Mike & I are camping at Kitsap Memorial State Park near the town of Poulsbo along the Hood Canal in western Washington state this week. We set out to explore the park this afternoon.
First we walk straight out from the campground to a grove of trees along the bluff above the pebbly beach. Beautiful views of Hood Canal & the Cascade Mountains but it’s difficult to take a photo because all the trees are in the way!
Then we walk down a steep ramp to the beach (unfortunately, there are stairs at the end so anyone in a wheelchair can’t get all the way to the beach).
We walk along the pebbly beach. Pretty poppies bloom atop an old stone wall.
We duck under a dead fallen tree, walk under the pier, and skirt the buildings on the right (looking back the way we walked)…
…to this pier at Lofall Community Corporation (a private club for Lofall residents).
Although there’s a “Members Only” sign, we go in to check out the flock of birds in the water. Turns out to be Canada Geese with a Great Blue Heron watching over them.
Other birds seen in the area (clockwise from upper left): House Sparrow, Purple Martin, Pigeon Guillemot, Double-Crested Cormorant with a Canada Goose.
The view from Lofall of the Hood Canal is just so pretty.
The tide has risen when we’re ready to walk back. We have to walk quickly to get past the buildings that waves are now breaking against. My feet get a little wet but we get back safely.
Officially known as the Dangberg Home Ranch Historic Park, Dangberg Ranch is a Douglas County park that preserves one of the Nevada’s first ranches. I can’t believe we’ve driven by this place countless times as we go to/from Carson City on US-395 and have never stopped!
When we enter the gate, we’re amazed by how many Red-tailed Hawks are hanging out in the fields. The photo at the bottom right below shows two Red-tailed Hawks in one photo! And I like the one at the upper left that I just manage to capture as it flies away – that gorgeous red tail!
The best of my Red-tailed Hawk photos at Dangberg Ranch:
European Starlings perched on a fence:
The Dangberg Ranch buildings with their backdrop of the cloud-covered Sierra Nevadas.
Cattle graze in the fields near the Dangberg Ranch buildings.
Dangberg Ranch has a very interesting history According to Wikipedia, it was “…founded in 1857 by Heinrich Friedrich Dangberg, Sr.[Dangberg built the ranch house, the first building on the ranch, in the early 1860s; a bunkhouse, cellar, and barn were added to the ranch in the 1870s. The ranch grew to 48,000 acres (19,000 ha) and became the largest in the Carson Valley. The H. F. Dangberg Land and Livestock Company formed to manage the ranch’s activities, which included ranching cattle, pigs, and horses, growing hay, and slaughtering both their own and other ranchers’ animals. In the 1900s, Dangberg’s son H. F. Dangberg, Jr., founded Minden on company land and commissioned most of its early buildings. A decade later, several more buildings were added to the ranch, including a slaughterhouse, cook’s quarters, two garages, and a main gate. The Dangberg Company prospered until the Great Depression and remained in business at the ranch until 1978.”
Many of the buildings are still present, making Dangberg Home Ranch Historic Park is an interesting place to walk around & explore. This is the original barn:
Here’s Mike standing in the brick gateway in front of the main ranch house.
We’re not able to go inside the ranch house today but Mark, a volunteer at the ranch, walks out to greet us as we wander around the grounds and he’s nice enough to unlock the Stone Cellar & the Laundry buildings. He leaves us to look around inside them as he gets back to his maintenance chores. Old farm equipment and carriages are on display near the parking area:
As we’re leaving Dangberg Ranch, I step out of the car to take photos (of a Bald Eagle, see below). I like the cute face of this young steer.
There’s a Bald Eagle perched at the top of a tree far away. Not the greatest photo – it’s very far away – but definitely a Bald Eagle!
It’s commonplace to see a Bald Eagle in Alaska but here, where they’re quite uncommon, it’s very exciting! We try to fix the location in our mind and then spend about half an hour driving around the neighborhood just behind the Carson Valley Swim Center to get a closer view, but no luck.
It’s been way too long since I last posted, so let’s catch up!
CA-3 – our campsite until April 1 at Mateo State Park
For the past several months (since December 1st), Mike and I have been camp hosts at San Mateo Campground near San Clemente, California.
Rainbow over the MOUT site at Camp Pendleton with San Mateo Campground in the foreground
San Mateo Campground is part of San Onofre State Beach but it’s about 1-1/2 miles inland, nestled in the pretty rolling hills right next to Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton. We’re often able to watch military training conducted right next to the campground, specially at the MOUT site (a recreation of an Iraqi village used for training).
Each time we camp host is a little different from the last and that’s true this time as well. Mike is working as a Maintenance Host here at San Mateo Campground, which means he helps keep the campground clean and repaired so the campers can enjoy it.
While we love the natural beauty of San Mateo Campground and its surroundings, the beach town of San Clemente is just a ten minute drive away. One of our favorite spots to visit is San Clemente Pier, especially at sunset when the surfers are catching that one last wave.
San Clemente Pier at sunset
Surfers have to hike up the trail to their car
But our favorite activity at San Mateo Campground is hiking the trail to Trestles Beach, a world-renowned surfing beach. You have to REALLY want to surf at Trestles Beach because there’s no parking at the beach – everybody has to hike or bike in and out while carrying their surfboards. There are usually plenty of surfers at Trestles Beach, though, so it must be worth the effort.
Surfers at Trestles Beach
Mike and I don’t surf but the beautiful views of the ocean, Catalina Island in the distance on a rare clear day and the bay towards San Clemente are more than worth the hike.
Looking north towards San Clemente at Trestles Beach
Trestles Wetlands Natural Reserve
Best of all, San Mateo Creek flows just east of the campground to Trestles Beach. A short walk from the beach are riparian and wetland habitats known as Trestles Wetlands Natural Preserve. It’s hard to believe this peaceful area is so close to the I-5 and the commuter train that gives Trestles Beach its name!
Wetland near the mouth of Mateo Creek with an AMERICAN COOT
Just a mile or two north of Bodega Dunes Campground along Highway 1, there’s a turn-off for Coleman Valley Road. Most drivers, mesmerized by the beauty of the Pacific coastline, drive right by. But signs that read “Winding One Lane Road” are like catnip to us. It takes longer than half an hour to drive the ten miles between Highway 1 and the tiny town of Occidental (not counting all the times we stop to take yet another photo) but it’s our favorite drive in Sonoma County.
On one of those rare days when the weather is clear, the views of the Pacific coastline are spectacular.
However, this is what it looks like today.
We start out a little disappointed that we can’t see the gorgeous view, but as we drive through the coastal range, we begin to appreciate this gentler, more elusive beauty. Cattle appear like apparitions in foggy pastures.
When we crest the coastal range, the fog begins to clear. The landscape changes from pasture to forest. Redwoods line the road and form a living canopy over us.
Finally we reach our destination: the tiny town of Occidental. Howard’s Station Cafe in Occidental is hands-down our favorite restaurant for breakfast. We love to sit at one of the tables on their front porch, chat while we sip our Taylor Maid coffee, and linger over a hearty breakfast. Besides omelettes like my favorite Smoked Salmon Omelette Florentine, Howard’s has the best Eggs Benedict, banana-walnut or blueberry pancakes, and an excellent breakfast burrito. If your tastes run more to “healthy alternatives”, you can order dishes like Tofu Rancheros or Organic Brown Rice Scramble. And I haven’t even started on their extensive espresso and juice/smoothie bar!
Mike & I love “junk art” – scrap metal, bits & pieces of broken machinery, damaged household items, and other “junk” transformed into three-dimensional artworks. Luckily, the nearby town of Sebastopol and the surrounding area is a junk art mecca.
The front yards of the houses along Florence Avenue in Sebastopol are filled with junk art scuptures by Patrick Amiot (who lives and works in Sebastopol). You can drive slowly down Florence Avenue to see the artwork but we prefer to walk so we don’t miss anything.
Junk Art by Patrick Amiot seen on Florence Ave in Sebastopol
Junk Art by Patrick Amiot seen on Florence Ave in Sebastopol
Junk Art by Patrick Amiot seen on Florence Ave in Sebastopol
But not all junk art in Sebastopol is found on Florence Avenue.
Junk Art by Patrick Amiot in front of the Sebastopol fire station
You can see this sculpture in front of the fire station on Bodega Avenue
and this wonderful Noah’s Ark can be found in front of the Community Church.
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