Author Archives: AlphaRoaming

Biggest snow in the Silicon Valley hills decades! I started my hike in the rain, at Rhus Ridge. (463 feet elevation) Walked up, thru new snow …up to Black Mountain summit, at 2812 feet. …where there was 8 inches of … Continue reading →

Way up on the side of a mountain, near Bishop, CA, is a former mine and mining camp. The Champion Spark Plug mine operated from about 1920 to 1942. They mined a rare mineral, known as Andalusite. Andalusite enabled Champion … Continue reading →

One of advantages of my cycling club is networking! In this case, several of us were helping a club member pick about 600 pounds of Pinot Noir grapes, back on September 7th. We started at 7AM, on the hottest day … Continue reading →

Back about 7 years ago, I did my first bikepack to the hiker/cyclist site at Francis Beach. https://alpharoaming.com/2015/08/02/bicycle-camping-bikepacking-half-moon-bay-via-kings-mountain-road-purisima-creek/ A few days ago, I did it again for about the 4th time! It was about 95 degrees as we chugged up … Continue reading →

Michael and I took advantage of the unusually cool weather to do a two night backpacking trip into Henry W. Coe State Park. Arnold Horse Camp was our base camp. The water there was intermittently dripping, but enough to keep … Continue reading →

I recently read about this 75 year old candy store, which I’d never heard of before! https://www.sfgate.com/food/article/Bay-Area-Prestons-Candy-faces-closure-17152476.php They’ve been in downtown Burlingame, in the same spot for generations. I decided to pay them visit! Besides being interested in local history, … Continue reading →

So, yeah, I’ve had a journey up Palo Colorado Road, to Pico Blanco Scout Camp, on my radar for awhile. It’s been closed for about 5 years, due to fire damage, and a washed-out road. It’s now FOR SALE! I … Continue reading →

So back about a month ago, I did a tour, with two friends, of the Death Valley area. Petroglyphs and old cabins were the highlight!

During my recent visit to Clear Creek, I made a quick side trip, just before sunset, to visit Dick Wright. He was a local hermit, who lived in a crude cabin here. When he didn’t show-up in town for awhile, … Continue reading →