The day after a rather exhausting hike to Shadow Lake, I opted for a shorter hike from Reds Meadow to Rainbow Falls. The route is popular with day-trippers who shuttle down from Mammoth Mountain, and it’s easy to see why. The trail is about 3 miles round trip and gently undulates through forest and meadow. The reward is Rainbow Falls, a 101-foot waterfall, the highest on the Middle Fork of the San Joaquin River. A carpet of lupines and coyote mint. The hike begins in the fore

The Mine On my way home from Mammoth, I took a short detour to Bodie State Historic Park. I’ve visited Bodie a few times. Each time I am struck by the quiet beauty of its wooden buildings and the story of its rise and fall. Bodie was an industrial mining town that, at its peak (1879-1881) had more than 8,000 residents. Two to three thousand worked in the mines, while the rest kept the town running as doctors, lawyers, teachers, tradespeople, railroad workers, police officers,

What's in a Name? Perhaps there is no better time to hike the Eastern Sierra than during wildflower season. While the blooms at lower elevations in California have largely faded, the meadows and forests of the Ansel Adams and John Muir Wilderness areas are at their colorful peak. My favorite base is the rustic Reds Meadow Resort, within easy reach of some of the region’s finest trails. During this trip, I hiked to Shadow Lake, Rainbow Falls, and the Johnston Lake area. At fir

The Los Angeles-Long Beach port complex is nothing short of awe-inspiring. This sprawling deep-water port, one of the busiest in the...

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California has just about everything: the lowest and highest points in the continental US, deserts, ocean, mountains, and more. Sometimes...

Most people who visit the San Juans see only the islands accessible by the Washington State Ferry system—Orcas, San Juan, Lopez, and...

I had high hopes of seeing the eponymous animal of this trail. But woodrats are more commonly seen in the evening or at night. Daytime...

When traveling recently from Seattle to Tokyo on a 2,000+ person cruise ship, I didn't expect to take many photos. The ship is too big to...

Some of the most compelling images I've seen are portraits of people on the street. In the past, I haven't been brave enough to approach...

Not too long ago I wrote about a hike in the snow I took at Lake Crescent in Olympic National Park. Just 45 minutes prior to the hike, I...

Paris and Rome have their catacombs, but Seattle has its underground. The burgeoning town was started on tide flats in what is now the...

When we were cruising around the San Juan Islands recently, one of the passengers pointed at the shore and exclaimed, "Anacondas!"...

While hiking in the San Juan Islands recently, I came across this tree that looked like Groot rising up from the forest floor. Not the...

When I hike through the woods, I spend a lot of time looking at the ground to make sure I don't trip over tree roots and rocks. Sometimes...

About a week ago, the boat on which I was cruising stopped at Port Angeles and arrange for me and my fellow passengers to bus into...

The weather at the start of my recent trip to the San Juan Islands was such that the Captain decided to stay anchored near Hope Island...

Until the mid-20th century, Spencer Spit on Lopez Island was a popular location for Native Americans to crab, fish, and dig for clams. It...

I spent Easter weekend at the Inn at the Market in Seattle. Each morning, the local flower purveyors hauled in buckets and buckets of...

I recently returned from an 8-day “cruise” in the San Juan Islands of Washington State. Spring is one of the best times to visit because...