Author Archives: AlphaRoaming

A friend, who moved from Santa Cruz to Grass Valley a few years ago, pinged me with a backpacking idea. It sounded much more reasonable than some of the crazy bushwhacking adventures he had been known for. It wasn’t! We … Continue reading →

Does anybody read my blog? Yes, actually the WordPress statistics show 4300 visitors, so far, in 2020. A few years ago it was about 3 times that. I like the blog because I can pull-up photos and a short story … Continue reading →

Has it really been 9 months since my last post? Anyway…I hiked Mt Tam a few days ago and took some incredible photos. I don’t get a huge audience reading this blog, but it’s a convenient place to park my … Continue reading →

Way up on a mountain, between Death Valley and Lone Pine, is the ghost town of Cerro Gordo. It’s a privately-owned site, which recently changed hands to a pair of businessmen. They have plans to preserve it, while adding lodging … Continue reading →

Conveniently located, just off 395, between Bishop and Mammoth Lakes… I had heard mention of the “Crowley Columns” from someone…possibly my friend Sam. Then, sometime last year, I saw more details at https://californiathroughmylens.com/crowley-lake-columns/ I added it to my Eastern Sierra “to … Continue reading →

Waaayyy out in rural Tulare County is a former town, which was founded, owned, governed, and entirely populated by African-Americans, around 1910. It’s now a State Park, with about a dozen nicely restored buildings, and a handful of others. Camping … Continue reading →

Back a few years ago, when I first started using Strava, I followed alot of local cyclists to discover interesting new routes, preferably with wide shoulders and few cars. One of those routes I spotted was Schulties Road and Redwood … Continue reading →

Martin’s Beach is a scenic little cove, on the coast, a few miles south of Half Moon Bay. For years I have been hearing about the legal challenges to reopen beach access at Martin’s Beach, which was closed when Vinod … Continue reading →

A brief post to freshen-up my blog. My last post was about 2 months ago, and this hike was quite fun! A little circle of friends was talking about climbing Mt Tam, to the summit, for the Northern California Sixpack … Continue reading →

Back around 2000 I heard whispers, on the internet, of a collection of military tanks in nearby Portola Valley at the “Pony Tracks Ranch”. It was not open to the public, but some groups were getting private tours. I tracked … Continue reading →