The trees are legendary. Old, big, and red, they only grow here along the coast of California, well the ewoks have them but, being in a different galaxy and time, they’re too far away. Sequoia sempervirens, known as the California coast redwood to all but the naturalists among us, may…

The tides and current can be murderous. The fog is legendary. And then there’s that suspension bridge. When you put them together on the wrong day paddling a kayak from the San Francisco Bay out into the Pacific Ocean to Point Bonita could be a recipe for disaster. With some…

I was recently at Morro Bay on California’s central coast. The four-mile bay is a favorite for vacationers from San Juaquin Valley cities of Fresno and Bakersfield to escape the summer heat and enjoy the beach. It is also mid-state situated for Bay area residents to be close by and…

Several years ago, I was at Morro Bay paddling with a friend. We had a great day of conversation and Pacific Coast paddling early in the day. As the afternoon wore on, we decided to go north of the bay to explore. As heat inland drew the moisture toward the…

I was recently at Morro Bay on the central coast of California. In addition to wanting to get away for a few days and try out my newly carved two-piece Greenland paddle, I wanted to take some pictures. Morro Bay was in rare summer form with sunny comfortable days devoid…

Sometimes it’s sunny. Being a California beach, more often the day starts overcast and cool. Surf City (north) is a busy place. From Santa Cruz’s boardwalk with its arcades and carnival rides to the main surf attraction, Cowell’s and Steamer Lane, opportunities in this California beach town are as vast…

A sea port in San Jose? Your kidding, right?  Alviso was established in 1852 is at the south end of San Francisco Bay and early in the American era became the port of entry for goods and passengers coming to San Jose. And why not? The Spanish established San Jose…

Thar, she blows! I don’t care if I’m on the dock or in a kayak, and I’ll even pay to see whales in the beautiful Pacific Ocean. I call them the paparazzi boats. Like the photographers who chase stars for the supermarket tabloids, I arm myself with my best equipment,…

Cinnabar, quicksilver or mercury, it is all the same element. The hills to the south of San Jose used to contain a lot it, whatever you decide to call it. Most of the mercury, used to separate gold from the surrounding rock, was mined and sold during the California gold…

It starts at about San Luis Obispo. The desert that meets the Pacific in Southern California and the O.C. gives way to taller trees, the coast line gets tall and hilly, and the fog is blocked by the coastal range; the water gets cooler and the mammals change. By Big…