Northern California Scenes

Miles and I made a day trip to Santa Rosa to visit friends, my aunt and uncle as well as see some of the aftermath of the North Bay fires in October which killed 43 people, burned more than 100,000 acres and destroyed nearly 7000 structures.  Although we had seen many pictures on the internet, they don't compare to seeing the area in person.  It was really surreal.





Talk about contrasts:  We then drove into "uncharred" San Francisco and walked along Chrissy Field to Fort Point (beneath the Golden Gate Bridge).

 
 View from Chrissy Field

 Alcatraz

 
Place where joggers "tap" before turning around on their run

 Even dogs get to "tap" their paws--how very San Francisco!


 The beautiful bridge at dusk

Sometimes the most beautiful places are right in your back yard (well, almost).  The Pacific Ocean is a mere 15-minute drive from my parents' home in San Mateo.  Miles and I just zipped over one glorious day and walked along the bluff near Pompano Beach.

Walking along the bluff--don't step back!

What a coast line!

Yellow mustard flowers along Highway 1

And now for our last blog-worthy adventure of this sabbatical:

A very close family friend, George Fohner, took us on a guided walk around Pacheco State Park east of Gilroy and near the Pacheco Pass which crosses central California to Yosemite National Park.  We learned a lot from George who told us all about the history of the family-owned land and the construction of various roads that slice through this area.   Although George is the real expert, I'll let Google tell you more about the story:

This park is the last remaining portion of the Mexican land grant, El Rancho San Luis Gonzaga. Francisco Pacheco and his son Juan were granted the property and built the first house in Merced County on this land in 1843. The land remained in the Pacheco family through five generations until Paula Fatjo, the great-great granddaughter of Francisco Pacheco, donated the land in 1992 to be a park for future generations who share her love of animals, horse back riding, history, and unspoiled land. This land has been a horse and a cattle ranch since 1843 and has breath taking views of the Central Valley to the east and the Santa Clara Valley to the west.

The area is comprised of ranch land, grazing cattle and panoramic rolling hills. Among the historic features of the park are an old line shack used by Henry Miller's cattle company in the 1800s, part of the old Butterfield Stage line route, and the remains of the original Pacheco adobe. 

George also told us that John Muir (father of the national parks, co-founder of the Sierra Club, and honored by having the 340 km John Muir Trail named after him, etc.) walked here and got his first view of the Sierra Nevada from this pass.


Line shack

 Mosaic on Paula Fatjo's ranch house

In front of the remains of the adobe house

 Beautiful pasture land

 Luis Reservoir--see those elk in the middle of the photo
and the Sierra Nevada barely visible in the distance?


Well folks, this actually brings us to the end of our sabbatical.  We will be returning to Haifa on Feb. 5 and are looking forward to reunions with family and friends.  What a glorious 6 months it has been!






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