One of the best outdoor writers in America (IMHO) is Tom Stienstra who writes for the San Francisco Chronicle and has done so for well over three decades. In 2008 he wrote an article titled Soul-soaring views await from perch above Heart Lake. In it he beautifully described the hike to and the views from …
Author: E
While in the general area quenching our thirst to find out about the Corona Satellite Calibration Targets we had seen signs mentioning the Sonoran Desert National Monument and wanted to go explore. Sitting about 60 miles southwest of Phoenix it comprises 496,600 acres of cactus forests among untrammeled plains and rugged mountain ranges. It was …
Arriving in the area just in time for the annual chili cook-off sponsored by the Whiskey Runners Motorcycle Club we decided to find a different spot from our normal place near the base of Saddle Mountain. Turning off of West Courthouse Rd onto West Salome Highway right under the Highline power lines we saw some …
Heading up through Sonoma county to our destination for the Memorial Day weekend we found ourselves in crap Petaluma traffic which is so often the norm. We had been dancing around with a very nicely put together 2nd gen Tacoma on the highway and had offered up a reciprocated “Hey man, nice truck” in the …
Heading back west for more desert exploration we stopped first in order to check out the Ocotillo Wells SVRA. That first night, instead of camping in the SVRA itself, we took the opportunity to stay on the fringes of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, camp near the mouth of Fish Creek Wash and use the primitive …
Heading back west we decided to spend some time in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park but first stopped by the Ocotillo Wells SVRA information center and decided to explore that area for a bit. Since this was a Tuesday in December the place was virtually empty. After speaking with both a volunteer and a ranger in …
Often we find ourselves looking for interesting places to explore by using a mapping app or website in satellite view. Sometimes we come across an item or area that peaks our interest but is unlabeled and a mystery. I hate unsolved mysteries and so throw myself into solving them by any means necessary. A couple …
Our time in the Central Oregon area had eventually come to an end. We headed south out of La Pine before turning off Highway 97 to eventually head west on Highway 58. Not long after transitioning to the Willamette Highway we saw a sign directing us to yet another waterfall and so made the quick …
We had already visited both Paulina Falls and Paulina Peak and it was still only around noon. We decided to keep on exploring and visit this interesting volcanic feature that had peaked our interest when we had seen it while up at the Paulina Peak summit. Once we got back down the hill from the …
Towards the end of our time in central Oregon we made it our mission to explore as many waterfalls and geologic wonders as we could. On this day we left our campsite in the McKay Crossing campground outside of La Pine and headed east to check out several areas of interest including Paulina Falls and …