On Sunday I went for a hike out on Ortega Highway on the San Juan Loop Trail with my cousin Matt, his 3 boys, and 2 dogs. Matt and I had the dogs on leashes – I took Julian, who is 3/4 Great Dane and 1/4 Lab, because she is the mellower of the two. Even so, she nearly pulled me off my feet – it didn’t help that I was cracking up the whole time. I wish I had video – in the parking lot I was practically water-skiing. Julian weighs about 130 pounds, so just trying to stay upright while holding her leash gave me a great workout of shoulders, arms and quads! Plus, I got a good ab workout from laughing so hard.

Oak Grove Trail 6

Originally uploaded by genesister

Big Sur is just breathtaking. Driving in, it was clear but windy, but the fog came in and it was pretty gray the rest of the time we were there. We went for a nice hike on the Oak Grove Trail in Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park. The trail guide said it was an “easy to moderate” hike, about 3 miles. We decided it’s solidly moderate, but enjoyed it anyway. The terrain reminded me more of Southern California than Big Sur.

Buzzard’s Roost 2

Originally uploaded by genesister

After we left Monterey, we headed up to Big Basin Redwoods State Park, near Santa Cruz. It was very peaceful and quiet. The weather was clear and sunny, but it stayed pretty cold in the campgrounds. However, we hiked up to a point called Buzzard’s Roost and it was plenty warm up there! It was a nice hike – about 4 1/2 miles round trip; moderate difficulty; heavily wooded at first, but gets rockier as you get up to higher elevations. And the views from Buzzard’s Roost are gorgeous.