I told my puppy Fannie the Corgi all about a special place called Nelder Grove and how it wouldn’t be a long drive or hike. I tried to explain to her just how huge the Giant Sequoias were. I don’t think she totally grasped the concept but she said let’s do it!Where: Sierra National Forest, Nelder GroveDistance: 2.31 miles, but ...

Walking up historic wagon roads near my house on a cool day after a rain was a party for my senses, full of fresh smells of the forest and flowers. Dogwoods were blooming like crazy and those animal tracks were easy to spot while the gnats and skeeters slept in. Distance: 10.62 Miles (but you can go shorter or longer)Difficulty: ...

Adventuring close to home, I walked the same dirt roads, followed different spur roads, giving me a looped walk along a historic stage route that carried Yosemite tourists to Wawona starting in the 1880s. Distance: About 11 Miles (but you can go shorter or longer)Difficulty: Easy to ModerateElevation Range: 3,418′ to 4,994′Date: May 13, 2020Maps: Ben Hur and Daulton Topographic ...

Same dirt road close to home but a different spur road off of it gave me a looped adventure back to O’Neals Meadow, searching for flowers and history. Men weren’t the only homesteaders in this neck of the wood. Cora Ives lived here, ranched here and was quite the adventurer. She also wrote articles for Fresno newspapers about wildflowers, Native ...

A little more mileage on my adventure took me up to the Lone Sequoia and it is called that for a reason. But it wasn’t alone. It was accompanied by snowplants, wildflowers and dogwoods getting ready to bloom. . . and gnats. Distance: 12.37 Miles (but you can go shorter or longer)Difficulty: Easy to ModerateElevation Range: 3,418′ to 4,619′Date: April ...

You might wonder what walking up a dirt road, an American Black Bear and Yogi Berra might have in common. Made perfect sense to me as I walked up a dirt road close to home to a high point to check out the views. Distance: About 8 Miles (but you can go shorter or longer)Difficulty: Moderate to StrenuousElevation Range: 3,418′ ...

I walked up the same dirt road, but a different spur road, to a beautiful meadow. Interesting history with hard working men who had a vision for this country but not all of these stories have a happy ending. Distance: 6.77 Miles (but you can go shorter or longer) Difficulty: Moderate Elevation Range: 3,418′ to 4,840′ Date: April 15, 2020 ...

Lots of history on those dirt roads where I live and one of those dirt roads took me on a historic wagon road that Galen Clark’s company built to help connect Mariposa to Wawona. Distance: 5.61 Miles (but you can go shorter or longer) Difficulty: Easy Elevation Range: 3,418′ to 4,388′ Date: April 10, 2020 Maps: Ben Hur and Daulton ...

Taking a walk up a dirt road close to home got me out of the house on a small adventure with some exercise. No wildflowers on this hike but a few views along the 953 foot gain helped make my outing a good one. Distance: 8.42 Miles (but you can go shorter or longer) Difficulty: Easy Elevation Range: 3,409′ to ...

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 ...