2023-01-22 04:22
Though I’ve always been a wanderer (I wandered away from my Dad when I was 3 years old and found by the fire department!), I haven’t always catalogued my journeys with written wo… Read More
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2023-01-14 07:18
I’m on winter break from work and I have no wheels. The story behind my truck is a long one and it’s emotional for me. So, I’ll skip that part of the story. The worst part… Read More
2023-01-01 06:11
Happy New Year (& what a freakin’ year it’s been)! Time is an amazing thing – the years now just fly by. And so the passing of one year to the next doesn’t mean m… Read More
2022-12-23 07:36
Last Saturday, December 17, I took my usual hike of late – 10 miles, 5 out and 5 back on Black Star Canyon Road. No permit required for parking, no off-roading or windy mountain drivin… Read More
2022-12-18 04:48
Last Friday, December 9, I set off into Black Star Canyon after running some morning errands. Even with the late start, the weather was still nice and cold -- low 50s F, just how I like it… Read More
2022-12-09 05:03
December 3rd, my youngest son’s 18th birthday, I took a nice ten mile hike up Black Star Canyon, to one of my favorite easy to get to, out in the open, secret places. What’s the… Read More
2022-11-25 03:39
November 11, I went for a long awaited hike in my local canyons (Aliso and Wood). This time I set out only a few hours before sunset. So, it was another race against the clock, which meant n… Read More
2022-11-11 07:35
A fortnight ago (October 28), I took my first autumn hike of the year. The joy set in less than 1.5 miles up the trail. Joy always sets in. A mile and a half is about normal. I always won… Read More
2022-10-12 22:18
Most people who have read Mark Twain’s Adventures of Tom Sawyer (or who have seen a movie adaptation) might think that Tom gets the better end of the deal when he charges a fee for the… Read More
2022-09-02 15:21
I don’t mean to brag but my left arm now has 95% of its full motion back. It’s been about eight months since my slide down those slippery rocks in Holy Jim Canyon. I feared that… Read More
2022-08-25 03:51
I’ve been away from trails for a bit, a LONG bit. I don’t even want to look up the last date I ventured out. I’m sure it was spring. It depresses me. I really need that con… Read More
2022-08-06 05:25
The trail running community in my part of of this amazing and perplexing world said good-bye to a lovely woman, an exceptional woman this year. I knew her as Annie and I am blessed to have k… Read More
2022-06-07 16:07
Spring semester ended late May. It felt like a starting gun for me to squeeze into 2 weeks all that I have neglected. I have neglected much. But that is always the case (though I’m con… Read More
2022-04-30 21:32
April 15 – hiked to Baker’s Cross (near Black Star Canyon) for the best Stations of the Cross hike in town. Just about 2 miles long, you can almost double that by hiking up the s… Read More
2022-03-29 20:34
I originally planned my hike for Saturday with a ten+ miler that I knew would kick my butt. My desire was to get absolutely thrashed. And thrashed I was when I returned from Black Star Canyo… Read More
2022-03-27 03:39
I was looking forward to trying out some steeper hills to test out my calf on Wednesday (3/23). So, I drove up Pacific Coast Highway to Alta Laguna Park in Laguna Beach (the Top of the World… Read More
2022-03-26 00:51
Having suffered no adverse effects from my the flagpole hike, I set out for Step Two this past Monday (3/21). I chose a nice and easy hike in Aliso and Wood Canyon, and really didn’t p… Read More
2022-03-22 18:03
I’ve grown weary with the piled-on injuries status, and a little worried too. I mean, is this how it’s going to always be now, am I out? With the mountains turning green and st… Read More
2022-02-04 06:42
So, my leg, or rather, my left side has not fully recovered from my fall at Holy Jim Falls. I don’t yet have full motion of my left arm (specifically, my shoulder) and it hurts terribl… Read More
2022-01-19 14:16
I’m still laying low because of my leg (but that’s really an excuse because there’s other things stopping me from progressing, mainly myself!). Anyway, my calf is still rat… Read More
2022-01-15 05:23
When my doctor said that I could take short, flat hikes, I was sure to clarify exactly what he meant by flat (because the road can be flat at an incline). It didn’t even occur to me to… Read More
2022-01-05 04:12
With lots of December rains in Southern California, I looked forward to hiking along rushing creeks and searching out waterfalls during my winter break from work. The saddest story is what c… Read More
2021-12-30 07:14
My left side, particularly my arm, ached for several days after my fall hiking to Holy Jim Falls on the 17th of this month. The left knee pain seemed minor, and the arm wasn’t getting… Read More
2021-12-24 19:48
It’s been nearly four years since I’ve driven up Trabuco Canyon, parked in the Holy Jim lot and ventured up that trail at the base of Old Saddleback. I love Trabuco Canyon and Ho… Read More
2021-11-25 06:07
Last Saturday (11/20), I got out early for Maple Springs Rd. Well, I woke early, but didn’t get out terribly early (about 7 am). I love Maple Springs Rd., though I don’t choose i… Read More
2021-11-19 05:36
We had a little heat wave last weekend, in the middle of fall. That isn’t too unusual for California. We can have a heat wave in January. I just wasn’t mentally prepared. (And if… Read More
2021-11-14 06:17
One of the gems within walking distance from my front door: The Headlands. It takes some balance and focus but just keep on going until you find a doorway in the rocks Read More
2021-11-13 07:27
Gone are my wanderings of late. There’s reasons for that. I’m working on other things. I’m concerned. I’m pre-occupied and I’m watching. I’m at peace at h… Read More
2021-08-15 02:02
I wish it wasn’t so hot, and it’s not even that hot! But it is for me. So heat sensitive I am in my older years (though I’m still in my fifties), I’ve been off the tr… Read More
2021-08-01 05:33
The cost of living is quite high on the west coast, too high for my tastes. Except in the summertime. When much of the state spends millions to air-condition their homes, we don’t even… Read More
2021-07-23 07:10
So, I’ve got everything at home and at my job dialed in. I’ve been cleaning and organizing. The garden looks great. I’m on top of the banking, taxes and everything financia… Read More
2021-06-30 12:42
Went out on a four mile hike the day before Summer Solstice (June 20) in my local hills off of Las Ramblas. This was the second of back-to-back hikes, which is rare nowadays. June Gloom stil… Read More
2021-06-25 04:55
6/19/21, two days before the solstice, I drove off to Wood Canyon in Aliso Viejo for a bit for exercise (about a 20 minute drive). I warned myself beforehand – just keep mo… Read More
2021-06-11 18:36
I took a lackadaisical lunch hike on Wednesday (June 9). Lackadaisical, because I feel like I need to ease into things. Spring time’s still in the hills (though the tall grass is now b… Read More
2021-06-09 05:02
May 23 I finally got in some trails. (And I haven’t been out since.) With a lunch in my pack, I headed out early afternoon for a little known park in Laguna Beach named Moulton Meado… Read More
2021-05-23 06:22
Two huge things happened in my life during this pandemic, and neither of them have anything to do with the pandemic. But if it wasn’t for the pandemic, I would have been able to deal w… Read More
2021-05-18 03:17
So, I have been away (but away much longer from this blog than from my home!) For 10 days in April, I left this lovely, yet chaotic, seaside town of mine and travelled further east tha… Read More
2021-04-11 06:15
I closed up March (3/30) with a hike up San Juan Trail to Cocktail Rock and back. I was coming up on 24 hours into a fast when I headed out up Ortega Highway into the Cleveland National Fore… Read More
2021-04-09 16:13
March 26 was a lovely day to take a long hike with my husband in search of Horsetrough Spring. The skies were blue, it was sunny, but not hot. It was a perfect spring day. My husband pointed… Read More
2021-04-06 06:12
Thursday March 25, I specifically set out for flat trails. There’s only one place best for that. I headed out to Arroyo Trabuco (the Great Suburban Trail!) of course. I guess that I wa… Read More
2021-04-03 06:48
Thursday (March 22) I took another march in my stomping grounds where I let my feet lead the way. I turned off onto Wood Canyon because well, that’s the way of the creek, and I think t… Read More
2021-03-29 21:39
A lot of people head out first thing in the morning to hike, bike or run in the coastal hills. But with the weather as cool as it has been and the time change, if I’m going local, I re… Read More
2021-03-26 15:22
In between Black Star and Silverado Canyons is a canyon named Baker’s Canyon. I’ve hiked there just once some years ago on Good Friday up to a giant cross up on a hill there that… Read More
2021-03-25 03:37
Tuesday, March 16, I took another trek to Chiquito Falls. They are still dry, even with recent rain but the trail, as usual, magical. 9.5 miles with 2,500' of elevation gain is pretty… Read More
2021-03-19 05:39
Saturday, March 13, I got out early for some trail time after two days of rain. The storm brought snow to our local mountains. Though I love hiking through snow (a light snow), my only pos… Read More
2021-03-16 04:44
We got a couple of days of rain in the first week of March, so when it let up, I headed out to Chiquito Falls (off of Ortega Highway in the Cleveland National Forest). The creeks had a littl… Read More
2021-03-07 06:25
I closed up February with a wonderful adventure on the 28th in Black Star Canyon. Yes, I was back in that canyon once again. Quickest drive, plus I get a paved road right up to the trailhead… Read More
2021-03-05 06:19
2/26/21 I decided to celebrate my newfound strength from refueling on food after coming off an extended fast. I could think of no better way to celebrate than to hike a big loop in my local… Read More
2021-03-02 04:47
My hiking-running-wandering adventures have become especially focused on secret places lately. I need to get away and set things straight, and I can do that in a secret place. By “secr… Read More
2021-02-11 01:07
Hiked up Black Star Canyon Road last Thursday (2/4) with breakfast in my pack. Despite the crowds at the bottom canyon (and the awful graffiti, which is sparse but there, not to mention th… Read More
2021-02-09 03:15
The trails have gotten so crowded during the pandemic, that it is best to leave the weekends mostly to others and venture out myself on weekdays. I should clarify that when I write “cr… Read More
2021-02-05 05:32
This past Saturday (January 30) I covered some new territory on a point-to-point hike in the same mountains that I always hike, the Santa Ana Mountains (home to Old Saddleback or Saddleback… Read More
2021-02-03 02:27
I honestly thought that I had probably never mentioned fasting in this blog before. But I did a quick search just to make sure, and lo and behold, I’ve mentioned fasting about a half d… Read More
2021-02-01 06:03
I started this past week strong by getting in a hike early on, Tuesday 1/26, in between storms. I chose Black Star Canyon, just after sunrise. And it was ccccold (that’s my literary at… Read More
2021-01-28 05:53
Last Friday, January 22, I left about 6am to meet up with my friend Emmett in front of the Christmas tree farm on Black Star Canyon Road. Originally, we had planned to hike to Santiago Peak… Read More
2021-01-26 06:32
I am a few hikes behind, so I’ll make January 17th’s hike quick, as it was somewhat quick (around 6 miles) and also since it was much the same as the hike before that on the 14th… Read More
2021-01-21 04:22
This past Thursday, January 4th, I took off in the morning for a loop out of Laguna Beach into Aliso and Wood Canyons. I was greeted by a field of deer at the bottom of Mentally Sensitive Tr… Read More
2021-01-18 04:53
The world’s gone crazy. It has, hasn’t it? I mean hasn’t it? Confusion and chaos has run amuck. And it looks like my generation got caught asleep at the wheel (What generat… Read More
2021-01-01 06:58
So here we are again, the end of another year. What a strange one indeed. I surely didn’t see this one coming: Pandemic, telecommuting, son’s illness, and much, much more. It&rsq&hell…Read More
2020-11-29 22:16
The best thing about the holidays is having my boys home. I have two off at college now. One is out of state and the other is still in California, close enough to come home for Thanksgiving… Read More
2020-11-28 04:09
My outlook has shifted drastically lately. Things have been snowballing in my mind and I believe in my spirit too this month. And as a result, I wake before dawn, without effort, every day… Read More
2020-11-18 19:04
I have been yearning for Maple Springs Road for a while now. And then the Silverado fire happened (which wasn’t in Silverado) and Santiago Canyon was closed for travel. I was afraid th… Read More
2020-11-14 07:03
I woke at 5 am on Veterans Day, which is a federal holiday that isn’t observed by most of the population. Pretty much only government or bank employees are off work – all of th… Read More
2020-11-07 07:29
Wow. 2020. After the last hike, my first hike since July, the skies turned gray with smoke from the Silverado Fire. Funny, I had been dreaming and contemplating about heading out to Silverad… Read More
2020-10-29 05:34
It took a few more days than I thought before I finally grabbed my pack off the kitchen table and put it to my back. You see, among other things (remember, when it rains it pours?) I e… Read More
2020-10-16 06:01
My parents ingrained many phrases into my head growing up. We were a house of phrases. Wouldn’t you know, these phrases turned out to be true. My dad for example always said, and proba… Read More
2020-07-27 07:17
For a long time I have been wanting to revisit my meltdown on The Main Divide back in August 2013. It’s been nearly 7 years since that nearly fateful day. Yet I think about it time and… Read More
2020-07-24 17:46
Wednesday (July 22), I blocked out time in “The Schedule” to get in a 10+ mile loop, beginning at Moulton Meadows in Laguna Beach. I began at the top of Mentally Sensitive wher… Read More
2020-07-21 23:26
Monday, June 20, I put myself on a schedule, written out the night before on a steno pad that I always have with me (except when I’m wandering). I really needed to do this – with… Read More
2020-07-16 06:20
July 8, on a Wednesday afternoon, I decided to head out to Laguna Wilderness and Crystal Cove for a change of scenery. Wow, those trails are hot out there, and virtually all of them complete… Read More
2020-07-14 06:14
Behind (as usual) in life. Heat is rising in Southern California, so I’m staying in close to the ocean as my way of coping with it. July 6, I managed to get out pretty late in the afte… Read More
2020-07-10 06:21
For a while, things opened up in California. I am still working online. But restaurants opened (with limited seated and masks regulations) so we were able to get in a celebration dinner for… Read More
2020-07-08 05:58
Got out for another evening hike on the first of July, 2020. It’s summer now, so if I can’t wake at the crack of dawn to hit the dirt early, it’s best to go ahead and get s… Read More
2020-07-06 06:18
Saturday, June 27, I got the pleasure of driving my youngest son out to Warner Springs, California (about 95 miles southeast of Dana Point) for a sleepover at his friend’s house for hi… Read More
2020-07-05 04:10
Friday, June 26, I headed out for another evening hike. I am really liking the long evening hike thing. Instead of ending my hike with warm (or hot) weather, with the evening hike, I s… Read More
2020-07-01 05:17
Wednesday, June 24, I got out for a hike with my middle son who is heading off to college in late August. Great times for me right now getting to hike with my boy. We took this hike along Sa… Read More
2020-06-26 07:52
Last Monday (June 22), I headed out to Las Flores for a hike along the Great Suburban Trail – Arroyo Trabuco. This wonderful suburban trail, if you’ve ever been to this blog befo… Read More
2020-06-22 06:43
June 17, I didn’t wake early as planned. Surprisingly, that didn’t stop me from heading out to Black Star Canyon. I looked at weather reports first, and seeing that the high in S… Read More
2020-06-16 03:05
June 9, 2020 – Rock-it / Meadows Lollipop Loop Much needed late afternoon hike – didn’t begin until around 3:30 pm. I took my sweet ole’ time, taking time to c… Read More
2020-06-09 18:49
June 5, I still choose to hike locally, especially since I’d rather sleep in a tad, til about 7 am, then sit around drinking my two cups of coffee with stevia and heavy whipping cream… Read More
2020-06-08 05:21
Starting off June with much needed time on trails. June 2nd, I was out once again on The Big Loop @ Aliso/Woods (plus some little detours): 12.41 miles, 1,404' elevation gain. It was absolut… Read More
2020-06-03 04:51
May 27, 2020, it was Thursday last week that I set out pretty late in the morning for local trails once again. FINALLY. What a glorious day for a person stricken with wanderlust. The Shelter… Read More
2020-05-25 23:07
Spring semester officially ended for me yesterday (Sunday, May 26). I have submitted all my grades. All "paperwork" has been completed. It is finished. Which means of course, it's now once a… Read More
2020-05-18 06:16
About a month into Shelter-In-Place (#COVID19) I began experiencing some arch pain, first in my right foot, then in my left. I ignored it at first. Why? Because I'm 55 years old and I suppos… Read More
2020-05-03 04:48
My middle son (the oldest still at home) took up running a few weeks into this shelter-in-place. He runs a couple of miles around the neighborhood and every day had been asking me if I wante… Read More
2020-04-19 05:59
March 26 was the last time I hit the trails. I think that I didn't blog it because I'm too sentimental about it. To write a blog post means to miss my old life. My life before the COVID19 pa… Read More
2020-03-26 17:42
I believe it was March 20 when the governor made it official and ordered a shelter-in-place for California to help slow the spread of COVID19. With off and on rain, I was eager to hit some t… Read More
2020-03-24 16:04
March 19 (Thursday) Social Distancing was the talk of the town, but there was still no official shelter-in-place order. I had been converting all my classes to online and learning the softwa… Read More
2020-03-21 16:35
This past Tuesday, March 17, we got another break in rains. We were not in a statewide shelter-in-place order yet, but practically everything had closed down: schools, libraries, bars, dine… Read More
2020-03-19 15:13
With my teaching assignments going online, and my children all off from school (2 youngest @ home and oldest still in college dorm), life has been altered (quite disrupted) to say the least… Read More
2020-03-14 19:37
Just before my family's (and much of my entire country's, and others') routines and plans for the next month or so came to a screeching halt, and just before this week or so of rains, I made… Read More
2020-03-10 06:09
I am kind of a baby when it comes to replacing my hydration pack. I have been very happy with my Ultimate Direction Wink (except for its bladder) and have purchased it more than once, perhap… Read More
2020-03-06 05:53
Sunday March 1, weather reports said rain, so I didn't do a mountain hike/run as planned (And I was thinking big! That is my nature, my eyes are always bigger than my "stomach" -- not so muc… Read More
2020-03-03 22:41
This past Friday, I got out for a version of the Big Loop at Aliso/Woods Canyon Wilderness with a friend. We attacked this ("small") version of the Big Loop clockwise. Generally, I do the Bi… Read More
2020-03-01 18:56
Last Friday, February 21, I got out for some much needed trails (so few and far between!). For this hike (& run), I was fortunate to have a friend come along and so my goal wa… Read More
2020-02-24 07:07
February 16, I completed my 55th revolution around the sun. To commemorate the completion of that revolution, I decided to drive out to Corona for a hike up Bedford Road to the Main Divide… Read More
2020-02-04 23:31
Like clockwork, I came down with a cold a day or two before Calico (1/26/20). Honestly, I didn’t take very much care in eating healthy or getting good sleep in the weeks prior. My body… Read More
2020-01-25 04:58
For some years there during my late thirties and early forties, I ran road races. Lots of road races. The tally on the side shows races beginning in 2008 but they actually began a little soo… Read More
2020-01-21 22:34
Yesterday, Monday, January 20 was Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, a federal holiday in the United States. Normally, I teach at two schools on Mondays -- one in the afternoon, and the other in t… Read More
2020-01-20 07:12
Saturday, January 11 I headed back to Silverado Canyon for my longest hike/run since I decided to "train" for Calico. The gate to Maple Springs Road was open, so I was able to park directly… Read More
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