I woke up in Willits to more of the same enthusiasm-crushing greyness that was really coming to define my trip. I checked out around 9:00am, passed the laughable outdoor pool, and got into my Hyundai Accent, which had - thus far - conquered wet roads, steep hills, and high speeds without even a hint of complaint.
Read MoreDay 3 of the road trip was kind of a bust. The morning started off grey and drizzly, and I departed the Pacific Inn in Monterey around 9:00am to head toward downtown for a coffee, as is my tradition, stopping into a cute little coffee shop/shop shop called Bright Coffee. I grabbed a raw almond milk latte (hey, when you can) and a blueberry scone, along with a rye chocolate chip cookie for later.
Read MoreWow. Day 2 driving up the PCH was beyond incredible. I started off by grabbing coffee and a croissant in Morro Bay and stopping to take some photos of the charming beach town and big rock that juts from the water near the beach, which is also home to dozens of long-beaked shore birds, the name of which I have now forgotten of course.
Read MoreYesterday was the first day of my solo road trip from Los Angeles all the way north to Springfield, OR. I started in L.A. after concluding a week of working on set, and made my way up to Morro Bay with stops in Santa Barbara and Solvang in between.
Read MoreAfter five years together, I was still clinging to my full frame behemoth; after all, she'd served me well and was still an exceptional, professional-grade tool for beautiful video and photography. Like any long-term relationship, it's hard to imagine life without your counterpart when you haven't known anything else. But, with my recent upgrade to the Olympus OMD EM5 II - a smaller, lighter, (younger) camera - I had to admit that the my trusty Canon had been replaced, and it was time to let go of my safety net and commit myself fully to my new relationship.
Read MoreIn addition to being a beautiful tract of undisturbed forest with numerous trails varying in length and difficulty, Sterling Forest Park was at one time owned and operated by Sterling Iron Works which mined and shipped iron ore on the land. The last of the mines closed in the 1920s, but there are quite a few old structures and ruins left behind on the property which are great for exploring and photographing, so even in December when the trees are bare and wildlife is scarce, there's plenty to see.
Trails within the park are really well marked and maintained so it was very easy to follow the map and chart our route. We chose the firetower as our midpoint goal, and it took us about 2 hours to get there from the visitor's center (granted, I was stopping a lot, to take a million photos.)
Read More
