From raised rail track covered in weeds to an extremely successful free public place that provides visual access to areas in and around the Meat Packing District of New York City. Those words and some select photographs are all I’ve got today.
This place just south of Monterey on the Californian coast must rate as some of the most spectacular shoreline scenery in the world. Not only was the autumn weather just glorious, the wildlife was plentiful. We saw harbour seals, sea lions, otters, pelicans, gulls, egrets and cormorants. A feast for the soul.
We drove into Yosemite from the east today across the Tioga Pass, a road that is only accessible during the warmer months of the year. The day started with below zero temperatures and ended up a very warm afternoon.
Here are a couple of the afternoon photographs with some effects play.
One of the pleasures of a road trip without a fixed plan is surprise. We crossed over the California/Nevada border late yesterday afternoon and ended up stopping in another gateway town to Death Valley.
Beatty, Nevada, has a great Mexican restaurant where we enjoyed sitting outside at cable reels for tables as the day’s heat abated.
The town has seen more prosperous days, as indicated by this amazing sign opposite a now defunct casino/hotel.
Still, no-one need go thirsty in this town.
We had breakfast at Mel’s Diner before heading north towards the east side of Yosemite National Park, our day-trip destination for tomorrow. We’re lodging in a very cute and well equipped cabin at June’s Lake on the outside of the park for the next couple of nights.
Today in Death Valley there were highs and lows. The low point was Badwater Basin where we were 86 metres below sea level. The high? Dante’s View at 1669 metres with a view down the valley to end a hot and dry feast of desert scenery.
We saw very little wildlife as sensible creatures were hiding away from the heat. One Road Runner did cross our path though.
Our visit to the Trona Pinnacles was one for all the senses. First it was the smell of sulphur from the chemical plant in the town of Trona where the sodium based mineral (trona) is processed; and then, the sound of weapons testing going on at the nearby China Lake Naval facility.
Here are the highlights of our drive through the valley.
Mesquite Flat Dunes
Artist’s Palette
Badwater Basin
Manley Beacon
Zabriskie Point
Death Valley from Dante’s View
It was a gorgeous autumn afternoon in Morro Bay and we took a stroll around town before having a meal with sunset views.
This memorial seat is pretty impressive. Nick must have been a rev-head extraordinaire to warrant a bench like this.
This morning, we faced towards the east and took (roughly) the direction of Route 58 to Mojave before heading north on 14 towards Ridgecrest where we’re staying the night before going to Death Valley tomorrow.
Today was solar farms and squirrels and even drier landscape than yesterday. We passed by place names like Pumpkin Center and Weed Patch Highway and saw our first Joshua Trees. Where irrigation is possible during the drought, we saw dairy cattle, grapevines and peach trees. Wind turbines are working well in these wide open spaces.
We stopped off near Mojave to eat some lunch and watched this long freight train pass through. Behind us was the Mojave graveyard of 747 planes.
Red Rock Canyon gave us a taste of what we might see tomorrow as we venture north and further inland.
We’re cruising around for a week with no fixed plans until next Wednesday when I lob into Asilomar, near Monterey, for a few days. After a late arrival into Oakland last night, we set off in a rental car to motor down the spectacular coastline that includes the legendary Big Sur.
You’re nobody unless you’re driving a Mustang convertible along this route. I was playing Ford Focus Sally with the wind from the car vents blowing through my hair. It was a magnificent experience, despite the lack of an apparently compulsory rented Mustang.
Pigface plants and the invasive pampas grass seemingly hold the coastal cliffs together (that, and wire netting to prevent rocks sliding onto the road). California has been in drought for the past 4 years and the landscape is showing it. Many trees are in severe stress and the grasslands are very dry.
On the wildlife front, we caught sight of a number of Stellar’s Jays as well as a hummingbird. Much of the coastline is protected and many pelicans and elephant seals call this stretch home.
The best meal experience in Waikiki was Marukame Udon where there’s always a queue. Select your favourite udon noodles, then add your choice of tempura pieces. Easy as that. $22.00 fed us both.
We took Bus Number 2 up to Diamond Head crater carrying rain jackets which, as it turned out, was a good call. We headed off on the hiking trail together, but I was never going to make it all the way. Himself has a great photo from the top which he may be kind enough to share on this post. I have a photo of the shelter near the Visitor Centre as the rain came down and down.
When you board the USS Bowfin at Pearl Harbour, you understand how well the crew needed to get along. Can’t help wondering if one of the selection criteria for submariners is to not be very tall.
We took the boat out to view the USS Arizona Memorial. Due to recent storms and flash flooding, the water was very murky, making it impossible to view the sunken vessel. This view is taken from the USS Missouri mooring site, looking down Battleship Row where so much damage was done when the Japanese bombed the harbour in 1941.
The USS Missouri is out of commission these days. The Japanese Instrument of Surrender was signed on the Missouri in Tokyo Bay on 2 September 1941.
This statue is one by Seward Johnson, also famous for his Forever Marilyn piece.
We’re off again, this time circumnavigating the planet over a couple of months with some amazing destinations ahead of us. Our first stop is Honolulu for a few days. We’re staying a couple of blocks away from Waikiki Beach which favoured us with some sunshine on our first day, in between pretty consistent rain showers and the odd storm.
Last week I took the macro lens out into the garden for the first time in a while. Spring is certainly upon us.
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