Devil's Slide Trail - San Jacinto Mountains

Linda and I went for a spectacular hike up to saddle junction via the devils slide trail. We took our time and really enjoyed the forest. The snow was solid ice and it got pretty slippery near the top toward the saddle. We would have needed crampons to go any further. We sat on some boulders in the middle of the snowy forest and had a nice lunch. Also we got to hike with ( Joanne ?? ) most of the day. It was really nice to get to know her. She was visiting from the midwest and enjoying some California sun and mountains. It was such a treat for all of us to be able to experience the serenity of the wilderness this day. We drove the back way home and got to transision from high mountain pine forest to high desert to oak woodlands to sage scrub foothills and finally to our home a block from the beach.

Calaveras Weekend

Barbara and I spent the weekend with my family out at Calaveras preserve a week and a half ago. Yes, I am behind on my posts but I have been outdoors a bit. five of us went kayaking on the lake Saturday afternoon. It was a beautiful golden afternoon. there were lots of ducks and mudhens flittering around the lake. We toured pretty much the whole lake. It's very peaceful out there. Then, on Sunday, while Barbara and Kaitlyn were bicycling the trails below us, my brother and i hiked to the top of the mountain. We noticed some wildflowers starting to bloom in the area. We also flew a kite from the top and we took in views probably around 100 miles in all directions to the foothills and mountains in the east to the ocean in the west. Very nice!

Cedar Creek Falls Again with Family & Friends

So, I was just here two days ago and after showing some of the pics of the falls, it prompted another trip here with Rob my brother, Kaitlyn my niece, and Aaron my friend. We had a great time. Aaron and I got up the courage to jump into the pool at the base of the falls. That was some some of the coldest water that I have ever jumped into. Definitely a spiritual mountain experience. Also, one of the best parts of the trip, NO TRASH !!

Cedar Creek Falls Weekday Solo Hike

I went for a solo hike on Thursday down to Cedar Creek Falls. This was my first time seeing this waterfall flowing this hard. Totally awesome. I climbed up through the chute up to the top of the fall and found a nice perch near the lip of the fall and had a nice lunch and some nice meditation. After some exploration I decided to head back up the hill out of the canyon. Halfway up the hill I met Don and Brad headed down into the canyon with trash bags and gloves on a mission to hike all of the trash out of the canyon. I was so grateful for them that I offered to help and completed the job with them. I want to give a special thanks to Don, Brad, (Michelle?), and the other hikers that came along and carried bags of trash out of the canyon. Some people do not understand how extremely important it is to not litter, especially in our national forests. Anyway, it sure was a great feeling to clean up the forest. I ended up going back to Cedar Creek a couple days later and I have to tell you, Experiencing the canyon and falls with no trash around was truly beautiful. A couple of people that I brought here for the first time got to experience it with no trash and i am so grateful for that.