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Author Archives: highcountryneil

By trade: Software Engineer. Student of: Aikido/Zen. Passions: Photgraphy, Biking, Road Trips.

Where the Nine Sisters Lead

Grab a cup of coffee at “Top Dog” on Main Street, Morro Bay.  We had avoided this place for two years because we thought it was like Top Dog in Berkeley on Dwight, and you know we already have a favorite hotdog stop at this Bay.  Well, we looked in, and saw: SLO (11 of 11)  It is a coffee shop with what looks to be good food.  But we did coffee.  I had Mexican Mocha.  It was good.

A good start to follow the Nine Sisters away from Morro Bay.  They lead to San Luis Obispo, home of the Mustangs and Cal Poly. No pictures of it, but we did drive around the campus, amazed by the bicycles.  We both know though that as far as bike on campus is concerned, UC Davis wins hands down.  I think they have 23,000 bikes on campus for the 21,000 students.  That’s how it looks anyway.

The first attraction though was the Mission at San Luis Obispo, founded September 1, 1772.

SLO (3 of 11)

The California Missions were at first political, a way for Spain to protect its interests in the west as both the Russians and English grew more adventuresome with respect to this area.  However, as time went on, the Priests became more interested in spreading their religion and saving the locals, so the mission today reflect the lasting intent of those early religious.

We spent a lot of time venturing into the mission and it museum of early Californian Artifacts.  Just down the street, we found the Free Library. SLO (2 of 11) Not sure why it was called that, but it is beautiful with lots of people coming and going.  There is also an art gallery across the street that showcased multi media art from school aged kids.

The Nine Sisters did a very good job leading us to some very wonderful places.  Twelve miles from Morro Bay and a completely different life.

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Passing on the Right : America’s Downfall

Okay, this is for an American audience, used to driving on the right and entering freeways on the right with the fast lane on the left.  It is also an over-reaction, though I know I don’t have to point it out .. Most people are good.  Most people are thoughtful.  Most people are considerate.  That said ..

There are those that will drive in the fast lane holding a line of cars behind them hostage.  They can often drive the next slower lane at the same speed, but end up matching speeds with those slower lanes, and thus impeding traffic.  What results is a furious flurry of cars zig zagging to pass on the right.

It is a symptom of Entitlement.  It has always existed.  We were warned 2000 years ago that the first shall be last and the last, first.  It is not a “problem” when it is only the rich or powerful or elite that act this way.  I’m not saying that it is good, but rather that it is not debilitating.  When the masses act in this manner, society itself comes to a grinding halt.  We see that all the time.  It becomes debilitating when it comes as an intransigent stance.  One supported by fervor and belief that there is only one correct road, and that road is “my” road.  Of course, there is no one road, no one way.

So commuting down 880 four days a week, I ask that you be willing to move over and drive in that slower lane that is moving at your speed.. not because you have to.. but because it is in final assessment, good for America.

 

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Hotdogs, Books, and the Rock

Our annual sojourn to Morro Bay is in progress.  We got down here at about 1:30 just before the streets were blocked off for the Saturday Farmer’s Market.  First stop is “Hot Dogs on the Harbor” on Main Street.  Now they have great hotdogs and chili, but the real reason is that in June of 2011, on the way back from a conference in Newport Beach, we stopped there on Gregorio‘s first day of business.SLO (1 of 11)  He had his cousin I think, helping him this first day/weekend/week.  A minimum overhead operation.  He took orders for about 3 groups, then went away and food appeared.  When this group was fed, he would move to the window for the next set of customers.  Everybody seemed to know the drill.  Everyone waited patiently.  Everyone was smiling as they ate.

We also went to “our” book store, Coalesce Book Store [ www.coalescebookstore.com ]MorroBay (1 of 16) where I took this picture last year.  It is a “real” book store and almost worth the drive from the SF Bay Area by itself.  I usually find one book there that I live in for a while.  I think I found one this time:  Gift of the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh.  The first of the book is:

The beach is not a place to work, to read, write or think.  I should have remembered that from other years.  Too warm, too damp, too soft for any real mental discipline or sharp flights of spirit.  One never learns.  Hopefully, one carries down the faded straw bag, lumpy with books, clean paper, long over-due unanswered letters, freshly sharpened pencils, lists and good intentions.  The books remain unread, the pencils break their points and the pads rest smooth and unblemished as the cloudless sky.  No reading, no writing, no thoughts even – at least, not at first.

Yes, that is the beach.  That is the sea.  And I hope Anne Morrow, that it is okay that I quoted so much..  from a flier such as yourself.. as Charles.

We then walked to theSLO (7 of 11) Rock, here seen at sunset from the docs. Seemed a bit closer than last year.  I think we were a bit more rested this time around.  You can walk around to the other side of the rock, back against the rock, facing an unforgiving sea.  Today the sea was nice, forgiving.

There is a line of these rocks called the nine sisters, with this one being the farthest west.  They are in almost a straight line stretching from Morro Bay to San Luis Obispo.  They are extinct volcanos about 21 million years in age!   http://www.morrobay.com/rock.htm

The city looks

SLO (4 of 11)

the same as last year, and the residence pretty much look the same too.   These two stopping for dinner probably don’t have reservations.  No reservations at all..  The two women in the car seemed perfectly content too.  Maybe dinner was indeed on the way.

 

A nice ending to a very nice sunny first day,

SLO (8 of 11)

just like last year.

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On a country road

If you look carefully right now, SFC (25 of 41)you’ll see rivers of colors flowing down the valleys of the eastern Sierras.  These rivers of color are the high altitude Aspen that change from forests of light green, through brilliant yellows, oranges and reds.

This picture was taken off of highway 395, just north of Mono Lake.  The dirt road you see winds up this incredible valley, following the Aspen trail.

This transition of fall happens every year around the second week of October.  It is there for those lucky enough to be passing by.   But the opportunity is brief.  The change happens quickly, with any one area making the transition within a week’s time.  We are very fortunate because the flow of change like the flow of the trees themselves, moves from higher altitudes to lower as the temperature drops.

Sometimes you are lucky enough and these wonderful SFC (14 of 41)ephemeral views lie just off of the road where you can stop and just stare.  This picture was taken on 395, just across from Mono Lake, late in the afternoon.  We are not that high up, and didn’t have to work hard for the view.  Just stepped on the brakes and opened the door.  There were a lot of cars slowing or stopping for this view.

I am sure that lots of those that are lucky enough to witness this change, decide to make it more than luck, and plan for this annual event.  They bring layers of warm clothes and their cameras, notebooks, paints, eyes, ears and hearts, SFC (23 of 41)and take those country roads, up into the mountains to be a part of this wonder.

 

 

I am most lucky to have had a friend invite me along on his Photography workshop, where he and 3 of his colleagues showed me where to look, when to look, and how to look.  They do this every year, just around now.  These pictures are fresh, less than a week old.  But these same trees, less than a week later, are probably leaf-less, having shed their bright coats.

To see more colors, and maybe join them next season, check out their site: Sierra Fall Colors [ sierrafallcolors.com ].

I want to thank Patrick, Rogan, Mary and Tim for the wonderful experience and Henry, a fellow participant with whom I got to share the wonderful journey.

Sometimes you are lucky enough to be at the right place, at the right time.. on some country road…

 

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Don’t Blink

“The angels have the phone box.”

Sorry. Just had to start with reference to my favorite Dr Who episode. Blink. Amazing how many people know that reference. But it is just the situation I wanted to relive in this note…

In the spring of 2012, we visited Scotland. Edinburgh to be exact since we spent the entirety of our trip there with the exception of 1 day, when we traveled to Berwick Upon Tweed.. but Berwick is fodder for another time. This was a time when I was rather a purist about pictures. My camera was always in single shot mode. No bursts for me. If I could not get it in one, I didn’t deserve it. Remember that was back in 2012. I was a lot more innocent back then.

We are generally very lucky in terms of weather when we travel. It was no exception with Edinburgh for the first 4 days. The temperature was in the 60s, and the skies brilliant blue with no sign of clouds. As with every day there, we had started walking about 9am, ending at about 8pm. We logged a lot of miles, and on this day, it led us to Edinburgh Castle.

We arrived there about 11 on this particular day, and were able to wander around till we heard that he canon would be fired at 1:00. Exactly at 1:00:

 

As stated: 1300 GDT .. exactly

As stated: 1300 GDT .. exactly

 

We asked a guard, why the canon?  Why 1:00?

 

Edinburgh is very far North.  55 Degrees North Latitude.  The Bay of Fundy, which is know for it’s spectacular tides is at 45 Degrees North.  The bottom of Hudson Bay is at 55 Degrees North.  The further North you go, the more tidal action there is.  So Edinburgh, being a Seafaring village, needed a way to let Captains on their ships know the exact time so that they could synchronize watches and know the tides for the following day.  The Edinburgh Castle canon was the audio queue, and a giant ball dropping from Nelson’s Tower was the visual cue.  If you couldn’t see, you heard.  If you couldn’t hear, you saw.  If you didn’t hear and didn’t see, you were so drunk, you probably weren’t sailing the next day anyway.

 

Why 1:00?  The guard we asked paused for a moment, then said:  You know Scots.. frugal.  Why pay for 12 shells when you could pay for 1?

 

Don’t BLINK, or you’ll miss a bit of life…

 

 

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Lost Opportunities, Missed Ferrys

Friday Harbor is on San Juan Island in Washington’s Puget Sound. In Flight Sim X, a flight simulation, Friday Harbor is the default airport. I have been flying from that airport for months without knowing where San Juan Island is located. Imagine the excitement when I learned that we were a ferry jump away from Friday Harbor when on a Road Trip in August. Imagine my disappointment when we missed our ferry and had to settle for Orcas Island.

Hmmm.. Talk about disappointment.. until while walking around Eastsound on Orcas, that we ran into this:

 

Orca (1 of 9)

 

It just happened that this was the weekend for the annual “Fly In”. The pilots there were rather disappointed that there were so few planes this year. It turns out that the weather proceeding the event had been pretty bad and most pilots were not willing to take a chance on the trip just for bad weather. You can get a fair idea of the weather from these pictures.  By the way, I think there were over 50 planes there.

There were some “Experimentals”, planes that people build themselves. I spoke to one guy that took 10 years to build his, spending quite a bit of money. He said you can now buy the plane for $60,000. I think he assessed his investment as over $110K. But much of what he put into the plane was not available when he started.

 

Orca (2 of 9)

 

There was a fair bit of low pass flying which was the excitment of the FlyIn ..

 

Orca (3 of 9)

 

Until the real fun began as this pair of T-6s made their way down the runway and started some very nice formation flying.

 

Orca (6 of 9)

 

Their low passes were thrilling to watch/hear/feel !!

 

Orca (8 of 9)

 

Here is the view of Orcas Island Ferry Port as we were leaving.

 

Orca (9 of 9)

 

Ask me what I now think about missing a ferry…

 

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