Boney Peak

In a movie, when the plot shifts from one scene to the next, there is often a shot of scenery inserted in to help the viewer make the transition. I need similar shots inserted into my own life. Sometimes they're small, as when I'm in the office, and I finish a project, and look out the window for a moment before transitioning to the next item on my to-do list. And sometimes they're a bit bigger, as when I spend a Saturday hiking.

It had been too long since my last hike. Fortunately, the weather was perfect as David and I arrived at the trailhead: Satwiwa/Sierra Vista, near Newbury Park. Numerous trails depart from here, some short, some long. In the picture below, the nice smooth path to the right slowly descends eight miles through Sycamore Canyon to the ocean. The trail that crosses the bridge to the left heads up 2,000 feet to Boney Mountain--a steep, rugged trail. Guess which one we chose?

The warm weather even had some of the trees fooled as to what season it is ... between 2,000 and 3,000 feet in elevation, it is likely that this area will see a frost when the weather cools back down, possibly as soon as the end of this week.

We passed by some intriguing rock formations on our way to the top:

Upon reaching the sumnmit, we had an amazing view of Sycamore Canyon (at the bottom), La Jolla Valley (the grassy area), and the Pacific Ocean, over which a small patch of fog was drifting. In the distance, we could see Anacapa and Santa Cruz Islands.