Saturday, August 01, 2020

|| California Expeditions, Frame 51 - 75



51. Lake Arrowhead (6/18/2021)
  • https://www.daytrippen.com/lake-arrowhead-day-trip-things-to-do/
  • 1.5 to 2 hours trip, close to big bear
  • Also close to Silverwood lake, deep creek hot springs
  • In the highlands, drive carefully with turns, about 4000 elevations.  Drive into the village area, lots of shops, sitting areas but the river front side is very limited as the lake is prioritized to the home owners; there's McDonald, and double deck eating area was very nice
52. Cabrillo National Monument, San Diego (12/26/2020)
  • National park, this is the 4th pass use.  1.5 hours drive, at I5, exit at 21 to the seaworld drive, pass the mission bay area and getting to the catalina blvd for a few miles to get into the trading post entry
  • The upper location has the loma point, the monument, visiting center and whale watching outlook
  • The lower location has the tidal pool and sea cove trails, at times steep down on the sandy staircases, need the walking stick
  • Beautiful rock formations along the coast line, overlook on the San Diego downtown, naval and air base, submarine base
  • 8000 steps and 2 hours
53. Long Beach (1/2/2022)
  • 30 miles; drive on 405 then change to go west
  • Two parking spaces - Map destination to shoreline village ($6 for max 2 hours); Pier Point landing parking (same parking system but not clear about charges)
  • Cross the bridge has the Queen Mary ship and the Hotel Maya (luxury living it looks like)
  • Lots of restaurants of national chain brands, mall etc
  • Whale watching cruise start on 12pm and 330pm; harbor 45min cruise departs every 30-60min 
54. Sequoia national park (9/6/2020)

55. Kings Canyon national park (9/5/2020)
  • The deepest canyon in North America, Kings Canyon offers a massive panorama of scenery that, like the big trees up the road, is above and beyond. Many opportunities to engage this national park treasure, from picnic tables to campgrounds and national park lodging, are available
  • Valley View overlook, and the Grizzly Falls turnout, Zumwalt meadow, and the roaring falls are worth stoping by
  • Grant Grove
  • A mixed conifer and sequoia forest surrounds the General Grant Tree Trail at Grant Grove. Other points of interest include the Gamlin Cabin and the Fallen Monarch along the 1/3-mile paved trail. Take the North Grove Loop, a lightly traveled, 1.5-mile trail that leads away from the pavement for a closer look at the big trees.
  • General Grant Tree
56. Upper Newport Back Bay (Westcliff, 8/29/2020)
  • Galaxy view park, North star beach, both places are petite, they are 15min apart
  • Park at Newport Aquatic center at north star beach, dirt and sandy surface
  • http://www.newportbeachca.gov/PLN/LCP/Internet%20PDFs/CLUP_Part%203_Public%20Access%20and%20Recreation.pdf
  • Big Canyon Nature Park. Big Canyon Nature Park is a passive open space area that provides hiking trails from Jamboree Road to the Upper Newport Bay Marine Park. The mouth of Big Canyon contains natural habitats and the provision of additional public access must be consistent with the protection of these resources
  • Try the West cliff Drive, street parking to get back on trail
  • Mountain to Sea trail head is right besides the Backbay science center
57. Getty Villa (12/31/2021)
  • https://www.getty.edu/visit/villa/parking-and-transportation/
  • One hour drive, can stop at Torrance, need a reservation, parking is $20 and enter through the right hand side of the parking deck
58. Holy Jim (10/3/2020)
59. Holy Jim, Whiting Ranch hiking red rock (10/3/2020)
  • https://hikingguy.com/hiking-trails/hiking-orange-county/whiting-ranch-hiking-red-rock-canyon/
  • 30mn drive
  • This place is very close to the Holy Jim area.  Drive to the hill roads and the park is on the right side with massive parking places, $3 parking fee from the paying machine
  • There are clearly marked trails, not too many easy ones and most people are walking on the easy Serrano, Lively Oak trails.  The Serrano cow trail is marked as easy but it's very narrow and there are many crazy mountain bikers flying through the trails, not the ideal for pedestrian walkers
  • It is indeed wilderness, and there's not much to see.  The place is marked to have mountain lions
60. Grand Central Market and Downtown LA (7/3/2021)
  • Set google map to grand central market garage, first 90min $4 then $2 for every extra 15 minutes, so it's adding up quickly; there are flat rate $10 garages just around the corner but flat and seems to be difficult in parking in
  • Busy scenes with many food vendors, all enticing with big traffic; restroom is on the underground floor
  • Ate at Villa taco place, very good food and drink; eggslut has super long lines
  • Angeles sky cable car is on the back and the last book store is about 4 blocks away; finishing all these activities are $10 so about 2.5 hours
61. Serrano creek park (9/19/2020)
  • 15min drive into Lake Forest, park on the street, free parking
  • Small park, very quiet, secluded, limited trail between paved paths and horse paths, alongside the creek.  The heritage hill park is blocked during the days
  • The other side has the lake forest lake, a private property space
62. Hilltop Conservation Park at Dana Point (9/26/2020)
  • 30min drive on 405 then 5 for 15 miles to turn into route 1, get onto the blue street lantern and a few more turns to get a the very top of the hill, roadside parking only
  • One short nature walk, one closed trail at the conservation interpretive center, one trail leading to the top of mountain with exits to the main roads
  • The hill sits on top of the kiddy pool where paddling boats descend into the waters
63. Newport Civic Center (9/26/2020)
  • Turn into San Miguel at the Fashion Island
  • Contemporary buildings of the city council, library, senior citizens center
  • Desert garden, city central park with statues, sculpture art works
  • 20min to get back home from MacArthur, Jamboree
64. Anti mall and the camp, the LAB (11/22/2020)
  • In the city of Costa Mesa, just a street apart
  • http://www.thelab.com/store-list
  • https://www.thecampsite.com/storelist
  • The camp is more interesting with a buy and sell store, patagonia and a few eating places
65. Terranea Resort Palos Verdes Trails (11/21/2020)
  • Passing the industrial shipyard at Long Beach, drive into the neighborhood roads
  • Park at "Trail Parking" by Google map, there are approximately 25 car slots, and plenty of street parking outside the "Ocean" townhomes
  • Several trails, paved and dirt road, lots of climbs and declines, so use the walking sticks when possible, easily 10K steps in 1.5 hours
  • Beautiful place with clean water with smells from the sea, not crowded at all
  • https://www.daytrippen.com/terranea-resort-palos-verdes-day-trip/
66. Pasadena City Hall and Arlington Garden (10/17/2020)
  • https://www.daytrippen.com/pasadena-day-trip/
  • Gamble house etc tours have been suspended
  • 50min drive.  Plenty of metered parking outside of the cluster of buildings, $1.25 per hour
  • The cluster includes, church, police hall, supreme court, public library, permit center, Asian museum.  Most are closed for the day
  • Arlington Garden is a hidden gem, street parking but easy.  There are many garden trails, tables to lounge and to have a quick drink or bite on things
67. Heisler Park, Laguna Beach (10/10/2020)
  • Park at lot 12 at 133South, use the left lane and turn into public parking right before the civic hall, $3 all day during the weekend
  • Park lot 2 is closer to the beach, smaller and busier lot inside the commercial strip
  • Walk towards the north onto the hill top and all the way, multiple staircases to go up or down and into the Heisler Park, pretty views and rock formations
68. Paso Roble & San Luis Obispo (8/22-24/2021)
  • 4 hours drive; four day strategy https://www.slocal.com/blog/post/see-all-of-slo-cal-in-4-days/
  • Visited - 
    • Stayed at The Kinney San Luis Obispo, Tapestry Collection by Hilton; a hotel zone after the downtown, many of them are old and some have been upgraded; the Splash cafe is just around the corner, excellent for breakfast and a quick bite
    • Visited the Pismo beach and reserve, park at 80 Mattie Road, Pismo Beach, CA 93446; exit at 191B; trail map https://www.lcslo.org/pismopreservetrailmap/trailmapfs.html; splash cafe for a clam chowder and fried fish tacos
    • The mission is free to enter with lots of tables; downtown is just ok like a town center; evening hours have a lot of homeless on the plaza
    • Downtown - Mission; Farmhouse; Bubblegum Alley is just an alley with used bubblegum, it's ridiculous to see it as a known place to visit
    • Terrace open hill is a hard rock steep incline so did't pursue
    • Johnson Ranch loop trail is easy and paved, 2.3 miles (orange line and easy) and 2.6 miles (yellow and medium difficulty)
    • Restaurant - Firestone grill (barbecue meat); Taqueria Santa Cruz Express (ceviche tostada, carne en su jugo; average quality and environement good for take out); At Bites (Vietnamese); Mistura (Perusian, not that good)
  • Also visited - 
    • Morro Bay Harbor (20 minutes drive)
    • Frankie and Lola breakfast is excellent, right besides the three chimneys and opposite the Morro rock; cool and easy outdoor seating; corned beef hash and pancakes are so good
    • Morro rock is inside the state park, can just drive there, there are divers and hikers on the other end.
    • The town is quaint and rugged, and love these sentiments
  • Also visited - 
    • Wolff vinyards $15 tasting and waived if buying a bottle
    • Long driven inside the vinyard area, very friendly service, nice seating and shaded
    • Hike https://visitslo.com/shareslo-blog/top-15-iconic-views-in-san-luis-obispo/
  • Also visited - 
    • Cambria, moonstone beach is very rugged on high and low rocks, broad walks etc; almost like the new england coast
    • Lots of inns and motels along the drive, all looking very clean but mostly have the senior guests
    • The old town is not interesting, very old, antiquated giftshops, nothing modern, nothing contemorary
  • Also visited - 
    • Paso Robles Bruce Munro's field of light; artwork out of my imagination
    • https://sensoriopaso.com/

69. Point Fermin Park and Korean Friendship Bell (8/7/2021)
  • 45min drive on I-405 then I-710, passing the industrial and ferry areas, two bridges then coming to the residential area; free parking all trip
  • Korean bell was situated on the top of the hill and a basketball court right beside it; the overall neighborhood is probably blue-collar workers, lots of gratifies, lots of trash on roads
  • Down the hill from the bell, there are coastal areas with plenty of parking.  Round trip was 8500 steps on the rocks of the coast, nice walks
70. Red rock canyon Trail at the Whiting Wilderness Park (10/24/2020)
  • 25min drive on Barranca parkway and Alton parkway into Portola foothill town center area.  The Whiting wilderness park is right besides the Ralph's store after turning into the Market Lane from Portola parkway.  Parking fee is $3 but it's a small parking lot, so will need to park at the Ralphs if needed.  There is warning sign that it's private property etc etc.
  • Bortega trail then red canyon trail, both easy, in total 1.7 miles one way and 2.5 hours walk return trip.  It's labeled as easy but requires lots of energy and patience, lots of ups and downs, needing a walking stick
  • At the end of the trail, there is the close walkups to the red canyon rocks, similar to the grand canyon, the zion feel of the wildness, and you can touch it
  • It's a popular trail, and worth revisiting from time to time
71. Kenneth Hahn recreational area (10/31/2020)
  • 50min drive, exit 47 on I405 then 3 miles on La Cienga Rd, turn right into the park area.  $6 cash only parking fee charged at the weekends
  • Park at south and north differently, the people look different for where they want to hang out; quiet and spacious, having both dirt roads and paved trails
  • Doris Japanese garden is deserted, the waterfall fountain has no water
  • City outlook views on the south side of the hill top with many roads connecting to the nearby neighborhoods
72. Topanga lookout trail, Malibu (12/25/2020)
  • 1 hour and 15minute drive on the christmas day morning; 9 miles into the PCH 1 north, turn right, follow google instruction, the last 5 miles were extremely dizzying as it went from sea to mountain in 10minutes
  • Park on the side of the road, then cross the road to enter into the trail, it was a drive way blocked then turned into rocky sandy roads, use the left fork to follow on to the trail
  • It's short 6000 steps but with significant climb at some point, and I gave up on the last stretch to get onto the top
  • Art work on rocks and graffiti's towards the end of the road; beautiful views of the Topanga canyon
  • On the way forward, was trying to get into the Escondido street for the beach but that was a private road, so turned away
  • On the way back, stopped at the Carbon canyon public access street parking place, walked down the beach and walked onto the Malibu pier and the Malibu Farm restaurant.  The food looks yummy veggie and fruity, drinks are very colorful
  • On the way back, closer to Santa Monica, could do street parking then use the lawn chair to stop by and enjoy the beach scenes
73. Anza Borrengo (10/9/2021)
  • 2.5 hours drive, and close to 3 hours back; 76 highway has numerous traffic lights and move slowly; there are many farm stands along the back half of the journey
  • Metal sculptures https://www.visitcalifornia.com/things-to-do/anza-borrego-desert-state-park/; going up and down the S3; drive into the sands to get closer looks
  • Walked the trail of the palm canyon campground; need the parking fee $9 senior to go through the gate; nice parking area; 2 hours shorter loop (the alternative trail is much harder than the main trail); dangerous and dry, need a lot of water; trail guide https://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=638
  • Map https://www.parks.ca.gov/pages/638/files/abdsp_Park_Map201704.pdf
  • Sculpture https://californiathroughmylens.com/anza-borrego-sculptures/
  • Sculpture map http://borregospringsartmap.com/
  • There are just a few shops in the town, can be the strategy to freshen up before driving back
74. Huntington Library/Park (11/3/2020, 4/7/2022)
  • An hour drive on I5 then some neighborhood drive around
  • Get free tickets on the 1st Thursday of the month
  • Parking is free.  Enter at the west entrance, turn right into the Chinese and Japanese gardens, on the north it was the Australian subtropical garden; on the east was the jungle and the palm desert garden with a lily pond
  • All the gallery and building exhibitions are closed because of covid
  • 14000 steps in three hours
  • Delicious food corner open at 5-9pm in the San Gabriel location, 8 min drive; also close to the HK VIP kitchen barbecue shop
  • Art museum, library open; rose garden in bloom in early April, but cherry blossom is all gone (2022)
75. Aquarium of the Pacific (11/13/2020)
  • 37min drive on I405 then follow signs to the aquarium parking lot, it's timed so if we visit more than 2 hours, we can validate to max out on the $8 max charge
  • It's during covid, $19 entry without any discount available; the usual ticket price is $35 and use AAA for 20% discount
  • Outdoor exhibition was tiny, shark, sea lion, seals, sting rays, birds, one hour time is enough
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