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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Great Outdoor Day # 13- Lake Cachuma-Godda Bless

If you sneeze you will miss the entrance to Lake Cachuma Recreation Area midway between Santa Barbara and Los Olivos on Highway 154. The sparkling man-made lake flanked by the Santa Ynez and San Rafael Mountains fills a valley that was once a sacred meeting place for the Chumash people. Resting in the Pacific Flyway, (read more here at Examiner)

Rafting in the Grandest Canyon of All

Last April, I crawled out onto Shoshone Point on the South Rim and stared into the Great Abyss. It was a bit windy that day so I held onto a boulder to keep from being blown into oblivion. As I watched the fast moving clouds cast shadows upon the striated walls of amber, purple and mauve, I yearned to know the pulsing heart of the grandest gorge of them all. The terra cotta river carving its path a mile below held mysteries for me that I had to know. In May, I will meet the challenge of rafting the tumultuous Colorado River through the Grand Canyon. Mode of transport—a motorized launch that gets through hairy rapids and down the entire 227 mile run in only eight days. This trip is perfect for people with time constraints who want to experience the thrill of the canyon without straining a muscle or risking an unwanted dip in bone-chilling water. The pontoon-craft used by Grand Canyon Expeditions seats 14-people and carries supplies for the all-inclusive holiday. This is an incredible time to be on the river with temps around 80 degrees, fewer rafters than in the full tilt summer season and a dazzling desert wildflower show. Visit the Grand Canyon and all of its beauty at Grand Canyon Expeditions.

Great Outdoor Day #12 - La Jolla Loop-Eye-popping Flower Forest

La Jolla canyon is blanketed with the shaggy trunks of the giant coreopsis bursting with bright yellow clumps of daisies from Feb-May. Most families with small children stop at the base of the waterfall about ¾ miles into the trail. The boulder-step hike beyond the fall winds up the narrow gorge overlooking the streambed with willows and black walnut alive with birdsong. Steep switchbacks take the hiker through the flower forest to a serene backcountry meadow. The trail levels off through a tree tunnel of lavender-blue California lilac and leads to a pond lined with pussy willows. Nestled among the spreading coastal oak near the pond are picnic tables that invite the hiker to take a rest and enjoy lunch alfresco. Nearby is an overnight campsite.

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A Book is a Gift That Keeps on Giving

Wai-nani - A New Voice From Old Hawaii


Through Wai-nani’s eyes experience the Hawaiian society as it existed when Captain James Cook arrived at Kealakekua Bay in 1779, ride the billowing seas with Eku the wild dolphin she befriends, join her in a celebration of the people of old.






Available at all major online distribution sites, Kindle Reader and my wesbite, http://www.lindaballouauthor.com/

Signed copy with free shipping and gift wrap, if purchased on Linda’s site
$17.95

Giving Thanks!

It is time to count our blessings and say thanks to those who have supported us. You know who you are and I want you to know how much I appreciate you. May you enjoy the bounty of the season! November is a special time to get outdoors in Southern California.

I will be hiking my turkey off with friends. If you are in L.A. don’t forget to look at my L.A. Outdoor Travel Examiner.com column for the Great Outdoor roadmaps I have provided for you to enjoy.

Happy Thanksgiving!

***

I walk in beauty on the good red road.

Linda Ballou

http://www.lindaballouauthor.com/

Great Outdoor Day in L.A. #3 Reagan Ranch

Walks let my mind relax as my eyes widen and soften and take in a larger field. Smelling the gray clouds lying wet on the land like a cool blanket reminds me of my Alaskan home. Home no longer really, but images forever stained upon an impressionable mind. I walked then, as I do now, for hours feeling the cool air on my skin, blood fired, synapses snapping, bones strengthening, muscles lengthening. Blood flowing to cheeks cool to the touch with heart warm and mind pondering all that I come across.




https://www.examiner.com/outdoor-travel-in-los-angeles/great-outdoor-day-l-a-3-reagan-ranch

Big Fun on the Way

I have been chosen to be the Examiner for Los Angeles Outdoor Travel Column on Examiner.com

These articles will provide insider tips for great outdoor days in L.A.and surrounding areas. They will begin with hike details and end in a sweat-band friendly eatery. You will learn historical tidbits about a given region that will enhance your experience, as well as points of interest nearby the trail head that can round off and great outdoor day. I hope you will join me.

You can find me here at Examiner.