On vacation with my family in Tel Aviv, I decided to take a morning jog to work out the jetlag. It's the third time I've been to Israel in the past 12 months, and like always, it's just wonderful enough that I wish I could stay. Reality bites.
Anyway, the Tel Aviv boardwalk is really a fantastic place to run if you don't want to deal with traffic, are looking for great views throughout your walk/run, and want to know exactly how far you've gone. It's 5k in length and has mile markers randomly placed throughout - keep your eyes peeled, they're hard to find. It snakes along the Mediterranean coast all the way from downtown, past grand hotels and beachside cafes to the old town of Jaffa at the southermost point of the city.
I have to admit that at 9:30am, it's already too late to run. I think I had a mini heatstroke, and now at 11:50am, I'm still beet red and nauseated. Was it the heat? the sun? the jetlag? Probably all three. Word to the wise, take it easy your first day in a new time zone, and if you're not used to sun and heat, same goes. Combining the two is pretty darn painful.
Showing posts with label Trails. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Trails. Show all posts
Monday, June 28, 2010
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Redwood Regional Park Surprise
The weather was so sparklingly gorgeous yesterday morning that we could do nothing but leave the house. Headed straight for Mt. Diablo, images of a peaceful ride up the 24 and a picnic with an aerial view of the SF Bay flashed through my mind. That is, until we reached the east side of the Bay Bridge, and noticed the miles upon miles of pileup traffic headed into city. A mile after that, our own pileup headed into the Berkeley Hills.
Here enters the GPS and its handy "no-highway" mode. We pull off highway 24 into winding, hilly neighborhoods, through a small town, and left onto "Snake Road." Snake Road leads us to Skyline Blvd, and soon enough, we are at the top of a ridge zipping through some of the most beautiful open space scenery I have seen in Northern California. 20 minutes from downtown SF. Aside from a few bikers and cyclists, the cars are sparse.
We could have kept going this way to get to Mt. Diablo, but the open space surrounding us was just too compelling. A few clicks into the GPS, and we realized we were skirting Redwood Regional Park. We found the entrance, and pulled into the park.
I have no idea how this park is off the radar for all the Bay Area weekend adventurers. It was downright gorgeous, unpopulated, and quiet (aside from the chattering birds and hum of the bees in the wildflowers). Picnic lunch in an open field, a little bit of frisbee and a lazy afternoon nap in the sun. Then, a hike along a creek, a few campsites and sweet benches along the way, a regrowth redwood forest to cool us down, and a climb up to the ridge surrounding the park - vista views all the way home.
If you are one of the 5 people who read this blog, please go to this park and enjoy it like we did. But, don't tell anyone else :) We like this secret park relatively close to home.
Here enters the GPS and its handy "no-highway" mode. We pull off highway 24 into winding, hilly neighborhoods, through a small town, and left onto "Snake Road." Snake Road leads us to Skyline Blvd, and soon enough, we are at the top of a ridge zipping through some of the most beautiful open space scenery I have seen in Northern California. 20 minutes from downtown SF. Aside from a few bikers and cyclists, the cars are sparse.
We could have kept going this way to get to Mt. Diablo, but the open space surrounding us was just too compelling. A few clicks into the GPS, and we realized we were skirting Redwood Regional Park. We found the entrance, and pulled into the park.
I have no idea how this park is off the radar for all the Bay Area weekend adventurers. It was downright gorgeous, unpopulated, and quiet (aside from the chattering birds and hum of the bees in the wildflowers). Picnic lunch in an open field, a little bit of frisbee and a lazy afternoon nap in the sun. Then, a hike along a creek, a few campsites and sweet benches along the way, a regrowth redwood forest to cool us down, and a climb up to the ridge surrounding the park - vista views all the way home.
If you are one of the 5 people who read this blog, please go to this park and enjoy it like we did. But, don't tell anyone else :) We like this secret park relatively close to home.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Bay to Breakers vs. Half Moon Bay hike
I woke up this morning to my roommates and a visiting friend prancing the house in wrestler and superman costumes. They were in rare form for 6am, but fittingly so. Today was Bay to Breakers in San Francisco. It's an annual run that takes throngs of runners, walkers, beer guzzlers, and exhibitionists from the Bay to the Beach.
Despite the fact that I am usually up for running events in any shape or form, for example, I LOVE the Hash. Particularly in random foreign countries. I had a craving to take advantage of our *finally* empty house and one of countless gorgeous hikes in the Bay Area on such a beautiful day. A quick Google search later, paring down potential hiking routes by length (wanted 7 miles), difficulty (wanted it tough), and location (nowhere near a beach because of traffic), I came across this one:
http://www.bahiker.com/southbayhikes/purisimahiggins.html
It was absolutely wonderful ... once I got over my fear of mountain lions - there was a warning sign at the trailhead. Within my first half mile of descent into the North Ridge Trail, I asked another lone female hiker if I should worry. She was blonde and weathered in that I've-been-on-a-million-hikes and eat-only-what-I-grow-in-my-garden way. I loved her multicolored compression pants, mostly because they didn't seem to fit her "look." Her response:
"It's more dangerous to drive on Skyline to get here ... or to sit on your couch and become a couch potato. Don't worry about the lions, I've lived here for 21 years and never seen one in my life. Nor has my husband and he's an ultramarathoner, so he's seen a lot. That said, I do carry a knife as a last resort."
I thanked her and went on my way, imagining what it would be like to pull out my knife while being mauled by a mountain lion. I didn't like the thought. It was one that entered my mind periodically through the 2.5 hour walk, between taking photographs of rocks and flowers, when everything became a little too silent for comfort.
Despite the fact that I am usually up for running events in any shape or form, for example, I LOVE the Hash. Particularly in random foreign countries. I had a craving to take advantage of our *finally* empty house and one of countless gorgeous hikes in the Bay Area on such a beautiful day. A quick Google search later, paring down potential hiking routes by length (wanted 7 miles), difficulty (wanted it tough), and location (nowhere near a beach because of traffic), I came across this one:
http://www.bahiker.com/southbayhikes/purisimahiggins.html
It was absolutely wonderful ... once I got over my fear of mountain lions - there was a warning sign at the trailhead. Within my first half mile of descent into the North Ridge Trail, I asked another lone female hiker if I should worry. She was blonde and weathered in that I've-been-on-a-million-hikes and eat-only-what-I-grow-in-my-garden way. I loved her multicolored compression pants, mostly because they didn't seem to fit her "look." Her response:
"It's more dangerous to drive on Skyline to get here ... or to sit on your couch and become a couch potato. Don't worry about the lions, I've lived here for 21 years and never seen one in my life. Nor has my husband and he's an ultramarathoner, so he's seen a lot. That said, I do carry a knife as a last resort."
I thanked her and went on my way, imagining what it would be like to pull out my knife while being mauled by a mountain lion. I didn't like the thought. It was one that entered my mind periodically through the 2.5 hour walk, between taking photographs of rocks and flowers, when everything became a little too silent for comfort.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)