This time of year is so good to be outdoors. It is cool with fog and mist most mornings, if not all day, and everything is green and blooming. We have hiked the past several weekends. All were good outings, but this hike in Chino Hills was the best. It was an excellent workout (two hills too many per Chris), there were very few people on the trail, and the colors were beautiful.
We started at the Rimcrest entrance, We headed east and made a left at Bovinian Delight. This brought us to Four Corners. We then headed back west on Telegraph Canyon, and finally back south on Easy Street. This is a great loop, with a lot of ups and downs and a good combination of fire roads and narrow trails.
We took a break at Four Corners. We shared a bar and some pretzels and marveled at the lack of people, especially bicyclists.
We saw caterpillar phacelia, ladybugs, milk thistle, and lots of poison oak.
We were back at the car by about 11:30, headed to Starbucks and then home. A very good morning.
Our backyard is thriving, big time. Thanks to all the rain we had this winter.
We spent the first part of May traveling. Trips are so good, but home is good too. Mostly just the usual has taken up the days, but the past few weeks have also included some nice connections with friends. Chris and I met up with L and M for a Sunday morning hike out of Will Rogers State Historic Park. The hills and fields were so green. We had breakfast after at A Votre Santé in Brentwood. The options at this eatery include vegan and gluten-free items. We have been here several times. The food is very good, but Chris thinks the portions are too small.
I also had dinners with a couple of girlfriends. Both are such good cooks.
I have long wanted to start a flower journal. It is underway. These first two pages are flowers from our yard. I wanted to get wildflowers on our trip back east, but I learned a flower press is a necessity when traveling. Next time.
The past few weeks I went to four or five estate sales. I bought nothing. Then finally I hit a good one. This sale was in Hacienda Heights and had a dining table I was interested in. It turned out to be a no-go, but I did pick up some fun little things.
This is a vintage Tupperware deviled egg carrier? server? It looked like it had never been used.
This glass vase was my favorite. It is about 12 inches tall and had no markings. Not valuable, but so pretty.
This little mug was a find, I thought. Once home I found this chip.
This is a sweet pitcher. Dated on the the bottom – 1979.
This set of Christmas trays was iffy – I don’t need holiday stuff, but… for $5 I could not leave them. They also looked unused and came in the original box, dated 1985.
Lastly, I picked up this. I used Google Lens to get information about it. It think if originally held 4 coasters. I can use it for cocktail napkins. These sales are so much fun, and will be even more so when I find the perfect dining table.
One more estate sale find. This watercolor was picked up for me by A for the amazing price of $5. I love it. It is currently at the framers. I am so anxious to hang it.
We were gone ten days on this most recent trip. We flew to Savannah, Georgia and spent two days exploring the area – one day in Savannah and one day on Tybee Island and few other areas outside of the city. While in Asheville, we turned in our rental car and our friends, Charlie and Elaine, picked us up. After lunch and driving a section of the Blue Ridge Parkway we headed to their home in Bluff City for 4 days. We then flew home from the tiny Tricity Airport in Blountville, Tennessee.
There were so many highlights on this trip. The highs in Savannah were an excellent historical tour and roaming around the city at night. The low was our hotel. There were some cosmetic issues, but we were able to get some compensation after a conversation with the manager.
We loved Tybee Island. We started the day there with a visit to the lighthouse. For $12.50 you can climb the 170 something steps to the top and get amazing views. Two observations – the lighthouse is old and Georgia is flat.
Tybee Island has many old wooden piers. This one reminded us (sort of) of Huntington Beach Pier, except there were no people.
After touring Tybee Island, we headed to another island, Skidway, and checked out the State Park. We hiked around a bit and then lounged on the screened porch at the visitor’s center.
In between touring around this part of Georgia we had some good meals, including fish and chips and lunch at the regional cultural icon, The Waffle House.
Our drive to Asheville was beautiful, but a bit delayed by a few stops and by two accidents. We didn’t get into town until late afternoon, so our only sightseeing this day was a visit to the North Carolina Arboretum. We lucked into visiting during the two week only exhibit, “Bloom With a View”. The cost here is only for parking, and it was significantly increased during this special exhibit. I cannot remember the amount, but whatever is was, was very worth it.
We spent the next morning touring the Biltmore Estate. The ticket price was, I believe, $110 each (plus some random fees). I was doubtful of the value, but we found it worth it. Very. (Note – I find myself surprised at many, or maybe just some, entrance fees and parking charges and question to do or not to do. Mostly, I never regret the expense.) The audio tour of the house (mansion) was excellent and the 90 minutes or so we spent walking through the gardens and green house and out to the pond were really relaxing. We ended our visit with lunch on a beautiful patio with two, very interesting women who shared their table with us. We talked about travel and their own practices of owning and carrying firearms.
After the Biltmore visit, we spent the afternoon driving around a bit and then exploring Asheville’s River Arts District. I didn’t get good photos here as I was desperately searching for a piece of art to buy. I didn’t find anything. I guess art has to come to you; you won’t find it out of desperation.
A few random shots from North Carolina.
The remainder of the trip was spent with Elaine and Charlie. Once again we stayed at their lake house in Bluff City, Tn. We had good meals, both at home and out, watched YouTube videos about hiking and explored neighborhoods in a few towns, but mostly we hiked on the Appalachian Trial (A.T.) and boated after on Watauga Lake and South Holston Lake.
The most treacherous trail was not on the A.T. It was a short (0.4 mile) path to the Blue Hole. Very steep irregular stairs lead down to a beautiful pool fed by a series of waterfalls. There is huge potential for injury here, in my opinion, but we all made it there and back with no incidents.
After our mornings of hiking we had lunch and then headed to nearby lakes for some very relaxing time on the water. Elaine and Charlie belong to a boat club where they can reserve boats (beautiful pontoon boats) at several different lakes. Charlie zipped us out of the marinas to quiet lake coves where we floated around and rested our tired bodies.
We love this part of the country and are already talking about our next trip out this way.
In preparation for our trip in May, which includes some hiking on the Appalachian Trail, I have been doing a little solo hiking in the local hills around here.
Our yard has color!
I am attempting to press some of the flowers. I’m using the old parchment paper in a heavy book technique.
We celebrated Easter at the Smiths. My contributions (banana cake cookies, Aunt Peggy’s fudgy brownies, and a honey crisp apple salad) are pictured below.
We replaced the blinds in two rooms. They are exactly the same as the old ones, but are clean and fully operational!
Some of the Bend Starks were in town. We had them for lunch. We served a “ring sandwich” from Claro’s Market, salads, and a blueberry coffee cake.
Jan visited for a long weekend. We had lunch with Mom, shopped a bit and puzzled.
We also attended the L.A. Times Book Festival. Lynne joined us. We attended two author roundtable discussions, pursued the book booths, and had a high tech Panda Express lunch.
After several years of little rain and severe drought California had extreme rains the first few months of 2023. This has resulted in a “superbloom”. A “superbloom” is a rare botanical occurrence during which all the conditions are right for a high proportion of flowers to sprout all at once.
We drove out to Hemet, to Diamond Lake, to check out the superbloom in Riverside County. After paying $11 to park and $4 each for hiking passes we found the Wildflower Trail and spent about 2 hours roaming the hills and soaking in the color and texture.
We hiked about 4.5 miles, took many pics and then headed to Polly’s Pies for lunch and shared slice of banana cream pie. A good day!
Not all travel goes according to plan. This trip planned, for 8 days, had to be shortened to 4 days due to illness of one of our travel group. Fortunately all are well now, and though short, the trip was good.
We used VRBO to rent this wonderful country home, outside Fairhope. We arrived after dark, and were challenged to find the house on the completely dark county road. The following morning we were able to see that we were out in the middle of nowhere, at least by California standards.
… the “backyard”…
We spent most of our time at the Fairhope Arts and Crafts Festival. This festival takes place in charming downtown Fairhope and is considered one of the top art shows in the country. The art is mostly “fine art” and the vendors are artists from all over the southern U.S. A rainstorm closed the festival on day one at 1pm, but I did get enough time in to buy a piece of wall art and when back the next day I bought three small pottery vases. I was tempted by many other pieces. My purchases are in route by mail.
Pictures of the fair were hard to take and the one below comes nowhere close to the vastness and uniqueness of event.
…Southern Belles…
…southern food offerings…
Our fancy dinner out was at the Wash House in Point Clear. This is a rustic, fine dining place and we loved it! My meal was the Wash House Salad, Seared Scallops (served with butternut squash puree, grilled bok choy, and bacon jam), and a shared Key Lime Bread Pudding.
Lastly, we drove out to family property located on the Mobile Bay in Daphne. This beautiful place is a world away for us Californians. It was chilly, stark, swampy, and deserted. Alligators inhabit these waters. The beaches are private land. Hurricanes repeatedly hit this bay and the piers are rebuilt over and over.
I hope to visit here again, see more of the gulf coast, visit more of the small coastal towns, eat more seafood, and maybe get some more art.
I was gifted these very special Harry’s Berries. They lived up to their reputation.
Also delicious this month was banana bread and Lentil Shepard’s Pie.
I made a quick trip to Reno to visit Suzy. It was snowy and cold. We mostly stayed home, ate delicious food, and chatted for hours. We did venture out to see the Adaline Kent exhibit at the Nevada Museum of Art, and for a yummy lunch at the museum cafe.
Suzy’s backyard.
Back here in So Cal, it is warmer, but wet. So much rain. But finally on a dry day we ventured out to get some steps in on the Tracks at Brea. Lots of color.
On a recent Sunday afternoon we toured the Gamble House in Pasadena. We have heard about this home built in the early 1900s by the Gamble Family (of the Proctor and Gamble people) for years. We roamed the grounds on our own then had a one hour guided tour through the house. Chris is considering returning for the more in-depth 2.5 hour tour.
And lastly, this is the most delicious fresh asparagus soup. Recipe courtesy of Suzy.
When you made a reservation six months out at a coveted Southern California Beach Camp you DO NOT CANCEL… so despite a poor weather forecast, we went, with plenty of warm clothes and firewood and plans to eat most of our meals out.
We lasted about 30 hours. It was a chilly with rain off and on – neither deal breakers – but with winds of up to 30mph with gusts in the 40s. When the winds had not abated by day 2 late afternoon we seized a short moderate break and quickly packed up and headed home. We might of called it earlier but were hesitant to take the trailer down when everything was blowing so hard.
Miraculously the only damage we had was to the solar panel. When battening down the hatches we forgot to remove it from the trailer roof. Sometime during the night it flew off. Whether it can be repaired is to be determined.
After setting up camp on day one we took immediate refuge from the weather with a drive south and dinner at Fish 101 in Encinitas. We shared a fish burrito and fish and chips. Both were winners.
After a sleepless night and a Starbucks stop we again headed south. We had a second delicious burrito in Pacific Beach at Kono’s Cafe. This divey, beachy place was the number one yelp listing; the first review said it was cheap, but good. Spot on.
We ended up at Balboa Park in San Diego. Thankfully the wind was less and the rain only misting. We wandered around for about an hour or so and then headed back north.
Back at the camp, the wind was the worse yet. It initially rained, but then cleared up and the sky and sunset were spectacular.
We were relieved to get everything packed up with no incidence. We drove out, past the ranger and told him we were headed home. He said, “good decision”, with a chuckle.
More Apple Slices 