A much longer day of 24 km and 800 meters of elevation hike but wonderful clear and sunny day. It was very quiet on the more remote trails and very high mountains roads where a few high alpine farmers exists in tiny alpine villages. At t

A shorter 18 km stage to Mojstrana. It was a nice sunny day for the start of this trail. Early in the section the trail climbs nearly a 1000 high above the valley floor and you come across tiny farming villages and homes perched in the steep slopes. You have to cross thru cow fences.…

After a very late flight from the Netherlands, I arrived about midnight to my hotel room in Ljubljana stumbling in the dark to find a first the hotel space and then some small lock box with a key for after hours entry. I woke up the next morning to blue skies and visiting Ljubljana for…

A shorter few hour cycle back to Amsterdam to return the rental bike in central Amsterdam and board a flight to Slovenia. Pleasant riding along little canals and much bigger rivers with huge barges moving materials and items around. Nice little villages and quaint canal side trails into Amsterdam. Once in Amsterdam the student fat…

Today a longer cycle from Rotterdam to Utrecht via Gouda. The wind has slowed and the sun is out today. A nice stay last night near the center of Rotterdam with the vfriend of the bike host. Beautiful ride along canals and rivers. The afternoon including some wonderful bike paths along the canals with canal…

Today was a short hour cycle into the modern city of Rotterdam. Many new, modern, and tall building in this city that was bombed during World War II. I met up with some friends I had met during the summer that stayed with me at Pinecrest who were hiking the pct. We spent the afternoon…

A shorter 2-3 hour cycle from Haarlem to Leiden today. Mostly on more developed spaces and in town biking routes for much of the journey. Stopped for coffee and lunch and continued into Leiden and visited the famous Leiden botanical garden from the 1600’s. Biked around this busy biking college town of Leiden. My first…

Biked today into Delft. Visited a few open outdoor Saturday markets in tiny towns before getting here. Conversations last night with host shared his activism in the group called resist extinction. This morning he was off to block a road in another part of Netherlands. This was the second host in two nights who were…

About a 3 hour cycle to Haarlem for a wonderful stay at a warm showers host. A heavy rain storm arrived later in the day but I was already to the hosts house by the storm. A pleasant dinner and chatting about the world until midnight. The next morning was clear and explored central Haarlem…

Today was just a short cycle from Alkmaar to egmond ann zee. This morning was spent more time exploring more Alkmaar. Egmond ann zee is a popular beach town on the North Sea. Wonderful hosts that have cycled all over Europe and now into their 70’s still cycle and even give rides to seniors that…

Today cycled about 47 km to Alkmaar, the town famous for their cheese market activity. A cloudy morning broke for sunny but windy ride into Alkmaar. Tonight I stayed with a very nice couple in central Alkmaar. I arrived into town early so I took a canal boat ride and walked around the shops and…

This town where I’m staying tonight is in a northern town of Netherlands and very few tourists . Cycled about 25-30 miles today to this town mostly on remote farming roads and bike paths. Today I used the new bike riding map app that worked great compared to mapy. The app is called Fietsknoop It…

Biked 25 miles today with stops in volendam, Edam and Hoorn. A bit of rain today at times but nice cycling and green fields on quiet cycle paths or side roads. Another amazing host in the town of

Off to Europe and beyond for about 3 months for cycling, hiking and trekking . My first first adventure is about 10 days cycling touring around northwest Netherlands. Departed San Francisco Thursday afternoon and arrived Dublin to Amsterdam Friday. Picked up the rental bike and moved the backpacking gear to the bike panniers and off…

The Pinecrest cabin Summer season is coming to an end. The days of early September have already brought cold nights and chilly afternoon winds. The seasons change quickly from summertime long and hot days to short and cooler ones. Here are some photos of the alpine glow on the lake in evening lake walks when…

A few days ago I hiked a few miles into the wilderness around 9,000 feet into one of my favorite secret hidden lakes. This unmarked lake on the map has a sharp rock fall off on one side that makes it look like an infinity pool. I walked out mid week and painted this scene…

After a few weeks in the San Francisco Bay Area I was back to the cabin in Pinecrest hosting more pct hikers, organizing the weekly music jams, hosting family and friends, trail work, sailing in the afternoons. The cabin is 101 years old wood structure so I started some annual cabin painting and maintenance.

While other family uses the cabin in the sierras, I was busy for two weeks visiting friends and family in the sf bay with treks including sailing on Monterey bay, hiking in big basin redwoods state park, hiking around Los Altos hills and woodside and visit to a unique experimental film event in the mission…

This summer has been an active musical summer with the starting and organizing the weekly Wednesday night music jam. Each week is filled with a group of 5-10 very talented and experienced musicians and singers who take turns suggesting songs, helping us each learn the song. Each song has opportunities for individuals to perform more…

The summer solstice – strawberry moon is a bittersweet time when another year has reached it longest daylight hours day but summer is just starting filled with warmer days and nights. I hiked to the top of the hill above the lake and treated to an amazing sunset while waiting for the moon to rise…