When Santa Cruz is good, it is excellent. Hanging with a friend and catching up on her deck in the mountains we got to see 80 degrees, blue skies and lots of sun. My wife had to go shopping with a friend, I had to walk the dog.
Years ago developers wanted to make the open space at Porter Sesnon near the village of Aptos, into a conference center called Wingspread. The local populace did what I often want Key Westers to do; they made themselves heard effectively and insistently and as a result this place is an open space park today.
Dogs on leash is the rule nowadays. We were alone Cheyenne and I and in the bad old days I used to walk Emma and Debs here and let them roam. Nothing was hurt back then when it was legal and nothing was damaged on this dog walk.
Porter Sesnon is on the edge of the cold air mass that hangs over the ocean and some days the marine inversion is thick overhead, creating a blanket of gray "fog" as it is called locally. Not this day:
This is classic summer foliage in California, green coniferous trees and burnt brown grass, dead until the rains come back in the winter. 
This is why they love it here, no humidity, no mosquitoes and ocean views- if you can afford them. Californians hate the idea of Florida, all green, lush, humid and hot. 
"Daddy! Can we live here forever?!" 
Hell no, I'm not freezing my ass off, even for you, kid. Enjoy it while you're here.
Oh, an don't let your dog romp through the poison oak, whatever you do, especially when the leaves are red and shiny. When you hug your dog the oil will transfer to your upper arms and chin and make you red, blotchy and itchy. I of course, let Cheyenne do whatever she wants. I remember the itchy upper arms with nostalgia. I used to shampoo Emma and Debs with Head and Shoulders to get the oil off their fur. 
Compared to the Keys this place is a poisoned paradise. Cheyenne doesn't care. 
Yes, I love railroad tracks, especially as I don't see them in the Keys. 
In both directions. 
The tracks service the Davenport cement plant 11 miles up the coast north of Santa Cruz. They run to Salinas via Watsonville and there has been a whole load of talk about instituting passenger service between Santa Cruz and Watsonville...but so far it's just two freight trains a day along here. And the occasional Labrador. 
Every dog deserves an hour and a half at Porter Sesnon, at least once in their life. 
There's the cold air fog hanging over the ocean. 
Years ago developers wanted to make the open space at Porter Sesnon near the village of Aptos, into a conference center called Wingspread. The local populace did what I often want Key Westers to do; they made themselves heard effectively and insistently and as a result this place is an open space park today.
Dogs on leash is the rule nowadays. We were alone Cheyenne and I and in the bad old days I used to walk Emma and Debs here and let them roam. Nothing was hurt back then when it was legal and nothing was damaged on this dog walk.Porter Sesnon is on the edge of the cold air mass that hangs over the ocean and some days the marine inversion is thick overhead, creating a blanket of gray "fog" as it is called locally. Not this day:This is classic summer foliage in California, green coniferous trees and burnt brown grass, dead until the rains come back in the winter. 
This is why they love it here, no humidity, no mosquitoes and ocean views- if you can afford them. Californians hate the idea of Florida, all green, lush, humid and hot. 
"Daddy! Can we live here forever?!" 
Hell no, I'm not freezing my ass off, even for you, kid. Enjoy it while you're here.
Oh, an don't let your dog romp through the poison oak, whatever you do, especially when the leaves are red and shiny. When you hug your dog the oil will transfer to your upper arms and chin and make you red, blotchy and itchy. I of course, let Cheyenne do whatever she wants. I remember the itchy upper arms with nostalgia. I used to shampoo Emma and Debs with Head and Shoulders to get the oil off their fur. 
Compared to the Keys this place is a poisoned paradise. Cheyenne doesn't care. 
Yes, I love railroad tracks, especially as I don't see them in the Keys. 
In both directions. 
The tracks service the Davenport cement plant 11 miles up the coast north of Santa Cruz. They run to Salinas via Watsonville and there has been a whole load of talk about instituting passenger service between Santa Cruz and Watsonville...but so far it's just two freight trains a day along here. And the occasional Labrador. 
Every dog deserves an hour and a half at Porter Sesnon, at least once in their life. 
There's the cold air fog hanging over the ocean. 
I keep thinking of the pathetic little trees on Big Pine Key when I see these well formed monsters on the mainland. I miss Big Pine. 
An uncharacteristically still Pacific Ocean. 
A lovely afternoon walk. 
A dog day afternoon in Santa Cruz County, my former home town that time has failed to forget and the decades could doubtless improve.
An uncharacteristically still Pacific Ocean. 
A lovely afternoon walk. 
A dog day afternoon in Santa Cruz County, my former home town that time has failed to forget and the decades could doubtless improve.
6 comments:
Thanks for the great pictures. You are such a dare devil walking Cheyenne without a leash.By the way whats the elevation where you are at.
Dear Conchscooter:
There is a major avantage to keeping a dog on a leash in strange surroundings: It allows you tr prevent the animal from getting into trouble.
Trouble can include porcupines, skunks, and vile snakes (indigenous to the regions you just drove through). A buddy of mine is a New York Times reporter living in Arizona, and he claims local dog owners who let their pets run free in his neighborhood get "snake" training for the dogs, which is cheaper than burying them after a bite.
I have a friend in the Adirondacks who had two cats. He used to open the door and let them out every day... One early evening, a Great Horned Owl swept out of tree and took one. It happened in less than an instant.
And then, of course, you meet the prick with a pit bull named "Stitches," who's wearing a pinched spiked collar, and then you're glad both dogs are on leashes.
The temperatures you are describing are giving me a hard-on. I went outside today and banged my head on the humidity.
Fondest regards,
Jack • reep • Toad
Twisted Roads
I need scarier stories. Iused to walk my dogs in central america with no harm done.
Ok how about when your dog gets ahead of you and a neighbors leach field is coming to the surface of their yard. And your lab that you just adopted from a back yard breeder decides to roll in the crap. At first you dont know what it is. Because the stupid neighbor should have had it fixed. It takes three baths (outside in 50 degree weather) to get her clean. Thats scary. LOL
Cheyenne is perfect. She doesn't roll in stuff and she just sniffs dead animals. It's always people that suck. The worst experiencel I had was having a dog get skunked and it took a lot of tomato juice to sort that out.
Far worse could happen on the trails. On Tuesday, on a local San Diego trails that I mtn bike regularly, a man had to fight off a coyote that wanted his pooch for dinner.
We also have the occasional mountain lion sightings as well, which is the reason dogs are not allowed on most hiking trails in California state parks. Lions consider them prey animals. Once lions are used to being around humans, it's only a matter of time before one gets the idea that a human would make a great meal.
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