Summer Vacation

For those who have missed seeing new posts on The Free-Range Turtle, yes, I'm alive and well. I've just been on vacation! (And getting ready to go on vacation and getting settled back in after vacation and...)

Back in March I headed down to SoCal (Julian and Anza-Borrego Desert State Park) and blogged about it in 6 parts. I just can't seem to stay away from sunrise views like this:

Taken from the deck (where I was sleeping in the freshening breezes), you can see a light grey band in the saddle of the mountains. That grey band is the light of the sunrise reflecting off the Salton Sea.

I'm one of those people who like to spend some time in an area exploring and learning about the place. So, I spent some time this trip exploring the town of Julian and some trails in the Laguna Mountains south of Julian (specifically, the Garnet Peak Trail).

In town -- well, on the outskirts of town -- is an old hard-rock gold mine called the Eagle Mining Co. where we took a tour.

This was one of the many mines that were opened for operations in the post-Civil War era.

One morning we headed south on highway 79 then east on the Sunrise Highway to the trailhead for the Garnet Peak Trail. Along the trail we had plenty of opportunity to see the remnants of the Cedar Fire of 2003.

The area has already experienced a lot of re-growth, but everywhere you look there are burned stands of trees and burned outcrops of shrubs. While the ecology here evolved in fire, it's sad to note that this fire was caused by a hunter who, when he became lost, fired a flare into the forest.

But the renewal of life continues as evidenced by the curly, feathery seeds of the Mountain Mahogany...

... and this bee going after the flowers of this bush mallow...

... or this bee on this buckwheat blossom.

But let's not forget the views from the top, to the north...

... and to the east.

And there were views along the way, too.

But, at the end of the day, we got to sit out on a deck with views of some amazing sunsets.

Here's a view to the east -- toward Anza-Borrego and the Salton Sea -- where the dying sun catches the top of the last peak, but the sun in the clouds was amazing and ever-changing like this cloud to the north.

And the light at the horizon to the west was pretty amazing as well!

But then, what can compete with the sunrises!

However, our plan only included a few days in and around Julian, because we had a friend to visit closer to the coast. Among other things, we spent quite the pleasant afternoon in a local park with our friend (and his pal Charlie) playing Scrabble and having a picnic.

We also visited the Air & Space Museum in Balboa Park (thanks for the suggestion, Peter!) and the USS Midway in San Diego Bay, but I didn't bring my camera along for those adventures.