Yosemite summer...Whoa!!

The 'Mist' Trail

Better late than never.  Fall is here, summer is long gone but, never too late to look upon Yosemite's splendor.  Azra, Andrew and I did the Nevada Falls trail, the trail head to Half Dome, in the summer and wow.  It may be the most popular trail in the park but, you don't feel like it as you look down the giants falls and look out to miles of granite goodies.  Oh, yes.

A new adventure: The Ranch

The decision to leave 'home,' to try something new, invites excitement into your door.

Indulging in new sights and sounds, learning about the world from folks you may never have met, making horse and frog friends: well, if you stayed home all the time...you may never have done this, done that.

Groveland, CA, at the north entrance to Yosemite National Park has an interesting dynamic of gold rush culture, ranch life, tourists from all over the world seeking coveted views of the Valley, and small foothill town goings-on.  I got a look at Groveland for the last couple of months and found a place that will forever be near and dear.


The fortune of finding and being able to stay on The Ranch is truly priceless: rolling hills in the oaks with horses and cattle, bull frogs, mountain lions and a little tiny cowboy cabin with the coolest outdoor set-up of any house I'd ever had the pleasure of spending time.   A gem of hand built history; what an adventure with all that outdoor living, striking, fiery sunsets, the rancher who'd been ranching for 50+ years.

We must talk about Groveland adventures more as the fall comes into season; for the summer in Groveland has searing stories to tell.  Oh yes, we had fun out there.  Thank goodness for the excitement of leaving home...and finding new ones.

Today, I could've stayed in the back yard.  Not a bad idea; tall pine trees with pillow dollops of snow weighing down the branches, here-and-there views of the not too distant glimmering lake, and endless trails connecting to one another all at my back step.  But, instead, the dogs and I warranted something different.  I hadn't seen the lake in a while except at a glance while driving or walking through town, or from up on the mountain top at one of the ski resorts.

What I mean is:  I hadn't spent time with the lake in a while.  In several months a while. I woke up today and needed time with the lake.  So, the dogs and I made the short drive down the hill to Lake Forest.  We parked the car, jumped out and made a run for the beach at the glistening, crystal clear water of Lake Tahoe and Skylandia beach.  And it was perfect, snow covered and a balmy 22 degrees outside but, sunny and perfect.

Dancing down the beach, music in my left ear, the lapping water and breeze in my right, smiling with joy and fighting off the cold with my dance, I took in the fresh mountain air.  I took in the breathtaking views of peaks and snow and sun on the water.  I watched my dogs play and dig and gallop and chomp at, on, and with the snowy beach.  I found my breath.  I laughed out loud.

Isn't it incredible how we are presented with beautiful things and happenings and still not take the time to fully envelop them?  Truly enjoy them and take them in?  Whether it's people or our funny dogs or a beautiful landscape, its time that we need to give.  Even just one extra minute, one extra moment of calm can change the whole shape of the day.

Thank goodness for that.

I was gonna stay home and look what I got...a whole lotta adventure and a whole lotta love. It's been two months since I have been back in beautiful lake Tahoe, my home, and I don't plan on leaving for a while, not for a long while anyway. Next week i am tackling the pacific northwest: seattle to tahoe. I cant wait. You know there are always adventures around every corner. Keep up the adventure; I know I will keep working on mine.  Keep checking back- the adventures are just beginning.

Its been a while...but I am back home.

Its been a while since words have been written on this page.  And since then, my life has been turned upside down yet again.  Or, should I say, my life has been turned back right-side up?

I am back in Tennessee with people I love and with people who love me.  I am with my dog.  I have a unrelenting cellular device and I am back behind the wheel of a stylie Subaru.  It feels good.  Tennessee rocks.  It's gorgeous and green and lovely and loving.  But, as we now know, and some have known all along, I don't stay in one place for long.

Tomorrow, I hit the road yet again; away from the friends who make the world go 'round but towards more adventure.  One thing I have learned from my travels is that adventure is always around the corner.  Life is an adventure.  A big, fun, funny adventure.

I shed a tear as I leave behind yet another wonderful place (and all the people who come with it) but this feeling will always be with me on every new adventure I find as I carry on with this crazy trip I like to call life.
 

I made it North.  Just in time too.  My days in NZ are coming close to an end.  I made this heart to commemorate my time here in NZ, my experiences on this trip have been...fabulous, inexplicable, perfect.  This heart has now been washed away by the tide that hits the Kapiti coast on the west side of the North Island of New Zealand.  Buts its been washed away to the sea where my love for everyone I have met, for everyone who allowed this trip to take place, will always be.  A big love shout out for all my new friends. WhooHoo!

The heart of shells was constructed on a rainy, deserted beach up the west coast of NZ.  In the photo above, the last bit of land you see there in the distance, is this deserted and gorgeous beach of which I speak. Paraparaumu: where they make fresh fruit ice cream, tractors pull boats on to the beach and you can walk for miles without much of another person running into you.  Its beautiful.

Later in the day, on my way back to Wellington, I found the sunshine and a locally known trail to these crazy  high bluffs.  Just taking in another day's scenery in NZ...no big deal...yes, it is a big deal.  Every where you look, more gorgeousness.  Kinda like life I suppose, depends on how you look at it but, there sure is a lot out there to love.   

Vintage sunrises...and vintage is over!

Every week of mine is like the longest day...the days run into one another and out spits...Wednesday, already!?  Soon I will be done and the sunrises will be seen less frequently with these eyes.  And oh, boy, do I need some sleep. But, the grapes don't recognize this fact, do they?  Nope!  The grapes are selfish and need to be turned into wine.  So we have worked 24/7 for almost a month.

This means that I have been lucky enough to have almost a month of sunrises.

Now, however, vintage is coming to an end, the grapes just ain't graping any more and, so... my travels will continue. Yay!  I head to the North Island/Wellington on Saturday...and may the adventures keep coming!