Hiking the Pioneer Express Trail from the parking lot at Sterling Pointe Equestrian Staging Area is a seriously up-and-down experience. There are some great views of Folsom Lake — but this time of the year, you’ll be too busy avoiding poison oak, watching swallowtail butterflies, and navigating up and down the horse-sized changes in altitude to notice the view. No […]
It’s hard not to fall in love with the gorgeous blue-sky spring weather we’ve had for the last couple of days — but I’m also sorry to say goodbye to those cool, grey days, or the ones with ever-changing gray and white cloud formations keeping the sky interesting and unpredictable. It was on such a gray, overcast mornings that I […]
I really enjoy hiking alone, but I’m also aware that I need to pay attention to my surroundings and not make assumptions about safety. The places I tend to explore are generally quite safe — but it is the outdoors, and sometimes the unexpected happens. So I’m always alert and cautious about meeting up with potentially aggressive wildlife or humans. […]
I wanted to get out fairly early this morning, so I decided to stick close to home and chose the bluffs near the Nimbus Dam in Fair Oaks for my hike. It’s been quite awhile since I used these trails — at least two years. Today I was pleased with my choice because I saw very few other hikers. The […]
Here in Northern California, February 2020 was worryingly rain free; things were beginning to look a little dry for awhile. Happily, a series of March storms has given second life to the spring vegetation. Small creeks are flowing, wildflowers are bursting out, and the nectar-eating insects have more than enough to keep them busy. In the spring of 2016, Death […]
The theme for Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge this week is Spring Scenes.
If I’m hiking near Lake Natoma or Folsom Lake in the springtime, there’s just no way I’m going to pass by the gorgeous wildflowers without making a photograph. Some of these flowers I’ve come to know by name, but others remain a mystery to me. I consider it a bonus if I can identify them online and find out that […]