Exploring around Northern California–snapshots from my adventures.
Friday, July 30, 2010
Posted by Karen on 08-May-2010
(Click photo for all 78 photos)
Springtime in the valley. Tersha and I took her mom, Marie and niece, Brianna, to “Bring-a-Friend” day at Bonfante Gilroy Gardens. After a nice lunch in Gilroy, we went to the park and enjoyed all the beautiful flowers on this lovely spring day. We had a fun afternoon and a crazy hat show to boot. :D
Posted by Karen on 23-Apr-2010
(Click photo for all 77 photos)
This weekend took me back to the Castles & Kites Celebration in Bodega Bay. I met up with Tersha, Vic and Brianna at the campsites on the beach at Doran Regional Park. Funny it was at this festival last year that Tersha debuted her new popup trailer and this year she’s debuting an even better new one and I’ve now got a trailer now too… my how things change in a year. Friday was a lazy day spent hanging around camp, chatting, playing games and watching wind surfers learn to windsurf in the harbor (where the water is only a foot or so deep at low tide). Saturday morning before the festival, we took a walk along the beach and I enjoyed photographing some sand textures. It was much windier this year than last, and it didn’t seem that as many kites were being flown as last year, but it was still a nice and relaxing weekend. At the end of the afternoon, while the wind may have been a bit much for kites, it was just right for a guy kite surfing in the bay. Definitely coming back again, I really do enjoy this weekend.
Posted by Karen on 05-Dec-2009
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Back to Bonfante Gilroy Gardens we went (gotta make that tax-deductible season pass pay for itself!). Tersha and I, along with Brianna, went back to experience their Nights of Fire laser lights and fireworks show. In December, the park opens on weekend night to show off how they’ve decorated the park with millions of lights. We left a few hours early because we wanted to explore the San Luis Reservoir and Pacheco State Park areas that we had seen on the way up last time. We saw a couple of deer and a stray house cat hiding amongst the tall dried grass surrounding the very blue lakes. As the sun set, we headed to the gardens and then spend some pleasant hours wandering around enjoying all the many lights. We rode the train ride again and this time we also rode the balloon ride and even the roller coaster, just the things to do when it’s cold and dark… you trying doing a roller coaster scream with your teeth chattering…LOL! Off to find a spot at Coyote Lake for the laser show and fireworks display. It was a very short show of maybe 10 minutes, so that was a tad disappointing, but it was still a very fun and pretty evening and I enjoyed it.
Posted by Karen on 11-Jul-2009
(Click photo for all 262 photos)
Tersha, Elana, Brianna and I went with the Northern California Photography Group Meetup Group on a trip to Alcatraz Island and had the best day! This was my first time visiting “The Rock” and while we didn’t see Sean, Nicolas or Ed, there were lots of other visitors to the island on this gorgeous day. We arrived at Pier 33 and boarded the ferry to the island, sitting up top to enjoy the view. At the island, we listened to the ranger give the welcome speech and then we started meandering our way up the winding path to the cell house. Along the way, we saw numerous baby and juvenile birds because the island is now a bird sanctuary too. There are lots of buildings in a state of arrested decay and beautiful flowers all over the place. At the cell house, they give you a headset so that you get a guided narrative as you go through the building. The narrators are real guards and inmates from the past and they share stories of what went on there. It’s all very interesting and there is so much to see, that there is still more for me to see next time. Back on the mainland, we enjoyed a nice seafood dinner on Pier 39 and then we watched the sunset from their dock.
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