Birding - Purposeful Lollygagging

Birding is the second fastest growing sport in America. Sixty-five million of us are rising at ungodly hours to steal through estuaries and woodlands hoping to spy the flash of a wing. Some of us spend fortunes enticing our avian friends to our back yards. Why?

   (1) Birding is an opportunity for purposeful lollygagging. We must go slowly to catch a glimpse of the vast variety of birds that share the planet with us. A stroll through dew-laden meadows can garner sightings of warblers, finches, bluebirds, and meadow larks swaying on a stem. The seldom seen sora and the ubiquitous great blue heron are found in wetlands along with egrets and dabbling ducks. White pelicans that we associate with the sea migrate to fresh-water stopovers during winter like many other long distance travelers. Slowing down allows you to spot all of these wonderful variations in nature.

Read more here at NABBW

Great Outdoor Day in L.A. #17 - Get Your Zzzz's Zuma to Spruzzo's

One of the less-traveled trails in the Santa Monica Mountains is hidden in Zuma Canyon. Enjoy a leisure cruise up Bonsail Drive off Pacific Coast Highway, opposite Westward Beach and past celebrity haciendas with mounds of brilliant bougainvillea spilling over white walls to a dirt road that deposits you at the trail head.  A steep accent to ocean view and canyon views is a favorite of equestrians so you may run into the horsey set on this trek. Most hikers take the trail up canyon with

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Surf’s UP - Master of the Waves

 Did you ever try to imagine what it was like to be an expert surfer riding the biggest waves in the world? I spent hours watching surfers sift in and out of the waves at Surf Riders Beach in Malibu taking note of their every movement trying to capture in words what it must be like for them to ride the waves.

Clark Little’s incredible photography allowed me to be with him in the belly of thirty foot waves on the north shore of Oahu where he lives. He has mastered the fine art of capturing the dynamic energy of the waves with his camera. He rolls in the surf dangerously close to the crushing monsters to get the best shot.

If you look closely at this iconic shot you will see King Kamehameha the Great standing on the tip of the curl with his crested Helmut and sword in his hand. In my novel Wai-nani, High Chiefess of Hawaii, I describe the royals skittering across the waves on long koa boards. Wai-nani swims with her dolphin friend Eku and rides the waves with him, as well as her lover Makaha. Clarke’s award winning images inspired and excited my imagination. He took me as close to the shimmering heart of the waves as I ever will be.

Clark opened a second gallery on the mainland in Laguna Beach a year ago. Go to his site www.ClarkLittlePhotography.com

to view his gallery and receive notices of future events.

Blog Jog Day is today Aug 7

Welcome to Blog Jog Day! Please enjoy my site then click over to, From A Writer’s POV to see what the next Blog has to offer! Lost in the links? You can always go back to the main Blog Jog Day Blog at and find a new link to jog from. Thank you for stopping by my site!

The Descent into the Grandest Canyon of All!

Join me on the descent to the grandest canyon of all! Even though this article is a posted column on the National Association of Baby Booomer Women’s site, the raft through the Grand Canyon is a journey that can be enjoyed by anyone. All you need to bring on this "bucket list" trip is the right frame of mind and you will return with smile that will last quite some time.

Read more here at the National Association of Baby Boomer Women.

Adventure Travel Writer Linda Ballou Interviewed on Gathering Roads Radio Show

Elaine Masters host of the women’s radio show Gathering Roads interviews adventure-travel writer Linda Ballou. In just 15 minutes you learn what makes Linda want to stretch her limits, and why she is in such a hurry to get to as many beautiful places she can before they are gone. Just in from rafting the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon and on her way to the lofty peaks in the San Juan Mountains, she takes time to share her excitement with you.

Listen to the Linda's interview here at Women's Radio

Great Outdoor Day in L.A. #16-Wine Tasting Trail in the Santa Monica Mountains

How Sweet It Is

Vineyards have been springing up all over the Santa Monicas, but are mainly concentrated in the corridor where Kanan Road and Mulholland Highway intersect. It is advisable to get your exercise before visiting the three tasting rooms in close proximity to the trail in Peter Strauss Ranch. The parking lot on Mulholland Highway for the shady .6 mile loop is directly across from The Old Place and the Cornell Winery & Tasting Room. Take the footbridge over Triunfo Creek to the entrance of the Lake Enchanto retreat where you might run into a peacock or two. The trailhead behind the outdoor theater takes you through a mesquite tree tunnel and a forest of stately oaks then loops back to a grove of giant eucalyptus. Free concerts take place here in the summer. (If this is not enough hike for you go my Great Outdoor day # 3 - Reagan Ranch. It also is in the vicinity.)

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Destination: The Great Abyss

I am still savoring a phenomenal river trip with Grand Canyon Expeditions. Presently, I am writing my impressions while the experience is fresh. Meanwhile, I would like to share these videos with you. There is nothing quite like coming to know the Great Abyss, up close and personal.

Front row seat in the heart of the Grand Canyon

http://youtube/huT9ixg4MTo

Shaking in my boots at Lava Falls

http://youtube/2Nyy_5RJWi4

Grand Canyon Expeditions

Great Outdoor Day #15 - Where the Surf Speaks Loudly

The sign reads “Malibu State Beach and Museum,” but fast-moving traffic on Pacific Coast Highway does not encourage one to stop and explore the Adamson House behind the block wall ensconced in honeysuckle and bougainvillea. The Spanish hacienda built in the ’20s was originally the beach home of the first family of Malibu

Continue reading on Examiner.com: Great Outdoor Day #15-Malibu-Where the Surf Speaks Loudly - Los Angeles Outdoor Travel | Examiner.com http://www.examiner.com/outdoor-travel-in-los-angeles/great-outdoor-day-15-malibu-where-the-surf-speaks-loudly-review-1#ixzz1NCSIhpOv

First Book Stories: Wai-nani High Chiefess of Hawaii Featured at The Professional Writer Connection

In celebration of authors, during the month of May, The Professional Writer Connection is hosting the first book stories of authors. Today, I am featured there with my first novel, Wai-nani.

Ano Ano (the seed) for Wai-nani High Chiefess of Hawai’i-Her Epic Journey took root in my heart thirty years ago when I lived on the north shore of Kauai. Since that time, I became a successful real estate sales person in Southern California, published numerous travel articles in national magazines and evolved as a human being. Self actualization on so many levels gave me the courage to tackle my long-buried dream of publishing the historical novel I’d quietly been working on all those years.
When I lived on Kauai, I became smitten with the great personage of Ka’ahumanu, a childless chiefess who was the favorite wife of Kamehameha the Great. This was in the late 70’s, a time when

Read more here at The Professional Writer Connection

Read about my first visit to The Book Connection