We had mild weather over the Christmas period and we were able to hike the trail on the west side of Kenna Cartwright Park, choosing our trails to avoid muddy conditions. We chose Tower > Ponderosa > Big Pine and found relatively dry trails. We worked our way over to the Lava Lookout Trail. We explored the 40 million year … Continue reading →
In early January we finally had enough snow to snowshoe at higher elevations. We chose to do the Stake Lake Trails for our first venture. The depth of the snow was sufficient to snowshoe, but there were still lots of hazards below the snow since the snowpack hadn’t yet set up (consolidated). We were out for about 2 hours on … Continue reading →
A favorite loop route to hike in any season is in the Balancing Rock Hills. The main feature is Balancing Rock which stands on a sidehill of a gully leading down to Kamloops Lake. The hike to the first viewpoint is about 1 km. The pillar has a different look from each side, so it is worth the hike … Continue reading →
Endless Night is a crime novel, written by Agatha Christie. When it was published in 1967 it was received well and she had listed it herself as one of her favorite books. It is unlike most of her many novels. It is narrated by the main character, telling the story from a later time. It moves along almost like an … Continue reading →
December saw little snowfall and the temperatures were mild so hiking season continued on. In most of our years we have had to do some “snow stomps”, hiking in snow, sometimes with traction devices, then we shift over to snowshoeing once the snow becomes deeper. This year we kept hiking the lower elevation trails. On this day, we hiked the … Continue reading →
We hiked both sides of the canyon in Peterson Creek Park before the first snowfall in a loop route, staying close to the rim. A few images are shared here. All photos by the author. Click an image for a lightbox view and a caption. A short Tik Tok video also shows some moments from the hike: … Continue reading →
On a grey December day with fog on the hillsides, I opted to hike the long sandy beaches of Mission Flats. I started near the landfill and hiked east along the shores of the river. Remnants of an old buried vehicle poked above the sand on a view to the east. I looped back around the two islands and headed … Continue reading →
Streets of Laredo is the sequel to Lonesome Dove, set 20 years later. The characters who have survived are older and the borderlands are less wild, that is until a nineteen year old bandit (Joey Garza) holds up trains and kills many people. Woodrow Call is now older, but he still takes on bounty hunter work, and at this time … Continue reading →
On a mild December morning I hiked from Valleyview Arena to the silt cliffs benchlands across Highland Drive. The triangular-shaped area is accessed by a steep single track trail. There are double tracks and single tracks on the relatively flat benchland, but deep gullies cut the area into three areas. I hiked all the established tracks, then crossed Highland Drive … Continue reading →
On a grey but mild December day we hiked from the Mountview Drive trailhead in Dallas up the Pussywillow Trail. There was snow on the trail but we were able to do the hike without traction devices. On the benchland, we continued east into the Blackwell trails. Fog shrouded Harper Valley to the north. We hiked up through open forest … Continue reading →
Tree of Hands is a psychological thriller about three people, each with his/her own story, but there is a small connection between them that results in an unpredictable ending. The main story is about a child kidnapping, an act by an unstable grandmother to help her own daughter who lost a child to illness. In Ruth Rendell’s books there are … Continue reading →
On a grey December day I started a 2 hour hike from Valleyview Arena, following the main trailhead up into the hills of Valleyview Nature Park. There was a bit of snow on the ground, but it was fine for hiking boots and a pole for stability. The route was a series of loops, across benchlands, gullies, and ridges. The … Continue reading →
On a greyish late November day we hiked a double loop route from Rose Hill Park. We started by hiking down a single track trail toward West Juniper. We traversed north onto Rose Hill Ridge to enjoy the views. We crossed Rose Hill Road and followed double tracks up Joyce Gulch, passing an old homestead. Our route followed … Continue reading →
Blackout is a book which won the Hugo Award, the Locus Award, and the Nebula Award in 2010 – 2011 for the best science fiction novel. It is part one of a two-part series, followed by All Clear. Although it is fundamentally a science fiction story, there is a considerable level of historical accuracy, and the characters of the time … Continue reading →
On a grey late November day we hiked into Peterson Creek Park from the Mariposa Trailhead. We continued up the canyon, then descended down to cross the creek. We followed trails that stayed close to the canyon rim on the east side. There are a number of trails on the east side, but we prefer the ones that stay close … Continue reading →
Just above the Lac le Jeune Road south of the industrial park is the old site of the Ironmask Mine. Back in 1888 coal was found on what is now Coal Hill, on the slopes of the family-run Guerin Ranch. In 1892 iron was found by a prospector working for a syndicate in the hills to the west … Continue reading →
