Just north of Fort Bragg, we stayed at a beachside campground and got in a beautiful sunset stroll before supper.
The following day, after stopping at the visitor centre at Humboldt Redwoods State Park (which I mention because it was one of the more interesting visitor centres we've been to), our "stop and hike" to break up the driving was at Ma-Le'l Dunes North near Aracata.
It was surprising to see so many colourful plants amongst the sand.
We spent a considerable amount of time watching the birds as they ran across the beach and flew back and forth in stunning patterns.
It was all I could do not to laugh (and shake the camera) as I took video of this first little sanderling. And then we watched in amazement as they all put on an air show for us.
On the hike out, we came across a huge ant hill! Andrew's feet and legs in the video for size reference.
After leaving Santa Barbara, we headed inland a bit and drove north via the Owens Valley. There were lots of Joshua trees and interesting scenery en route.
Just outside of Bishop, Andrew was hoping to fly at a site called Flynn's. The launch is accessible by road but only with 4-wheel drive and very high clearance. The hike to the top took him about an hour. It doesn't look all that far or steep in the first photo below but the next two show the scale a bit better. Can you spot where he is in each photo?
Looking across to the other side of the Owens Valley
The wind didn't seem too bad at the base, or even on the hike up, but as Andrew crested the summit it was gusting up to 40 km/hr which is way too strong for paragliding!
The next day we headed back towards the coast through Yosemite Park via Tioga Pass. Each day we tried to stop and get out of the vehicle for a short hike. This one near Tenaya Lake did not disappoint! Thankfully we got back to the van just as the rain hit hard.
A couple days later, we were just about finished driving for the day and couldn't find a good coffee shop so . . . wine tasting it was! Barra of Mendocino Winery was very nice. It's a family-owned business focused on organic farming practices. The event hall was originally designed to resemble an inverted champagne glass, hence the beautiful and unique ceiling.
While we were in Loreto or on the road home, I posted a few short videos on Facebook and Instagram. I've now done one more and am posting them all here in one spot for my future reference. All of these are very short, from just a few seconds to a minute. I recommend watching full screen and in HD for best viewing.
On our very first day of scuba diving, not more than five minutes from the marina, we came upon a pod of dolphins. We weren't around them for long and, between that and a bumpy ride, this was the best 6 seconds of video I got!
We also saw several mobile rays jumping out of the water but they are so fleeting (and usually so far away) that I didn't get any video.
We went to the sea lion dive site on Coronado Island on the first day but since we hadn't dived in so long (more than two years!) neither of us took underwater cameras so we could concentrate on just diving and getting used to things again.
Thankfully, we went back a couple days later and the sea lions were quite cooperative!
I had this idea for a "selfie" as I was entering the water. I call this video "Splash!" It wasn't until after our last dive of the trip that I thought I should have got some of Andrew going over the side so people not familiar with diving could actually see what is happening and how we get into the water. Ah well. Next time!
The fish seemed to be plentiful this trip. We wondered if it was because there was no fishing for about six months during the height of Covid. Or maybe I'm just not remembering what it was like before. Either way, we were pleasantly surprised!
One day on our way to Danzante Island, which is one of the furthest ones away, we encountered two Bryde's whales (a momma and baby). They were very playful and hung around our boat for about half an hour before we moved on. We were quite happy to give up some dive time for this as it's a very rare experience. Even our guides and boat captain were excited! (Video by me, photos by Andrew.)
We always enjoy watching the pelicans and other birds around the marina diving for fish. However, they're almost impossible to catch on video or photo. Here are just a few of my many failed attempts and the one successful one.
And the last one . . . a compilation of a few other underwater creatures I managed to get somewhat decently on video.
Have I mentioned we love the Santa Barbara Zoo? Ya, I know I have! ;-)
We stopped there again on our way back through and re-visited some of the animals we didn't get great photos of, didn't see at all, or wanted to see again.
Enjoy!
Monkey business! (Not great photos but didn't see these guys at all the first time.)
Better photo of one of the condors than last time.
Meerkat
Even a few plant photos this time!
White-faced Saki
Juvenile black-crowned night heron
Snow leopard
Because of the wire fencing and the difficulty focusing the camera over a larger area, I could get a photo of the whole snow leopard. It's hard to capture how impressively long its tail is!
These decorations, throughout the zoo, were starting to be set up when we were there the first time on this trip and were now complete and ready for the "zoo lights" tour and fundraiser starting in a couple of weeks. I bet they look great all lit up at night.
Since discovering Villas del Santa Niño, we always stay here when we're in Loreto. It's owned by a lovely local woman, Oralia, who keeps the suites and premises clean and appealing. Additions and improvements are always being made. Since we were last here, a second level has been added to the street-front building and finishing touches are being put on a new swimming pool as I type this.
Being along a pedestrian street, it's fairly quiet even with the busy malecon a block away and the town square a half block in the other direction. It's easy walking distance to everything we need - grocery store, restaurants, coffee shops and the dive shop.
Some of the suites are studio, others are 1 or 2 bedroom. All have a kitchen area with a small fridge, stovetop, and all the dishes, pots, etc. that you need.
We would highly recommend!!
The "front" building along the pedestrian street.
The back of the "front" building.
The original building at the back which has a 2-bedroom suite and a 1-bedroom suite.
The end of the "front" building, with stairs leading up to second floor.
The yard area with house and office at the back of the property.
One of the shaded outdoor seating areas and laundry room.
The new swimming pool with hot tub at the far end.
The eagle rays inlaid with tile into the bottom of the pool is a beautiful feature.
