Category: walking

Living at Mount Hermon

As the year draws to a close, we find ourselves living in Mount Hermon while our house in Albany undergoes remodeling. Our adventure here begins on December 1st, when we drove our rental U-Haul truck up the driveway at #6 Pine Avenue in Mount Hermon.

Thanks to our daughter, Amy, we found a very cute house to rent for our stay here, which will keep us comfortable through the end of January when we anticipate moving back to Albany.

Originally, we were going to stay through December with the idea that we would take the pop-up camper on a road trip for part of January. On December 14 through, I broke my left wrist, so I no driving and thus no road trip. We could do worse than have such a comfortable place to stay in such a beautiful location here in the Santa Cruz Mountains.

We’ve been coming to Mount Hermon for over 40 years for church retreats, so we have some familiarity with the place. And our daughter and family live here as well. We are a 5-minute walk from our grandson.

On December 8th Amy hosted a gingerbread party and we were happy to participate. Cutting out dough shapes, gluing them together and decorating the resulting houses with frosting and candy.

On December 24th our son Aaron arrived with his family. We were blessed with having our whole family together for Christmas with both of our kids, our two grandkids and our son-in-law’s parents as well.

With family together we enjoyed hiking through the majestic redwoods, up to the cross on the top of the mountain and exploring the Bonny Doon Ecological Preserve.

And when the rain prevailed, we contented ourselves with putting together jigsaw puzzles. Jigsaw puzzles have been a holiday tradition in my family since I was a kid. More photos are available in an online gallery.

Threading Grendel’s Needle

Grendel’s Needle refers to a feature on a small island in San Francisco Bay. That feature is a slot in the rock on the westernmost of The Sisters Islands just off of Point San Pedro. When conditions are right it’s fun to paddle a kayak through the slot, an exercise we call threading Grendel’s Needle.

When we left our house in Albany, we had the windshield wipers going with dark clouds overhead. As we were crossing the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge though, we could see patches of blue sky and sun shining on San Rafael. Harbingers for a good day on the water.

Eight of us were on the water at 10:30, launching from the kayak ramp at the east end of the Loch Lomond Yacht Harbor. There was some discussion about whether wetsuits or drysuits would be the better option. For safety’s sake we like to “dress for immersion,” should we end up in the water. I opted for my drysuit. In hindsight the weather was quite mild and my wetsuit long john would have been more comfortable.

Once we were on the water we paddled out of the harbor and headed east rounding the Marin Islands. We then paddled on to Point San Pedro where we held up for some radio communications. We had a new member in our group who had never paddled through Grendel’s Needle, so we opted to head to The Sisters to thread the needle. With hardly any current going through the slot we had no trouble paddling back and forth through the slot. Trying to exercise some boat control I even paddled through the slot backwards.

After lunch at China Camp, we returned paddling close to shore. We were back at our launch site at about 2:30.

We logged 9 miles over the course of the day on relatively calm water. More photos are available in an online gallery.

Plitvice Lakes National Park

Following our kayaking adventure, we rented a car and drove to Plitvice Lakes National Park. The park is in the mountainous karst area of central Croatia. Three of us, David, my wife Joann and me. We spent three nights at the Miric Inn, affording us two full days to explore the lakes.

On our first day, May 31, we explored the lower lakes. The trails meander around the lakes and over what seems like miles of boardwalks. Sometimes the boardwalks take you alongside and sometimes directly over waterfalls. Never in my wildest imagination could I imagine the expanse of water, lakes and falls. And the colors are dazzling. It’s an extraordinary experience.

The water cascades over dikes of tufa and travertine. Conditions are such that the water is saturated with minerals which precipitate out to form tufa.

The park service regulates guests with timed entries so that the park doesn’t get too crowded. We arranged an early entry so that we could have a full day to explore. Having had an early start, by mid-morning we were happy to find a sign directing us to coffee and snacks. We logged six miles on our first day, exploring the lakes by boat and on foot.

On our second day, June 1, we explored the upper lakes. Again, logging six miles. Here are a couple maps that track our tours. More photos are available in an online gallery.

Exploring Hvar: A Culinary and Cultural Journey

We spent four nights on Hvar, arriving in Jelsa by ferry the evening of May 19. On the morning of the 20th we slept in. The previous day was a hard day, and we needed the rest. Breakfast at B&B Aurora included hard boiled eggs, ham, salami, croissants, fruit, and cereal among other things. No shortage of food.

We opted for the easy day, walking to Vrboska. Oddly enough I can’t find any photos from that walk. I must have been overzealous in purging files. No shortage of other photos from the trip, so we’ll just move on. Even a seasoned professional can make mistakes. We dined at Murvica, just a short walk from our B&B. We discovered that with enough notice they could prepare Peka, a traditional Croatian dish. We put in our reservation for the next night and returned to feast on lamb Peka.

Peka is traditionally made with octopus or lamb. Joann opted for lamb. This dish is slow cooked in an iron pot, much like a Dutch oven. The dish we were served included lamb, potatoes, onions, carrots and brussels sprouts. Very tasty. After dinner I wandered around town looking for photo opportunities, always something I enjoy in a medieval town.

On the morning of May 21, a taxi picked us up at our B&B and drove us to the top of the island to start the day’s walking tour. This walk led us through two mostly-deserted towns, Velo Grablje and Malo Grablje. These towns were established to produce lavender and rosemary.

There are still a few people living here, but for the most part they are ghost towns. The abandoned buildings provide some interesting photo opportunities.

From Malo Grablje we continued down the mountain to Hvar City where we checked into our accommodations at Villa Nora. We had an excellent dinner just a few feet from our accommodations, feasting on a delicious baked sea bass. You can see more photo in an online gallery.

Croatia: Walking – Day 4 – Gazul to Bol

At 9:00 our driver meets us at the Velaris Hotel in Supetar on the island of Brac. We jump in the van and are off on narrow winding roads that lead to the very top of the island. A half-hour later we reach the start for today’s hike, Gazul, a tiny village of sheep herders. We don our day packs for the day’s hike down to Bol. Our luggage stays in the van. We’ll reunite with our luggage at the ferry terminal in Bol later in the day.

Our hike takes us over the “highlands” of Brac, over meandering dirt roads and paths, through pine forest and over mossy rocks. Our route leads to Vildova Gora, the highest point on the island at 2559 feet and a spectacular view overlooking the Adriatic and the island of Hvar. As picturesque as the location is, I don’t manage to capture any photos that gave the view justice. It’s a daunting view though. We’re looking over the edge of a sheer cliff and wondering where the trail will take us. Neither of us are fond of steep rocky trails and that’s what this trail promises with its steep drop down to the water. We take our time, happy to have our hiking poles to assist us.

It is a steep walk down a trail which, given the rock curb, has been in use for centuries and shows centuries of erosion and wear. My shoes, which I have worn every day since I bought them two months ago, prove to be a bit light for the job. Fine for most walking but some more substantial boots would be a better choice for this trail. The steep descent causes my toes to jam into the toes of my shoes.

With our slow pace down the steep trail, we feel a little pressured by time given our tickets for the 5:30 ferry to Hvar. It is 4:30 when we reach the ferry dock, and at 5:15 our driver, who had dropped us off at the Gazul trailhead, shows up to reunite us with our luggage. Later that evening when I take off my shoes, I discover three bruised toenails. Over the course of the day, we logged 8.13 miles dropping 2500 feet over the last three miles.

Map of the hiking route from Gazul to Bol on the island of Brac, showing Vidova Gora and surrounding terrain.

Croatia: Walking – Day 2

At 8:30 we were on our way to the Ferry Terminal in Split for our ferry to Brac. We disembarked at Supetar, consulted our walking tour instructions and started our walk along the waterfront. Today’s tour is a loop walk on west side of Brac.

Our walk took us along the coast where we admired sculptures along an azure sea. As we approached the town of Mirca our route turned inland. Mirca had an interesting mix of traditional and contemporary houses. Leaving Mirca our route turned inland. Our directions were a bit confusing so we may have wandered off the prescribed route. Our track then took us back along the coast. A little after 2:00 we reached the town of Sutivan, a charming town of fishermen and farmers with a thousand-year-old tradition closely intertwined with the sea.

From there we started our return leg climbing up into the hills, following stone-lined roads and trails past fields of ancient olive trees.

It was after 6:00 when we finished our loop walk back in Supetar having walked 10 miles. More photos are available in an online gallery.

Croatia: Walking – Day 1

The day before our tour began, we met a representative from the tour company for an orientation. He went over logistics, maps and other details. This included a binder with maps and detailed instructions. We also had an app on our iPhones we could use to guide us. We booked the tour through Macs Adventures; however, they contract with the local company MeridienTen to manage the trips. Both companies provide maps and guides. We discovered that there were a few slight discrepancies between the guides. For additional navigational help we used the app GaiaGPS to track our travels and to resolve the few occasions where the instructions left us confused.

On May 16 we grabbed our day packs and our trekking poles and started our walking journey around Marjan Hill and the Marjan peninsula.

The walk starts along the waterfront along the path of the Olympians. Here every Croatian Olympian medal winner is commemorated with a plaque.

From there our walk took us past a couple of churches and on to Ivan Meštrović’s estate. Ivan was a renowned Croatian sculptor. We stopped and toured the grounds to see some of Meštrović’s works. The gallery was closed so we were not able to view the main exhibits. but a short distance further along our route was Meštrović’s Crikvine, a unique religious and artistic complex with more of Meštrović’s work.

A panoramic view of a coastal city with terracotta roofs, lush greenery, a harbor with a cruise ship, and mountains in the background under a blue sky.
Panoramic view of Split from the top of Marjan Hill

The walk meandered around the penninsula taking us to the top of Marjan hill for a spectacular view of Split and the surrounding coast.

When we reached the western most point of the walk, we were hoping to find a cafe where we could stop and enjoy some refreshments. Unfortunately, since we were early in the season, we did not find any facilities open. We broke out our emergency energy bars and water and enjoyed a few minutes on the beach. Our return walk took us along the north side of the peninsula where the wind kicked up, throwing up whitecaps on the water. We continued our walk, deviating from the prescribed course a bit, looking for a place to have dinner. We found a Pizza place that fit the bill. Once we were back in Split it was time to find some Gelato. Over the course of the day, we walked 12.2 miles. With all of our stops to explore sites the walk took us just shy of 12 hours.

More photos are available in an online gallery.

Osteoarthritis and Knee Replacement: My Personal Story

After several years of hobbling around with a bum knee the time has come to “upgrade.” Here’s a MRI image of my knee. You can see the femur and the tibia with a thin white line between. The surgeon referred to this as “bone on bone,” Osteoarthritis.

So, on August 29, Joann drove me to the surgery center. We arrived at 5:30 in the morning. As I was contemplating the surgery, I started to wonder what if they don’t have the right parts? As they were wheeling me into position in the operating room I asked the surgeon’s assistant. She pointed to a cart stacked with dozens of boxes. No need to worry. Turns out my new artificial knee is a Zimmer Persona size 6 on the femur and size D on the tibia.

At 3:30 in the afternoon I was climbing up the front steps to my house. You can see a photo of me on crutches on my front porch. Soon, as part of the recovery process, I was circulating ice water around my knee.

Here’s an image I lifted from a website that shows what the parts look like, and an x-ray image that shows the new knee joint.

On December 7 I managed to join friends for a three mile walk around Point Pinole, proof that I’m on the mend. Here’s a photo of me with our dog Carson. It may be a few more months before I’m where I’d like to be, but progress is encouraging.

The recovery process involves physical therapy sessions twice a week, lots of exercises to get my range of motion back and to build strength. One of my challenges is that after years of walking with an affected gate, muscles in my hip have atrophied.

Redwoods in the Bay Area: Visiting Muir Woods

Peter, my Cornish “cousin” spent a couple of day with us on his recent visit. I mentioned Peter in a previous post. One of Peter’s requests while visiting was to see redwoods. What better place to see redwoods in the Bay Area than Muir Woods National Monument? This can be a very busy location, and you must book parking ahead of time to ensure you can access the park if you are driving. There is also a shuttle run by Marin Transit.

Here you can see Peter and me standing in front of a grove of trees. Looking up these trees are truly awe inspiring, raising their limbs high above the forest floor. The tallest tree in the park is 786 years old give or take a few years, standing at over 250 feet. This tree sprouted at about the time of the last Crusades. Redwood trees can live as long as 2500 years and grow up to 380 feet tall. The oldest tree in the park is at least 1,200 years old.

We walked the main trail along the east side of the creek as far as the Fourth Bridge, which was out of service and being repaired. We then backtracked and crossed the creek at the Third Bridge, returning on the west side of the creek. I was pleased to be able to walk the 2.5 miles given my recent knee surgery. The fact that the trail is quite flat was a welcome benefit given my gimpy knee.

Hiking Hobbit Trail and Visiting Cannon Beach

On July 4 we left Bullards Beach to continue our journey up the Oregon coast. I broke out my stars and stripes cowboy hat as part of my Independence Day regalia.

One of the recommended stops was the Hobbit Trail. This was a short 1.2-mile hike through a mossy fanciful wood to the beach. We kept our eyes open for any diminutive inhabitants. The trail emerges at a beautiful and secluded sandy beach where we broke out our lunch. Our next stop was Heceta Head Lighthouse.

Our destination for the day was Cannon Beach where we spent two nights. I was intent on photographing Haystack Rock. When we were planning our trip, we could not find any available camping. Everything was booked. The Oregon coast is a popular place in the summer. We made reservations to stay at The Studio at the Harrison Inn. This suited us well, since it was a short walk to the beach. Cannon Beach is a delightful place to visit, even with the Fourth of July crowds.

From Cannon Beach we headed inland to join our kids and their families for two nights at Seaquest State Park. Here it was time to fire up the Dutch Oven. We cooked Enchilada Casserole for dinner and Mushroom and Brie Breakfast Strada for breakfast.

And of course, no camping trip is complete without roasting marshmallows. You can view more photos in an online gallery.