A year ago, I walked from Santa Cruz to Monterey—mostly on the beach. Walk the Bay, run by Slow Adventure founder Margaret Leonard, is a four-day, 40-mile inn-to-inn trek along the coast of Monterey Bay. I’ve visited the area more times than I can count, but until that hike, had never been alone for hours […]
California
Backstage at the Monterey Bay Aquarium
The world-acclaimed Monterey Bay Aquarium has been perched at the edge of Cannery Row since it opened in October, 1984, but each visit seems like a new one. More than 35,000 creatures representing 550 species fill the aquarium’s 34 major galleries. With nearly 200 exhibits, the aquarium is a showcase for the habitats and sea […]
Half Moon Bay’s Best Pumpkin Event
After living in Half Moon Bay for 11 years, I’ve become accustomed to the pumpkin season. Here in the “World Pumpkin Capital,” farmers’ fields have gradually turned more orange over the past couple of months, and there are pumpkins everywhere. Thousands are stacked by color and type in patches throughout the Coastside, and cars full […]
Better Late Than Never
It may be the end of September, but here on the Coastside, it’s summer. I’m used to it by now: Summer always comes late here. Tourists and people from the other side of the Coastal Range stream over to the coast in June, July and August to spend time on the beach, but they’re often […]
Shock Therapy
Usually, it takes me a couple of days to recover from a trip. Day one consists of unpacking, doing laundry, checking the mail—all general housekeeping tasks. Day two is for my brain to get in gear. I may not be firing on all cylinders by the third day, but I can usually start to engage […]