Zion, Utah, Sept 2025

 Utah: Road trip through Zion, Bryce, Kodachrome Basin and Escalante with grad school friends Bunny and The Walkers in September 2025

We started off in an AirBNB in La Verkin.  Cute little town-we had great food from Red Fort Indian Cuisine several times.  On the first afternoon we hiked to the Lower Emerald Pool.  Lovely ferns and moss tucked at the end of a hot dusty hike.

The second day, E and hiked up The Narrows!  We have a long history with this hike and it is amazing every single time.  We caught one of the very first buses so were able to grab a walking stick from the free pile. Most of the others had rented the shoe and stick combo that you get at the park entrance-very handy.  We saw a lot of rocks! 

Though we love our favorites, it is also good to try new things.  So on the third day we went to the other park entrance and saw Kolob Canyon.  WOW!  A totally different perspective of the canyon.  The colors are impossible. Fewer people make it more relaxed.  10/10

We hiked the Timber Creek Overlook Trail which packs so much grandeur in such a short distance.  The other trails are along the creek and I'd like to do them next time.

Lookin' at lichens

Filoli trolls, October 2025

 Filoli trolls

Filoli got Thomas Dambo to make a set of 6 trolls for their wooded trail.  I visited once with Green-Eyed Girl and a second time with my family.  

The appeal is in the giant size and personalities. I like the hair on the troll examining the car and here is a  fun foot detail.

This troll is super into birds, so she builds bird houses and puts them up.  I'm not sure the birds need houses in the forest, but they are pretty.

They are a satisfying size to climb on.

They really decorated along the trail for Halloween

These glow in the dark for the night time experience.

Creepy!

We dashed through the inside, love the atmosphere.

Angel Island bike camping, August 2025

 Angel Island

The yearly bike camping trip to Angel Island!  Thanks to my fellow campers for some of the photos.

Cancun diving, April 2025

 Bonus dive trip

Cenote Kukul Kan in the Chac Mool system-with us diving!

Even though we had just been on a dive trip, we got an offer from friends to stay in their new place in Cancun.  How could we not go?!?  It was in a lovely residential area, away from the tourist hotels, but near the Costco!

We ate at several nearby restaurants and walked the neighborhood.  We used Cthulhu Divers to see the MUSA underwater museum.  Fantastic idea-put hundreds of sculptures underwater so that snorkelers and beginning divers have fun stuff to see easily.  The only problem is you are sucking in diesel fumes for the 45 minute boat ride out to the museum.  We had a good time and liked our dive master, so had him take us cenote diving the next day.

A cenote is not a cavern, you always see the sky.  They are underground rivers, so are generally colder than the ocean.  The whole experience blew us away.

So beautiful!  You are diving, but it kind of feels like you are hiking.

The lack of waves means the visibility is always amazing on the top layer.  Once you drop below the halocline visibility becomes 5 inches.  There is a rope line to guide you along the dive and you always carry flashlights.  

The second dive was in Little Brother, at the same site.  A great 2-tank dive day.

All the dive photos are from Triton photos-the professional photographer on site.  Totally worth the price

Real deal safety sign-do not ignore these!