A Beautiful Hike into Onomea

On the way to Onomea Bay is are some amazing vistas of the bay and separate beaches including an amazing botanical garden. The hike down to the bay displays some amazing vistas of the bay, tropical plants and a real journey into it seems a world untouched in a very long time.

The botanical garden here is world class and filled with amazing specimen plants. I'll save that for another timeframe for use to visit because the hike down to to the beach area is spectacular. You can just hear the waves crashing and inviting all the come down immediately to see the beautiful views here.

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Doesn't this look great now that we've made it to the bottom? A beautiful waterfall and stream emptying into the ocean create this beautiful vista point. There's no-one down here which makes that place feel even more special.

To view other worlds today go visit http://showyourworld.blogspot.com/

Skywatch Along the Red Road

Finally the storms have past our island, even though the rain is welcomed and the garden is replenished. I long to spend some time outdoors and enjoy the beauty around me.

The skies are blue today with soft billowing skies, its a nice time to reflect by the shoreline and just enjoy the beauty of my surroundings.


To see other wonderful skies today go visit http://skyley.blogspot.com/

Graffitti Work - Its Over the Top

While I was visiting some fun and exciting places in the city (sfo) early in  January, I happened to see an exciting alleyway in one of my favorite haunts on Valencia Street. In fact there's alot of artwork on painted buildings all over the neighborhood which makes it a very visual area to walk through and see whats new or changed on a particular building.  Here are a few of my favorites from the many you can see on this street.

Not seeing any official name for this long alleyway, I'm dubbing it graffiti alley and its pretty cool -  I let the images speak for themselves.

The message in this work just says it all.....

Here I am hanging out with some new friends I identify with....I think we may have alot of things in common.

All the works are quite fantastical if I can say this word - a little fantasy alot magical.

The imagination is just over the top and the amount of craftsmanship and detail with all this artwork quite amazing, don't you think?

even the little details and added window boxes have so much humor in this this expansive installation.

 

I think I like this work the best, I seem to fit right in....colorwise that is :)

I love seeing fun public art like this especially when you just happen upon it. Valencia Street in San Francisco is just one of those exciting places where you can see this happening all the time.

This is my world visit on Tuesday to visit other worlds go to http://showyourworld.blogspot.com/

A January Walk In Mendocino

 

What am I doing at 6 o’clock in the morning walking around in freezing temperatures, let alone the harsh wind chill factor along the cliffs in Mendocino Town, about three hours drive north from San Francisco.




Tossing in bed all night, I couldn’t get to sleep and caught a glimpse of the purple and red skies starting to break. Automatically I grabbed the camera, my coat and a scarf and ran immediately to the cliffs. Knowing that winter skies are some of the purest skies to photograph in the morning, I knew I was in for something special. Opportunity only comes to those that sacrifice that warm bed especially on a very cold morning. And boy did I feel it immediately, with the wind whipping freezing artic blasts of air into any exposed skin not protected from the immediate rush of chill, I though again about heading back to my warm bed.



 The sun is coming and casting golden light to the village on the edge of these magnificent cliffs.









Despite all the crazy thoughts, I trudged on and blocked out all thoughts of the brutal cold. Giddy with the morning scene unfolding before me and only a few like souls, I spent the entire morning explore all the various nooks and vistas along the rugged coastline.

 

There are a few trails leading all the way down to little coves filled with roughed up timber. I decide to just follow the coastal path along the cliffs affording wonderful vistas of the town and the surrounding areas by the water



I explore many of the trails and try to take many pictures but the cold and harsh winds just burn my fingers, fighting for refuge in my thin rain coat, which I accidentally grabbed on the way out the door.



A beautiful throne chair lit up and inviting me to just sit and admire the new day rising to great everyone brave enough to walk in this trail.






 Finally morning has appeared and my stomach is grumbling, time to have a hearty breakfast. At least an inspiring morning walk deserves a big country breakfast. Don’t you think?






This was a pleasant hike and one I would not repeat again with an early morning trek so I’m glad I did this on a whim since these are the only pictures I took along the shoreline that day.



To view other scenic sundays go visit http://scenicsunday.blogspot.com/

What a Sweet Place

 

This is always what I say when I visit the town of Mendocino, about three hours north of San Francisco, a beautiful community on sheer cliffsides, fronting the blue Pacific ocean. I visited before the New Years with some friends to enjoy a different New Years celebration and it was a treat to be here during non-peak season and enjoy the town without the hordes of tourists.

 

What I didn’t expect to see during this cold, damp winter season was some actual gardens still presenting some beautiful blooms especially considering the cold artic front that has been approaching from the last few days in the New Year.

 

I happened across many beautiful homes and gardens hidden behind grand picket fences with Victorian facades. This one is a garden leading to a local bakery/eatery with an outside dining terrace.

 

A sweet gate welcomes you into the garden and up to the terraced area.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I spotted this still blooming abutilon by the stairway, it was such a nice greeting especially for such a cold and windy morning.

 

 

-isn’t this just the type of bench you would love to have in your garden, or at least sit on to enjoy the entire garden unfolding before you?

 

I’ve never seen these bright fushia colored gazanias before, really intense hot pinks and orange throats, very cheery on such a drab morning.

 

 

The last blooms of this hybrid rose before the eminent artic blast coming that night along with I’m guessing is some type of milkweed or viburnum shrub in the background.

 

 

Can’t avoid that sweet bench again in the corner….

 

 

This is a nice combination of borage and a pink flower I couldn’t identify.

 

The hebe in the border was flush with purple blooms and the last of the roses starting to bud were still putting on a show.

 

To visit other worlds this Tuesday go to http://showyourworld.blogspot.com/

A Sea Cliff Hike to Lands End

It is one of those wonderful sunny mornings in the city when the sky is cristal blue, beckoning you to be outside and close to the ocean... I took a friends bike out to Lands end by the Cliff House to walk the new trails connecting Lands end to China Beach and then to Baker Beach. You can almost walk in a nature preserve all the way along the edge of the hills and cliffside without bumping into skyscrapers or condo complexes.  The trails are nice and flat making it accessible for everyone to traverse.

I take the stairs down to the concrete observation area next to the Cliff house to observe the waves crashing and the beautiful vistas of the Marin headlands...its really brisk but clear, so you can see all the way down to Point Reyes in Sonoma.

I've always dreamed about visiting Sutro Baths during its heyday and playing in these huge pools, they are still fun to walk around and pretend...I can visualize it during its peak filled with screaming children.

Solitary croppings with holes cut out draw my attention and I look around for wildlife...

- like these huge and ominous looking crows...just waiting for something.

I love that the residents and city took alot of effort in preserving this area and getting it right, also they made it accessible to all including disabled access ramps and walkways. The area is amazingly untouched even though its highly desireable development grounds.

Walking through these gnarled and jumbled limbs of monterey pines and cypress trees is like going through an ancient forest out in the middle of nowhere, only we are in the edge of San Francisco.

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This area is special, it should be enjoyed by all especially on days like this don't you think?


This is my contribution to watery wednesdays to view others go to http://waterywednesday.blogspot.com/