We were looking for some ocean views on a pleasantly warm fall day in November and stumbled across this little gem in Topanga State Park. It’s a relatively short drive from the valley up through Pacific Palisades on Sunset Dr. There’s plenty of street parking close to the trailhead on Los Liones Drive if the […]
Tahquitz Peak
If you’re in the Idyllwild area do yourself a favor and go on this hike. We were in Idyllwild to celebrate my birthday and it was definitely the highlight of the trip. Tahquitz Peak is an extremely prominent peak overlooking Idyllwild and features a fire lookout. You’re treated to expansive views of the Inland Empire, […]
Mt. Lee, Hollywood Sign
We were looking for a hike or walk closer to home and stumbled across this “urban” hike right in our backyard. Griffith Park is a gem in Los Angeles offering up a respite from the traffic and commotion, an oasis in the midst of LA. This hike takes you up in Mt Lee to take […]
Lake Katherine
As a final adieu to New Mexico we decided to celebrate 4th of July weekend by backpacking to one of the elusive lakes in the Sangre de Cristo mountains just outside Santa Fe. We’ve been to Nambe Lake many times and nearly every time we ran into fellow hikers raving about the natural beauty of […]
Scorpion Ranch to Potato Harbor (Channel Islands)
During our spring California trip we took advantage of the opportunity to visit Channel Islands National Park. For years I’d always marveled at the few Channel Islands you could see from Hwy 101. The islands are tantalizing close to the California coastline. They’ve also been featured in numerous magazines and blogs I’ve read over the […]
Brins Mesa Loop
We decided to take the long way back from Phoenix and pass through Sedona to finish a hike we had attempted way back in April. Sedona has a wide array of hikes to choose from but we selected Brins Mesa Loop because the trailhead is conveniently located close to Sedona Uptown and its known for […]
Tom’s Thumb
After an impromptu breakfast with friends at Carefree Resort we were eager to walk off Thanksgiving turkey (thank you Whole Foods). We were running short on time but decided on Tom’s Thumb Trail just outside Scottsdale in the McDowell Mountain Preserve. Unfortunately we didn’t realize the park closed at sunset 5:30pm and there were signs […]
Atalaya Mountain
With a fall chill in the air we were on the hunt for a lower elevation hike in the Santa Fe area. I ran across Atalaya Mountain on several different blogs and thought it would fit the bill with some stellar views topping out at just over 9000 feet and it starts on the outskirts […]
Raven’s Ridge
After spending the last week looking at Nambe Lake from eye level we decided to take a different approach and get a commanding view over the lake from Raven’s Ridge. This hike starts at Ski Santa Fe parking lot using the Winsor trailhead. It starts with a series of moderate switchbacks quickly gaining elevation. At […]
Nambe Lake
During the long hot New Mexico summer we were beginning to feel the need to see a sizeable body of water. New Mexico has the least amount of water area (0.7%) of all US States, your random fact of the day. We had heard great things about Nambe Lake a lush alpine lake in the […]