winifredcreamer

Fern Canyon walk

Fern Canyon is a natural gully of fern covered walls up to 50 feet high along both sides of a stream near Orrick, CA. The access road is five miles of unpaved gravel and dust. There are several dips over ruts from storm runoff, and two places where you drive through water in the creek.Continue reading “Fern Canyon walk”

Summer in California: the Fortuna Rodeo

June through September are the months of summer in Humboldt, but July has the best sun. The Fortuna Rodeo is a fixture of summer, taking place the weekend after July 4. Amanda and Jim are fans, so we went along, and they were right, it’s one of the best activities out here. Our choice wasContinue reading “Summer in California: the Fortuna Rodeo”

Celebrating a birthday in Northern California

It takes about 3 ½ hours to get to Santa Rosa from our home in Eureka. It’s a beautiful drive through redwood forests and the rural California landscape of dry pastures, grazing cattle, and grapevines. We recently made our monthly trip to Santa Rosa and while there, took some extra time to celebrate my birthday. Continue reading “Celebrating a birthday in Northern California”

Thebes to Athens (8)

Our final day on tour took us from chilly Arachova back to Athens. We saw beautiful snow-capped mountains off to the north as we headed south, then turned off the highway to visit one last Mycenean site. Gla, or Glas, was a large Mycenean fortress that was the center of a network of forts duringContinue reading “Thebes to Athens (8)”

Olympia to Delphi (7): Nafpaktos→Delphi→Arachova (Peloponnese to Mainland)

It rained overnight in Nafpaktos. I went out to the shore in the morning between showers, saw some fishermen heading home, and the remains of a Venetian fortress, but didn’t find any beach glass. We headed for Delphi to hear from the oracle. Delphi is located in rough country, a lovely drive when someone elseContinue reading “Olympia to Delphi (7): Nafpaktos→Delphi→Arachova (Peloponnese to Mainland)”

Peloponnese (6): Pylos to Olympia and beyond

Another beautiful day in the Peloponnese began the view out our hotel window over the water looking tranquil in the rising sun. Our first stop was the fortress of Pylos and the small museum. The view over town was gorgeous. The museum had a few lovely examples of the fine crafts that were traded inContinue reading “Peloponnese (6): Pylos to Olympia and beyond”

North Coast Open Studios 2023

My first exposition as an artist was this week. I participated in North Coast Open Studios (NCOS), an event that invites people to visit the places artists work to see what they do and how they do it. There is the opportunity to purchase finished work, too. The event starts with Eureka’s First Friday artContinue reading “North Coast Open Studios 2023”

Afternoon on the Russian River, and some wine tasting

We drive to Santa Rosa once a month to see doctors, and rather than spend 8 hours in the car for a one hour appointment, we stay overnight, have dinner at a nice restaurant, and do a bit of exploring and wine tasting. It keeps us both much happier about the scarcity of medical specialistsContinue reading “Afternoon on the Russian River, and some wine tasting”

Harvard 50th Reunion

It was quite a week. On Tuesday, we checked in to the Sheraton Commander Hotel in Cambridge, MA so that we would be walking distance from events, and for the next four days, we dove into my 50th Harvard Reunion. It seems impossible that so many years have gone by since I graduated, and evenContinue reading “Harvard 50th Reunion”

Boston on Memorial Day

We’re in Boston, having a look around before my reunion gets underway, and it happens to be Memorial Day Weekend. The city is in high gear, as this is the official start of summer. On Thursday, I saw the display of 37,000 American flags planted on Boston Common to honor Massachusetts residents who died inContinue reading “Boston on Memorial Day”