i took that picture yesterday while hiking the scenic trail at point mcgoo state park. i hadn't gone on a true hike or taken decent pictures since august. it was high time for me to kick up some dust and waste some film.
as usual, jg came along for a ride. it was our first time to this state park, entrance to which cost $12. i was hoping that we would get a park map with that fee, but no. in fact, there were no maps available, free or otherwise. there was a faded trail map taped to the ranger station's window. i took a picture of it for my own reference.
it's not ideal but it's better than not having a map at all. i did speak to a ranger and got a bunch of questions answered before heading out.
hiking and biking trails begin at a yellow gate just past the refugee camp also known as the campground. my trail head of interest was well marked and easy to find. true to the canyon's name, there are sycamores!
north
trail went up and up. the sky was magnificent looking north but a bit gooey toward the south.
south
that cactus grows all over the hill side. makes it a bit challenging for the mountain bikers, i think. i like their proximity to the water.
opuntia
looking east
(opposite direction of the top picture)
boney mountain, i think
i took that picture shortly before i turned around. i had climbed a really steep part hoping to loop back on a different trail but no such luck. the higher part of the trail isn't maintained so the overgrown bushes scraped up my arms and legs pretty good.
turn around point
(looking west toward pt mugu naval base)
two blades versus five
i saw those helicopters circling around on my slow crawl down. i also caught a glimpse of jg flying down the fire road. by the time i got the camera ready, he was out of sight. speedy gonzales.
"wild" life
that was the last picture i took before we left the state park. on the way home we diverted to port hueneme for some pho. it was a good plan to avoid the black friday traffic which was clogging up oxnard.
harbor boulevard, ventura
i took this next picture last night at 11:10.
front yard astronomy
it's the first time i ever tried to take a picture of orion. noisy but not bad considering how high and bright the moon was.
over all, we had an excellent day. jg enjoyed his ride enough to give it 7 out of 10 stars. me, i always enjoy a new trail, even when it requires some crawling.
lots of waves at hammond's today. lots of surfers, too, the most i've ever seen. jg isn't feeling well. otherwise he would have joined the line up.
the weather just couldn't be any more perfect, clear and warm. i was very content sitting in one place basking in the sun. i only got up to take pictures when it got too warm.
stacked by schmee
green marble
serrated kelp
that dog sat as still as a gargoyle staring into the distance. when i stopped to take her picture, she raised her snout high into the air.
