Photo of the Week - Coastal Redwoods

Coast Redwoods at Muir Woods, California

Coast redwoods occupy a narrow strip of land approximately 750 kilometres long and 8 to 75 km  wide along the Pacific coast.  The most southerly grove is in Monterey County, California, and the most northerly groves are in extreme southwestern Oregon.

This native area provides a unique environment with heavy seasonal rains - 2,500 millimetres. Cool coastal air and fog drip keep this forest consistently damp year round. Condensation from coastal fog accounts for a considerable part of the trees' water needs.  Several factors, including the heavy rainfall, create a soil with fewer nutrients than the trees need, causing them to depend heavily on the entire biotic community of the forest, and complete recycling of the trees when dead.

The thick, tannin-rich bark, combined with foliage starting high above the ground provides good protection from both fire and insects, contributing to the coast redwood's longevity. The oldest known specimen is about 2,200 years old.

 An estimated 95% or more of the original old-growth redwood forest has been cut down.

City of Angels

"What do you thinking about taking a road trip?"

"Where would you like to go?"

"The television commercials tell me to discover California."

"How about Beverly Hills?"

"Sounds great to me."

What I knew about Beverly Hills was two things:
- It was somehow attached to LA.
- This is where the Beverly Hillbillies moved when they found "Texas tea."

Ryan and I picked up Julie at the end of her school day, mid afternoon on Good Friday. While most Canadians were out on the Easter break, life carried on in California. We stopped at Rubios. I had the Chicken Tortilla Soup, which far exceeded any of my expectations.

The GPS said 6 and a half hours from San Francisco to Los Angeles. We decided to take the scenic route. The GPS does not apparently need to change drivers, go to the washroom or stop for ice cream. We bolted out of the car in LA.

By the time we checked into the hotel and made our way into Santa Monica, most of the shops were closed on the Promenade. We found a pizza place called Joe's Pizza, that features New York-style specialties. The best thin pizza crust. I am hooked!

The Inn at Venice Beach, where we stayed, is a block away from the beach, a happening place full of shopping, dining, sports, recreation and entertainment. Our first morning, we went for a walk down the boardwalk.


















The LA Fire Department were hanging out as they waited for calls.

We decided to have lunch in Hollywood. Hollywood Boulevard. After eating at the Pig 'n Whistle, we strolled the Walk of Stars.


Us and many, many others. What we saw was Buzz Lightyear, 2 Michael Jacksons and 3 Darth Vaders. From what I can gather, these actors make their money by posing with money-producing, camera-toting tourists.

Our next destination was the Hollywood sign. Thanks to iPhone and GSP technology, we had an entertaining excursion to our viewpoint. At the pullout, 3 girls were performing for a dance video - over and over again, we heard the same song. The life of glamour!



















Next we found a lookout over the Hollywood Bowl and part of LA spread out before us.



The Hollywood Bowl is in the bottom right hand corner. A primarily music concert venue, it can seat 17,736 people.

Back in the car, we followed Mulholland Drive, a road that follows the ridgeline of the Santa Monica Mountains and Hollywood Hills. It is home to some of the most exclusive and expensive homes in the world. This is where the stars live.

By the time we had descended into Beverly Hills and Rodeo Drive, the sun was setting.

We headed back to the ocean.

This is what I learned from hanging out that day in LA:

• LA is one huge city. LA has a land area of 498 square miles compared to SF whose land area is 46 square miles.
• In the hills of Beverly Hills, there are lots of homes set back from the roads - an excellent place for famous people to retreat.
• There is no need for boredom in LA. That is one happening place.
  
• If you want to take part in a backlot tour of an entertainment studio, book ahead.
• For spotting movie stars, don't hang out with the tourists.
• Sun, warm temperatures - easy adaptation.
  

Touring the Bay Area

The second day of my Easter break was spent touring. We headed north over the Golden Gate bridge into Marin County. We decided that this was a good place to turn off...



The first stop was in Corte Madeira where we visited Book Passage...



This is a lively bookstore that hosts several writers' conferences every year, many readings, and keeps a buzz on much that is happening. I think I saw a picture of Obama in the masthead.

Next, we set out for Oakland. On the way, we passed this place.

In Oakland, we found the clothing stores I had originally seen in magazine advertisements over 20 years ago, and a mighty fine pastry shop close by where we picked up cookies.

Then we found the freeway, with impressive greenery...



We wound our way again to the ocean to see the sunset, but the clouds stole the view. We walked for a while along the boardwalk as the wind was cold. It reminded me of a comedian who made a comment about a man who could withstand gale-force winds. He said, "It isn't THAT the wind blows, it is WHAT the wind blows." In this case, it was sand being pelted on the sides of our faces. I, of course, was wearing capris.

Beach Day

April 10th

We arrived to the beach late, due in part to a headache and secondly, because we chose a beach miles away from here. The plan was to go to Half Moon Bay but we landed further down the road in Pescadero State Beach, about 44 miles along Highway 1, which winds its way along the ocean.

"Do you want to go for a walk?" Ryan asked. Seasoned to the northern California weather, he had brought the kind of clothes that I left at home - the coverings that I was pretty much done with after a long and hard winter.

"Yes!" I was excited to walk along the ocean. I was grateful for the extra fleece I had brought. Fleece is not the best fabric for wind; if I was writing the text for the tag that went on clothing, I would say... for indoor use only.

Later, I found this suggestion on the state park website:

Seasons/Climate/Recommended clothing
The weather can be changeable; layered clothing is recommended.

Good. I was now in 3 layers of clothing. My first clue to our beach experience was in the outdoor loo, the kind without plumbing. The wind was whirling around in there; no place I would say to expose skin.

When we meandered our way through the sand dunes to the beach, it was a busy weather day. Closer to San Francisco, we had seen surfers.



Glad I didn't spend a lot of time doing the hair that day.

The beach, as you may have guessed, we had to ourselves.





Luckily, we found shelter in a beach house...



And saw the sunset (very thrilling event for someone who lives in the mountains)...



Ryan, the-fellow-who-never-does-the-same-road-twice-if-he-doesn't-have-to, decided to follow the country road through the hills to get to the interstate. This was a l-o-n-g road that had many curves through dark forest - the kind of place where you probably wouldn't want to get stranded. After several miles, it was too much for my already queasy stomach; I was green. I offered to drive and that definitely helped, but I was quite relieved to be on the interstate - going in a straight line.

I notice today that there is barely any wind - I better get outside before it changes.