inglorious wanderer

There's the Tooth Rock. The rock looking like a molar in need dental repair marks the summit of the Rattlesnake Canyon. I signed up for the meetup hike with Take a Hike group on a whim seeing that the hike location is within 10 miles from the Pha Khin Phat temple. It's the day before Christmas.  I am hiking with Larry Redden for the first time. Larry, the hiking elder, is still ecstatic about summiting Mount Whitney. He just turned mid seventy this year. Wow! The group was treated to cold beer and chips courtesy of Larry Redden after the hike. 

More than a striped Mexian ass

The photo was uploaded by Hema on the Take a Hike site. The hike was to me a moderately  kick-ass hike. My friend Kay and Marina, a woman who introduced me to a country named Tuva was in the hike.     I was at the site early. I have attempted to hike the open reserve before. 

The San Pascual Valley portion of the San Dieguito River Trail are  rolling hills of private agricultural lands between Escondido and Poway. The hike would be easy except for the distance: 11.2 miles.    Fourteen hikers on Thanksgiving day. It was a meet up and gathering of hiking addicts and hiking enthusiasts. I was hiking Jennifer for the first time. The moment she arrived at the meet up parking area in Escondido where we would be shuttling to San Pascual Valley, she told Mikey, the organizer of the event,  of her concern. She needs to be leave by 11 am to be someplace. She had the most questions. Mikey had the patience but nobody from the group said anything out loud.     

Take a hike! I consider the group hard core. In other words, I could not keep up with them. The last time I hiked with them was almost 10 months ago at Tecate Peak. Prior to the Tecate Peak, I hike with them for El Cajon Peak. Isabel had to leave me at the summit so she could go to her  weekend work. I would have hiked with Isabel and her +1 today, but she cancelled. I would always be hiking with old and new acquaintances. There's Marina who I picked up grapes with. She's quiet and I liked her. Of course, she's also foreign-born. I am hiking with Susan for the first time and she's not that quiet. There was Linda, kind of a hard core. She has done the Cactus to Clouds Hike for San Jacinto Mountains. There's also Ken who recently moved to San Diego from the East Coast. Ken Kugel was there, I hiked with him at Eagle Rock, a PCT area. I was being led into the Smuggler's Canyon for the first time by Tim Mc. Blair Valley, Pictograph Trail, Slut  Canyon, Alcoholic P...

It must have been my fascination on the US-Mexico border fence. It was the first time I was hiked with Maui who caught up with the North County Hikers  group lead by Robert Deveraux and Marsha on a Border Patrol vehicle. It must have been my fascination on the US-Mexico border fence. It was the first time I was hiked with Maui who caught up with the North County Hikers  group lead by Robert Deveraux and Marsha on a Border Patrol vehicle. The animal of the day is Javelina. The joke was a carry over from the  group's previous hike. The group was talking about a skunk pig or a peccary I conditioned myself the day before for the hike so I felt good not being the straggler this time. Robert  and Marsha made sure everyone was okay. The last time I was in this trail, I was left behind. I did some short cuts and got so embarrassed afterwards that I just let myself be left behind.

I consider him a maestro in hiking. Philip Erdelsky posts trailhead addresses according to GPS coordinates, in minutes of degrees, latitude west of the Prime Meridian, north of the Equator and refers to the Greenwich time.  I rely to Maestro Magellan to look for Maestro Erdelsky's  GPS coordinates and I always get lost. I almost gave up looking for  Thomas 1148 J7, N 33 2.403 W 117 9.415. The hard-to-find trailhead is located  below a fruit and vegetable stand on the southeast side of Del Dios Highway in Rancho Santa Fe, 0.09 miles north east of Calle Ambiente. I was even elated to see Lady Schwarzenegger at the trailhead. She came with Adele this time. Several months ago, I called her on the phone she posted on a meet up she was wanting to join. She does not drive for some mother fucking reasons, must be yoga for mother earth!  She thought I was calling to pick her up on my way to the hike. But another kindly hiker had decided to pick her up from h...

When I found the trails, I never would want to leave. It must have been a traumatic experience to be left behind and at the brink of quitting. This SOB slow Mofo has a personal fight within. To keep up bagging small peaks. The small peak was Stonewall Peak at the Cuyamaca State Park.                   My hiker for the day is Katrina. We were wearing bandannas the same way.     I tell  Katrina that the Stonewall Peak reminds me of the  Moro Rock at the Sequoia National Park. I spark a conversation with Katrina and she tells me she lived close by the foothills of the southern part of Sierra Nevada. As we neared the peak, I corrected myself and tell her the Stonewall Peak is a molehill version of the Moro Rock.     My return to the trail is also a return to the memories of the past treks. After a good to see you hug, Melanie asked me where Karlee is. Melanie is the kind o...

In spite of the Tragic Turin story that would forever hunt my family, I still looked forward to revisiting Italy. Francesco Cordiano's invitation to pick grapes at his family winery made me forget of Tragic Turin as I joined about a  dozen or  more who came to pick grapes at a San Pascual Valley vineyard in Escondido. Dave, the meetup organizer for the event probably copied the letter of invitation on the meetup event post. Greetings everyone! I hope you've all had a wonderful summer, full of health and happiness. Mother Nature has given given us an early to the harvest season this year, and the warm temperatures we've had have ripened the Cabernet Franc and Petit Sirah to perfection! So we will begin the first phase of our grape harvest this Saturday, August 31 at 7 am. Everyone is invited to join us, and we expect to finish picking by 11 am . We'll provide clippers, buckets and water bottles until supples run out. You might want to bring g the following: glo...

Aye was the one who got Kay sign up for the San Diego Urban Exploration Meetup Group. Aye had hiked with the group before. The group introduced me to  the Pacific Crest Trail at the Morena Butte. Husband RN and Aye trespassed the defunct Sycamore Missile Facility with the group from Bridgestone Community Park once. Kaye and Aye were the first ones at the virtual trailhead of the Lawrence Welk Talus Caves at the non-existent Moss Tree Lane at Hidden Meadows in Escondido. Lawrence Welk, talus caves, and hidden meadows are  by itself stories distinct from the other. The real Lawrence Welk  was an entertainer originally from Strasburg, North Dakota. A you tuber before his time or long after he died in 1992, his show only featured dance music like waltz, polka and whatever was popular during in his era. He had a band and he played the accordion.  In Escondido, Lawrence Welk seemed more of a business name like the Lawrence Welk Resort that includes a...