A road trip starts here. With a choice, and all choices have consequences--some are good, and others? Well they're not-so-good. The funny thing is, that whether you like it or not, you usually get a fair dose of both along the way. So, on this sunny Sunday morning, overlooking the splendor of Creamery Bay, I cast my lot to the wind, made my choice, and off I went-- no regrets. There were pictures that I got, there were surely pictures that I missed--perhaps even better ones. A road trip is a microcosm of a life. It's all about the possibilities in choices--unless you believe that everything is preordained and foretold. I did have a Palm Reader tell me that I would live to be 87, a number I religiously use to my advantage when Marg starts on me about my cholesterol level.
Que sera sera.
Point Reyes, CA
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I decided to stop for lunch in Klammath, CA., home of the Yurok Tribe, the largest population of Native Americans in California, with over 5000 enrolled members. The Yuroks tend to follow the old ways--fishing, hunting, and gathering to meet their daily needs. Interestingly, 70% of the tribal population still live without telephones or electricity.
The land here along the Klammath River is beautiful and bountiful. The forests are dense and the waters run clear, and are full of salmon and other fish.
As usual, I chose to travel the back roads to see what I could see. I found this lovely pond close to where the forest meets the ocean. Life is really about the simple things.
Klammath, CA
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For a person with a camera, a visit to Point Reyes starts and ends with the old trawler beached along Tomales Bay in Inverness. I've heard claim that it is the most photographed shipwreck in the world. I honestly wouldn't doubt it. It is one of the coolest subjects I know, and it's easily accessible to photogs despite being on private property. In fact photographers are actually welcomed and encouraged. A sign along the path that leads to the old boat reads, "take only photos, leave only footprints." I've always loved the idea of that.
Fittingly, there is a Flickr group dedicated solely this old wreck. Check it out here, and don't leave anything other than footprints-- digital footprints:
www.flickr.com/groups/pr_abandoned/
Inverness, CA
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It was evening by the time I made it to the end of the Point Reyes Peninsula. The wind was blowing a major hoolie. I could barely stand in place much less hold the camera steady. I persevered--somewhat miserably, but I persevered.
Point Reyes is the windiest spot on the California Coast and the second most foggiest in the continental U.S. Quite an appropriate place for a lighthouse me thinks. The old lighthouse was built in 1870. Lord knows what they did before that. The fog can become almost a solid along this part of the coast.
The lighthouse was closed when I arrived but other than the wind, that worked just fine for me. The lighthouse is hard to photograph during business hours as it's usually swarming with people. The 308 step descent doesn't seem to deter them either--and that's the other reason I was glad the place was closed.
Point Reyes, CA
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Whenever I visit Pt. Reyes I budget the early morning hours for a hike to Tomales Point.
The "Point" sits on a windswept ridge that separates the Pacific Ocean from Tomales Bay. It is a land without trees and the vegetation here is dense, gnarled, and resilient. Rabbits dart between knots of vegetation watching carefully for the shadows of soaring raptors. The trails are littered with the scat of coyotes, mountain lion, and bobcat. Flares of pastel colored wildflowers cascade over the hills and the early morning breeze is cool and biting. The weather here can be as harsh as a dry cough.
I caught this trio of elk browsing quietly on a hillside overlooking Tomales Bay as the sun was just starting to work its magic on the land. It's easy to envy their transcendent view.
Pt. Reyes, CA
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