Explore the World one Step at a Time
Explore the World one Step at a Time
Superflex’s Dive In art installation is pretty. Ok, I shouldn’t really start like this. However, the pink color stands out in the desert, specifically in the pre-sunset light. The idea behind Dive In is that the Coachella Valley used to be an ocean millions of years ago and is awaiting its turn to become an ocean again. The art installation plays with the concept of a favorite American past time,…
It’s not a secret that Araby Trail is my favorite hiking trail in Palm Springs. I use it as a workout trail, a show-my-friends-the-town-from-above trail, get-out-of-the-house-trail, and just-enjoy-the-outdoors trail. Today I wanted to see whether the recent severe rain falls (that closed several of the man streets in Palm Springs) did any damage to the trail. It’s been washed off several times already. Though there was some water run-off damage,…
Pia Camil’s Lover’s Rainbow is a 2-part art installation spanning two countries, the US and Mexico. One rainbow (the first installed) sits in Baja, Mexico, the other one – as part of Desert X – in the Coachella Valley in California, 190 km apart. Pia Camil explains on her Instagram page: “The series documented abandoned houses in different highways of Mexico where rebar is usually left exposed as a sign…
Keys Ranch (or Desert Queen Ranch) in Joshua Tree National Park was built and extended between 1910 and the 1960s. The building structures are still in place and so are some of the mining machinery, old cars and trucks, and spare parts. Short history of Keys Ranch Many rugged individuals tried their luck at cattle ranching, mining, and homesteading in the high desert. And so was Bill Keys, whose colorful…
Big Morongo Canyon Preserve in California lies within the Sand to Snow National Monument. The desert oasis at Big Morongo Canyon is one of the 10 largest cottonwood and willow riparian habitats in California. I visited early morning one chilly December day, when the sun was coming out and the frozen dew was just thawing. I love the details of the dew drops. As I was adjusting my camera to…
A photography challenge caught my attention this weekend and I wanted to find my unique perspective to the challenge. Having spent a few minutes earlier this weekend thinking about whether it’s possible to revisit a place or whether every visit is new and unique and therefore a “re”visit isn’t possible, I figured every landscape photo is unique in the same way even if several people take a photo of the…
I get to look at Mt San Jacinto from my front porch in Palm Springs. It is one of my favorite things to do when I am out there on weekends: brew some fresh coffee and sip it while marveling at “my” mountains. Mt San Jacinto Mt San Jacinto stands 10,834 feet above sea level, and is the second highest mountain range in Southern California. San Gorgonio Mountain is the…
I got into a frenzy early afternoon. Which hiking group to join? Which one will find the perfect spot to watch the lunar eclipse? As I was weighing my options, I couldn’t get excited about any of the hikes. Now, I live in Los Angeles, so observing night skies takes some planning due to the light smog everywhere. The Griffith Observatory held a public event for star moon gazers. That…
Whitewater Preserve, a place for hiking, resting, and inspiration. The trails around the ranger station exhibit famous quotes written on rocks.