Category: Photography

Univ of California Santa Cruz Arboretum 2.8.2025

Grevillea noellii is yet another Australian native that thrives along the California coastal climate. It’s an evergreen shrub with interesting spidery-looking “flowers”.

U. of California Santa Cruz Arboretum 1.31.2025

Many species of plants at the UCSC arboretum are in the Fuchsia genus. Correa reflexa is a native fuchsia found in Australia and consists of many different varieties – ranging from ground-hugging species to those reaching a height of 5 feet. It was fun… Continue Reading “U. of California Santa Cruz Arboretum 1.31.2025”

U. of California Santa Cruz Arboretum 1.21.2025

Conebush is from a family of plants indigenous to the Cape Provinces of South Africa. This one is a large shrub or small tree, evergreen and stunning for the reddish flower heads at the ends of the branches.

U. of California Santa Cruz Arboretum 1.20.2025

Yesterday, Jim and I decided to take a road trip and complete a loop around the Bay Area Peninsula. He has been hard at work upgrading the electrical system in the Airstream – replacing the converter with an inverter/charger and installing lithium batteries. And,… Continue Reading “U. of California Santa Cruz Arboretum 1.20.2025”

Russian Ridge Open Space Preserve 1.20.2025

Expansive view from the top of the ridge – the line between sea and sky is barely visible in the distance.

Russian Ridge Open Space Preserve 1.19.25

Russian Ridge Open Space Preserve 1.15.25

While we are hanging out at our son’s home in Skylonda on the Bay Area Peninsula, I have been exploring the many open space preserves that exist here along the coastal Santa Cruz Mountains. I just discovered the Russian Ridge Open Space Preserve and… Continue Reading “Russian Ridge Open Space Preserve 1.15.25”

California Native Plants 1.9.2025

Brittle Leaf Manzanita is native to the Central California coast and distributed mostly in the coastal foothills between the San Francisco Bay Area and south to Santa Barbara. I found this plant growing in the La Honda Creek Open Creek Preserve at the higher… Continue Reading “California Native Plants 1.9.2025”

Los Gatos Creek Bike Trail 1.8.2025

Today we did a road trip with our grand-dog, Wylie, and ended up exploring the Vascona Lake County Park located in Los Gatos, CA. There is a bike/hike trail that runs through the park called the Los Gatos Creek Trail. The park is a… Continue Reading “Los Gatos Creek Bike Trail 1.8.2025”

La Honda Creek Preserve Day Hike 1.5.2025

These baby redwoods were growing at the base of a large diameter redwood on the trail up to the top of the preserve – and the dark, damp trunk made a nice backdrop for the bright green needles and red stems.