I do love to head up to the Tioga Pass area and Saddlebag Lake is one of my favorite spots to do some camping and a little hiking with the dogs. But relaxing, reading some good books and taking a few good naps is also pretty darn nice. Where:  Inyo National Forest, Hoover WildernessDistance: 4.16 MilesDifficulty: Moderate to StrenuousElevation Range: ...

Sally the Weimaraner, Fannie the Corgi and I headed up to the glacial-fed Conness Lakes in the Tioga Pass area. I have no doubt they enjoyed their adventure but I especially love to visit these magical lakes that change color before my eyes. Where: Harvey Monroe Hall Research Natural Area, Hoover Wilderness, Inyo National ForestDistance: 9.95 Miles (includes about 2.6 ...

Sally the Weimaraner, Fannie the Corgi and I finally got the go-ahead to hike in Tioga Pass’s Hoover Wilderness after it had been reopened after the fire danger closures. I could feel winter knocking on the door as we walked by iced over small lakes. I brought my fishing pole along just in case . . . Where: Inyo National ...

Like everyone else, I spent the past week closely watching the progress of the Creek Fire, along with so many other fires. There was too much smoke to do any hiking and while hiding inside from that smoke, it seemed like a good time to tell you about Fannie the Corgi’s hiking wardrobe. She recently joined my hiking team and ...

Camping with the dogs for four days in the Tioga Pass area was a great getaway from the smoke. Sally, Fannie and I did a little hiking, a little wandering, a little relaxing, some wading, and we all took a few good naps. Where: Harvey Monroe Hall Research Natural Area, Hoover Wilderness, Inyo National ForestDistance: 5.94 MilesDifficulty: Moderate to StrenuousElevation ...

I loaded up my dogs, Sally and Fannie, and drove across Tioga Road the very minute it reopened this year. Like visiting old friends, I made several stops along the way to admire the views, then we all were rewarded with a hike from Saddlebag Lake to Greenstone Lake with incredible views of snow streaked high mountains surrounding the lakes. ...

Who is making an appearance on my Critter Cam? I have had Trail Cameras, also known as Critter Cams, set up around my house for close to 20 years and love discovering who is paying me a visit. I thought you might like to meet a few of my Critter Cam friends so I uploaded some of them to YouTube ...

Sally and I chose one of the coldest days this year to get out, hiking Stockton Creek Nature Preserve and we had those trails all to ourselves. Not too far from home, not too difficult, this hike was a short one. Where: Mariposa Public Utilities District, Sierra Foothill Conservancy, Stockton Creek Nature Preserve Distance: 2.83 Miles Difficulty: Easy to Moderate ...

I finally had a window between house projects, weather and commitments to escape, so Sally and I loaded up the camper and headed to Moss Landing. Just north of Monterey, it was the perfect place to relax and smell that ocean air. As soon as I checked in at the KOA and got the camper set up, there was a ...

I love to hike up to the glacial fed Conness Lakes above Saddlebag Lake in early summer when they are sporting their melting ice but hadn’t hiked up this late in the summer. Would there still be snow and would those pretty tarns along the way still be holding water in them? My dog Sally and I were on a ...