It's hard to resist the temptation to write an annual retrospective this time of year. Work is slow and vacation time is plentiful. I have had plenty of time to look back at the accomplishments and failures of the past year. Certainly 2009 had its ups and downs. I chose poorly to graduate right in the deepest pit of the great recession and struggled to find purpose amongst many an idle afternoon. I've also climbed peaks that I knew only in my dreams, stared out over redwood forests and watched waves crash against the rugged coast. Truly I cannot decide of 2009 was a magnificent success or a colossal failure. Below is my highlight reel from the last year:
9. The Pink Carpet, Pacific Grove (April)

There are many places to see the wildflowers bloom in the spring in California but it's hard to imagine any more explosive in color and beauty than the stretch of coast from the Monterey Bay Aquarium to Asilomar. This stetch, for obvious reasons shown in the photo above is known as "The Pink Carpet". Nearly equal to the flowers in beauty is the coastline which draws tourists from around the world year round. It's a wonderful place to go tidepooling or just watch waves pound the rocks in a display of awe inspiring natural power.
8. Santa Ynez Valley (February)

7. Mt. Tamalpias via Muir Woods (January)

When I got off the plane from New England back at the end of Decemeber I made a promise to myself to hike Mt. Tamalpias before going back down south to Los Angeles for school. Just a couple days into the new year I kicked off from Muir Woods through the magnificent redwood forests right up the side of the mountain. Taking a less common train, I was treated to 180 views of the whole bay area the entire way up (once out of the muir woods canyon). The way down was all waterfalls and lush forests and full of beauty. I was reminded why I love living in California so much.
6. Coastal Fog, Point Reyes (September)

5. Mt. Diablo in the Snow (December)

I've often felt that having to work hard for something deepens your appreciation of it. I would consider my Mt. Diablo hike a perfect example of that. It was 6 miles just to get to the trailhead, and another 5 to the summit area after they closed the gates to automobile traffic because of the snow. Yet it all paid off as my snowboots crunched through 1-2ft deep snow on the top of the prominent east bay peak. Seeing one of the hottest places (in the summer) turned into a winter wonderland was a sight to behold. One could not help but revel in the beauty near the summit, if only for the fact that I knew my legs would feel this day hike for a week.
4. Backpacking Mt. Lassen (September)

Few locations offer the same diversity as Mt. Lassen, we crossed a desert of multi-colored volcanic ash, camped along the shores of mountain lakes, climbed scree slopes, and trekked through dense pine forests. That says nothing of the satisfaction of carrying everything needed to sustain Beylah and myself for 3 days on our backs. Our first backing trip was no dud. Without doubt the highlight of the entire year had to be the "ski" down the cinder cone. 45 minutes up, 2 minutes down, as I like to say.
3. The Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest, White Mountains (June)

Mt. Lassen might be impressive, but there is almost nothing more impressive than the oldest trees in the world, the Bristlecone Pines. Some of these trees are 9000 years old! Now consider that they survive on the nearly soilless scree slopes of the white mountains which receive only 2 inches of rain a year (nearly all of which fell while were there!), oh and at 11k feet right at the edge of the tree line. The gnarled, bark-less and twisting trees just LOOK ancient. Our walk through the Methuselah Grove might well have made No.1 had we not been assailed by a massive hail storm and frequent claps of loud thunder that sent us running in fear for our lives back to the parking lot. (the visitor center at the parking lot was burnt to the ground from a direct lighting strike a few months earlier, so we were not just being timid Californians with no concept of what real weather is)
2. The Eastern Sierra Nevada (June)

1. Graduating College (May)
No comments:
Post a Comment