Hiking Mount Tamalpais and Muir Woods

Is there any better feeling than accomplishing something you have wanted to do for a long time? This weekend, I had that wonderful feeling after I hiked through Muir Woods National Park and Mount Tamalpais.

Source: flickr.com via Kristen on Pinterest

Muir Woods was so peaceful and serene, as we walked through the towering redwood trees. We saw a stump of a tree that was planted in 909 AD! Seeing how some trees have been burned out but continue to stand signified strength. Observing new trees springing up where others have fallen and decayed reminded us of the circle of life.

Source: flickr.com via Sean on Pinterest

As for being on Mount Tamalpais, it was like a walk in the clouds - perfect 70 degrees, the smell of trees and earth, blue sky above and the city below, hawks flying next to us. It was the kind of weekend you hope to have but seldom find.

A Visit to the UC Davis Arboretum

A week from Friday, May 6th, is National Public Garden Day. Last weekend, we went out to explore the lovely arboretum at UC Davis campus. We began with a picnic to fortify us in our explorations:

The wonderful UC Davis gardens showcase a variety of themed landscaping based on water conserving plant varieties. The garden collections include Native California, California Foothills, Mediterranean, Australian, South African, East Asian, Southwest/Mexican, and North Coast. Each landscape was unique and beautiful in its own way, and we loved learning about the many diverse kinds of plants, trees and flowers:




We were also able to see some of the wildlife that has made a home at the gardens:



But one of my favorite spots was behind the Food Science buildings, where there was an edible garden picture perfect enough to make my mouth drool. Check out the artichokes reaching for the sky and the bright red stalks of chard:
The perfect rows of carrots, radishes and lettuce:

Who knew that cauliflower heads could pop up out of the earth like bright roses? A well-kept garden is a pleasure to behold. I read that this one is called the Good Life Garden and is periodically open to students to come and harvest! All of these gardens are free, so if you live nearby, be sure to stop by UC Davis and walk the grounds. If not, find a public garden near you and savor the sight of spring.

Beach Madness

Beach in Nice, Southern France

The weather where I live in Northern California has soared to scorching heights of 103 degrees in the past week, leaving me panting and dreaming of the beach. There’s nothing like a nice, cool, salty breeze and the shock of still-cold seawater lapping your toes. How about a free exfoliating pedicure by walking barefoot in the sand?

Perhaps most folks fall into the category of beach or mountain lover. I do enjoy a wooded mountain, but growing up, our family made frequent trips to the Northern California coast. That, combined with a childhood obsession with the Little Mermaid, sealed my fate as beach person.

I have traveled to the Indian ocean in South Africa and the Mediterranean sea in France, as well as the warm waters of Tahiti, Hawaii, the Bahamas, the Caribbean and the Mexican coast.

All were unique and exerted their own special magic, for there is something inherently freeing in walking along a beach. I remember clearly the sensation of blissful breaking away that washed over me when I went for a solo swim in the sun-warmed waters of Nice, a 20 year old American traveling Europe without her parents for the first time.

Over and over again, the sea calls me to return. Maybe I am part mermaid after all.

Finding Zen in A Common Mole

Everyone needs to find their own piece of Zen. For me, I often find it on a quick walk through the grounds of the law office where I work, which features a small duck pond, towering trees, and even the occasional flower. As a full-time office-dweller, sometimes I need to remind myself that I too am a living part of the natural world, more like the mischievous squirrels scurrying outside the window than the dictation machine I hook myself up to all day. There is something mysteriously awe-inspiring about a tiny white mushroom that sprouts up unexpectedly in the grass, or a protective brown maternal duck herding her tiny offspring into the water.

Today, while on my usual stroll, I noted two tiny holes in the flower bed and pondered what creature could be responsible. As I walked by a second time, I glimpsed a brown, fat critter with a pink patch where its eyes should be. As it scurried rather clumsily towards that hole, it appeared to be blinded by the daylight. Later, I noticed piles of fresh dirt all over the grounds. I do believe I spotted a mole!

Why did I run breathlessly back to the office to tell my co-worker about my "wildlife sighting"? To our groundskeeper, a mole may seem a common pest and a silly thing to get excited about. But I couldn't help but feel wonder when I imagined the underground tunnels it was creating and a world unseen by the too-busy humans above. I even envied the animal for its quiet, dark, cool, simple life - most of the time, he's probably just trying to find the next earthworm for dinner. Then back I go to my indoor, air-conditioned, windowless desk and realize we might be more alike than I thought.