Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains and Cabrillo National Monuments CA

May 31, 2015

May 9, 2015 – Flew to LA to help Kate with her dog Casey who was having neurological problems. Kate had meetings in Las Vegas from 5/11 – 5/15 and I dog sat for her that week. On Sunday 5/10 Kate and I drove to Griffith Park Observatory for a little walking and views from the LA hills.

LA Motel “Art”

I passed on a personal administrator/chair tool I have used – there are two so you can cover both ears!

On 5/13 I did a day trip to Palm Desert and the BLM Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument

Unfortunately, I discovered that the Visitor Center was closed on Wednesdays as well as Tuesdays because they had just started summer hours

I did all three loops of the Randall Henderson Trail, covering about three miles and gaining about 425 feet in elevation

The Wash Loop

The Cholla Loop – these are called “Teddy Bear Cholla”

The Canyon Loop

This is a Bighorn Sheep area

“Rusty Rocks” – dark brown patina caused by oxidation

Barrel Cactus

Ocotillo – spindly pole-like plant

I drove back to LA first on Rt 74 the “Palms Highway” and then Rt 243 through Idyllwild and then I10 – this is a lookout along Rt 74

5/16 – Picked Kate up at LAX and then walked the Venice canals, beach front and had great sandwiches at Bay Cities Italian Deli and Bakery in Santa Monica.

5/17 – Went to St Francis of Assisi church for mass and then ate a big breakfast at Millies’s Café on Sunset Blvd just like last Sunday. We then took Casey for a walk to Barnsdall Art Park where there is a nice view of the LA Hills, art museums and the Hollyhock House designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and built in the 1920’s.

In the afternoon we took another walk with Casey this time around the Lake in Echo Park

Shared a corn “special” grilled on a grocery cart!

Smothered in butter, mayo, salt, paprika and then rolled in Mexican cheese!

Jose Marti bust

How about a little drink?

Patio table and chairs acquired from two different Goodwill stores

5/18 – I went to Runyon Canyon Park in the Hollywood Hills to hike while Kate worked at home. This Yoga/Meditation group was just past the Fuller Ave entrance, which is located two blocks north of Hollywood Blvd. I was told a lot of “Pretty People” hike here and I found that to be the case.

Top of one of the Hollywood Hills

Highpoint of the Hollywood Hills showing the house (on the left) where I met a woman who I thought looked like Demi Moore. It had views east to the mountains, west to the ocean and south to Hollywood and LA. It was just put up for sale for 10.5 million!

Descending

May 27, 2015 – I flew to San Diego for the national convention of the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) and also spent some time touring the city. I picked up my rental car about noon and drove to Cabrillo National Monument on Point Loma.

Point Loma and Cabrillo NM lower left

North Island Naval Air Station lower center

San Diego International Airport upper center

Downtown San Diego to right of Seaport Village

Coronado is across (below) Downtown on North Island

I toured the Visitors Center, watched a video on the Intertidal Zone and then drove to the Tidepool Access to hike the Tidepool Trail – left or Pacific side of Point Loma

The trail along the west side cliffs of Point Loma was about two miles round-trip

The tide had already been coming in for four hours, so I didn’t get to see much tidal zone life

Interesting erosion pattern along cliffs

The haze/fog was just burning off

The new Point Loma Light Station on the U.S. Coast Guard Reservation

I then drove back to the Visitors Center and did the short hike to the Cabrillo statue

Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo landed on this point on September 28,1542 ,making him the first European to set foot on what was to become the western U.S.

Cross section of Spanish Galleon

Representation of landing, Cabrillo left from Mexico and explored the western coast of what is now CA. There is a bit of a mystery in relation to how he died (January 3, 1543) but it is thought that he was buried on the island of San Miguel in the Channel Islands. Helen and I visited that site during a kayak trip in 2008.

World Wat II defenses on Point Loma – Fort Rosecrans

Battery E Coastal Artillery Control Station 1943-46 and Old Light Station, Whale Overlook upper right

Old Light Station 1854 – 1891

Downtown San Diego

Cabrillo statue and Naval Air Station on North Island

I hiked only about half of the Bayside Trail because the park was closing at 5pm and then visited Rosecrans National Cemetery on my drive back to San Diego

May 28, 2015 – I started the day by attending an 8am to 10 session that Stacy was chairing titled “Medical Mysteries.” It was quite interesting and Stacy did a great job running the meeting. I think that she was both excited and a little embarrassed that her Daddy attended her session.

Afterward, I attended another session and toured the Exhibit Hall. In the afternoon I walked to the Maritime Museum on Harbor Dr

and then to the USS Midway Aircraft Carrier, which is now a museum

The $17 senior admission was well worth it as a spent 2.5 hours touring the ship. When the Midway was commissioned in 1945 it was the largest ship in the world. It was on active duty through Operation Desert Storm in 1991 and was decommissioned in 1992. There are representative aircraft from all operations it participated in on board as well as aircraft that participated in the Battle of Midway for which it was named. The Battle of Midway was the turning point for the war in the Pacific and they have an excellent movie depicting/explaining the battle on board.

The audio tour describing the planes and ship areas was very well done

SNJ Trainer

Preparation Room

Baghdad Day One Targets

A-4 Skyhawk

A-6 Intruder

F9F Panther

E-2 Hawkeye center and F-8 Corsair right

A-7 Corsair on catapult

Helicopter Row

Tower/Bridge

Views from Tower

Memorial to Bob Hope

“The Kiss”

Nuclear powered Aircraft Carrier USS Reagan in port for refitting. The U.S. will soon have eleven nuclear carriers when the Gerald R. Ford (CVN) is launched in 2016.

In the evening I took the ferry across San Diego Bay to Coronado where I did a nice bike ride along the Bay to the National Wildlife Refuge. This is a picture of the Artemis Leader going under the San Diego-Coronado Bay Bridge. It is a vehicles carrier registered in Panama.

Walking back to the hotel, I passed this cool mosaic batter

May 29, 2015 – Attended a convention session and then met Stacy at her poster presentation. Afterwards we had a quick lunch and she had to attend another meeting related to her new position as an elected Trustee of the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM).

In the late afternoon I walked to and through Balboa Park. It is the nation’s largest urban cultural park. Balboa Park is the legacy of two Expositions, the first was the 1915-16 Panama-California Exposition to commemorate the opening of the Panama Canal (2015 now celebrating 100 years!, the second was the 1935-36 California Pacific International Exposition. Most of the Spanish-Renaissance style buildings were constructed in 1915. Cabrillo Bridge, gate and San Diego Museum of Man.