I believed that September 21 was always the start of Autumn, but I am wrong. This year the fall equinox when night and day are the same length on the Equator, is September 23, in the middle of the night. The past few days have hinted that the seasons are beginning to change. I wentContinue reading “The equinox hints at fall”
Category Archives: California
Where to spend August
You can go anywhere in the world in April and May. (Springtime in Paris!) But where do you go in August, when everyone in Italy is on vacation, Europe is overrun with Americans, and it’s broiling almost everywhere? Eureka, California, is your answer. Summer didn’t really arrive until around the Fourth of July, and nowContinue reading “Where to spend August”
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”
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”
Eureka, a land made of water
Eureka is known for Humboldt Bay, yet the entrance to the huge, shallow bay was so narrow that it was not recognized by Spanish and Russian explorers sailing up and down the Pacific coast of North America in the era of European exploration. The channel between land and sea was discovered by Josiah Gregg andContinue reading “Eureka, a land made of water”
Weekend in Mendocino
The sun, moon, and earth are aligned only at the new moon or the full moon. When this happens in combination with the earth’s closest approach to the sun (winter) the gravitational effects of all these bodies are combined and produce king tides. The high tide is above normal levels, and the low tide asContinue reading “Weekend in Mendocino”
Spring or Storm?
January first the new year comes in whether or not we’re ready. We’ve been out walking most days, as the weather forecast is for strong winds and heavy rain later this week. It’s been cold for this region, low 50s, high 40s during the day and occasional frost at night. This is nothing compared toContinue reading “Spring or Storm?”
Llywindatravels 2025 