to me, and I stopped several times […]

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