Poison Oak

Poison oak is growing across the Ridge Trail in Temescal Canyon, and no one seems to notice it. It's already to the point where it nearly brushes the top of my head as I walk underneath, and it droops a little lower everyday.



Hikers beware!

Graffiti Removal

I'm working on removing the graffiti from the rock on my hiking trail. First I tried a wire brush, which took the paint down from a bright green to a gray-green, but it was still clearly visible. The right part of the tag in this picture has been brushed, and the left part is as it was originally.



Next I tried Goof Off with a wire brush.



I don't know . . . does this look any better? Now it's a blurred tag, but still clearly there.

I see that Goof Off makes a special graffiti remover, which I haven't seen in the stores. I may have to order some and try that next.

Suburban Graffiti

My favorite rock on the hiking trail I take everyday got tagged.



The only other thing that got marked was this tree, a little further east of the rock on the trail.



I saw the tree first, and I somehow knew that the rock had been hit. At first I felt angry, and then I felt sad. I have spent many hours studying the beautiful natural colors and patterns of this rock, and it feels like an old friend to me.

I suppose I could see it as an opportunity to continue to love the rock, despite its new guise. Or, I can figure out some way to remove the graffiti.

Fire

This is a composite panorama of the smoke in the sky at about 5:30 today -- an hour and a half before sunset. You can't see it here, but the sun was blood red. It was dark out, and it was raining ashes. I guess this is from the fire burning near Ojai, sixty or so miles away. It's amazing that the ashes can travel that far. Very sad for the wildlife.

Woolly Blue-Curl

I love these Woolly Blue-Curls, and I did some impressionistic photos of them today, before they're gone and no longer in bloom.



They look so fanciful and fun -- a bright spot of color that jumps out at me whenever I spot them on the trail.

Parker Mesa Overlook

I went on a hike last night with the Temescal Canyon Association. We hiked up the Paseo Miramar Trail in Pacific Palisades to the Parker Mesa Overlook, where we would have been able to see views of the city from Pasadena to the Channel Islands, if it hadn't been foggy! We were up above the fog, but the fog below kept us from seeing anything.

It was 5.3 miles with a 1200' gain, and I'm definitely feeling it in my thighs today. We came down fast, because it was getting dark, and I think the downhill got me more than the uphill.



One of the other hikers had a watch with a GPS system that told us our precise mileage and altitude. Wow! That is so cool. If I had one of those I'm sure I'd spend more time fiddling with the watch than watching the scenery unfold around me. That's also why I can't have a TV. Too easily distracted and hypnotized by fascinating technology. I probably shouldn't have a computer, either.

Mountain Kingsnake

I saw one of these guys while I was hiking the other day. It's a Mountain Kingsnake, and the colors are unbelievably beautiful and bright. The one I saw slithered away before I could get a picture, and this picture is from the California Reptiles and Amphibians website.

Most of the snakes in this area blend into the environment and are somewhat difficult to see, but these kingsnakes really stand out.

Rattlesnake

I saw a rattlesnake on the trail this morning -- the first one I've seen since I started hiking six weeks ago. It's not a great picture, because I didn't have my camera with me, and I had to use my cell phone to take the picture. This is him -- curled up next to a rock, sunning himself. He was a very beautiful snake, and I'm glad I had the opportunity to see him and take his picture, but it makes me a little nervous to know that they're out there, waiting to bite me.

I've been doing trail maintenance on the trails I use the past couple of days. There's one woman who maintains a mile and a half of trail by herself, and I thought she could use some help. It's very overgrown from the spring rains, but we're slowly hacking away at it and getting it back in shape. Good exercise -- as if the hiking isn't enough!

Still Hiking

Yes, I'm still hiking everyday. I don't know how I'm going to keep this up. It takes an incredible amount of will power and determination. It was really pretty yesterday, right before the rain. This is about as clear as it gets in LA. You can see downtown LA in the background, behind Century City.



And this is the view looking out towards the ocean and Palos Verdes:



It's beautiful in the hills, and I enjoy being in nature. But it takes a lot of time!

Progress Report

I'm still hiking everyday. So far, so good, but it takes a lot of time. It was somewhat overcast today, and the clouds were pretty. The clump of buildings on the right is West Los Angeles, and the clump on the left is Century City. You can barely make out downtown Los Angeles behind Century City.



You can see it better in this zoomed in view:



I have more energy when I spend an hour or so hiking each day, but not as much time to paint! Aside from the hike time, there's also the drive time. Twice I've seen rabbits, and yesterday I saw a deer, but I wasn't fast enough to get pictures of them.

Here's the new paint on my house so far:



The trim is going to be a darker copper, with a blue-green color around the windows and doors.

New Regimen

My acupuncturist is making me go hiking in nature everyday. Not just walking around the neighborhood. Hiking -- up hills, on dirt paths, amongst wild plants and animals. He says I have to do it, or else. I don't know what the "or else" is, and I don't particularly want to find out. I successfully avoided his admonishments for several weeks, but now he's getting more serious, and the "or else" is getting more serious, too.

So I've been reluctantly hiking the Ridge Trail at Temescal Gateway Park. This is about the closest I can get to nature without having to drive for an hour. It's a tough trail, with a 1000' gain, and it definitely gets me breathing hard!

Today I took pictures from the top of the trail. This is looking towards Century City and downtown Los Angeles. You can barely make out the buildings through the smog.



This is looking towards Palos Verdes and the ocean. Again, not an exceptionally clear day.



And this is "art," right there along the path. Can't get away from it!