San Simeon Point

Updated on Tuesday, August 9, 2011 at 4:57PM by Catherine

This morning I left the house about 7:30 and hiked up to the tip of San Simeon Point and back. It's not hugely different from the hike I like to do up to Ragged Point. It's not nearly as far up the coast, but I don't arrange a ride, so it ends up being in the same ballpark. Close to 17 miles instead of 21.

The other difference is that I feel more inspired to walk out onto the bluff trails, which make the trip a lot longer. The 21-mile Ragged Point hike pushes so close to what is achievable (for me) in one day that I'm often loathe to add even another mile.

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Ghost Coyote and Tule Elk

Updated on Friday, July 29, 2011 at 6:36PM by Catherine

I would hate to tool all the way up the coast to Trinidad and not get in at least one world-class hike. But the timing was tight. After all, I had to get home and get back to work on that novel. So an all-day hike didn't seem to fit.

I had hiked at Point Reyes National Seashore once before, but never out to Tomales Point. And that's where the tule elk

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Trinidad

Trinidad BaySome of you may know (okay, anybody who gets anywhere near my social media presence on Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, or Google+ will know) that I just got back from a motor home trip to Trinidad. Not the island of Trinidad (which I doubt I would choose for a driving trip) but the tiny town of Trinidad, California.  It's up in the redwoods

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Vicarious Hiking, Anyone?

Updated on Tuesday, July 12, 2011 at 8:03AM by Catherine

Today I got to do, for the fourth or fifth time, what I consider to be the world's best hike. This is a highly subjective rating system. Granted, the Big Sur coastline is world-class scenic. But I'm giving this hike big points for ease of getting to the trailhead, and comfort of accommodations at the trailhead.

You see, the trailhead is my front door.

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Look Up and See the Whale

Almost every day, unless I'm traveling, or on a more strenuous hike somewhere else, I walk my dog Ella on the boardwalk at Moonstone Beach, in my little town of Cambria.  Now and then I'll run into a local I know.  But, since Moonstone Beach Drive is lined with motels and inns, most of my fellow walkers are tourists.  Some walk hand in hand, enjoying the view.  Which is nice.  Many stop to take photos.  Also nice.  And others are on their cell phones, lost in the conversation, eyes trained toward their feet.  And this I find perplexing.

I have nothing against cell phones per se.  And I

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My Boots Are Disco

I know when you hear the phrase disco boots, your mind goes in a very distinct direction.  For the purposes of this blog post, it’s the wrong direction.

My new hiking boots are disco.  This is not a compliment.

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