You want to go wine tasting. You’re craving somewhere one notch up from Temecula, but closer than Napa. Enter Santa Barbara wine country: a quick four-hour drive along scenic Southern California coastline to the Santa …
May 5, 2015
United States
Wining & dining through Santa Ynez Valley
Backpacking in the Santa Rosa Wilderness
My boots grate loudly over the gravel as I shuffle onto my crinkly tarp. After manhandling spare clothing into a fussy Sea to Summit stuff sack, I rustle into my Kelty down sleeping bag. With …
Cheap fun in artsy L.A.
Zip, chug, or plod your way up the 405 for a long weekend clustered around LACMA, the Los Angeles Museum of Art. Friday Sneak out of work early on a Friday, or take the day …
April 30, 2015
Kauai: a hiker's paradise
Known for its unique geography and natural wonders, Kauai is one of the most breathtakingly beautiful places I've visited. A hiker’s dream. Truth be told, even if you're not an avid hiker, the island's outdoors …
April 30, 2015
Daytrip to the Salton Sea
Crunching fish bones. Foul-smelling water. Skin-scorching sun. It may not sound like an enticing adventure, but in fact one of the most interesting and unexpected getaways to be found in Southern California is a day …
April 27, 2015
Art meets nature in Idyllwild
Just two hours north of San Diego, nature and art commingle: Idyllwild is a quick mountain getaway for those of us in low-lying Southern California cities, but also a haven for artisans who want to …
April 25, 2015
No sidewalks in northeast Georgia
This Thanksgiving, I took my usual once- (and sometime twice) a-year drive down south. After ten years of back and forth over myriad routes, specifically those avoiding the highways, I've seen and tasted a lot …
April 21, 2015
Joshua Tree for the uninitiated
There are few things as graceless as someone begging for help with pure and unbridled fear in their eyes. Which about sums up my position at Indian Cove Campground during the waning hours of a …
April 19, 2015
Catalina's calling
Santa Catalina Island, one of the Channel Islands (but not included in the Channel Islands National Park), lies 22 miles off the southern California coast. Though it is privately owned by the Santa Catalina Island …
April 14, 2015
Leave Tiger alone!
The “story” at this week’s Masters is Tiger Woods. Can he make the cut? Can he win? Vegas now says 40-1. In the age of “right this minute” media mania, golf pundits question his “chipping …
April 7, 2015
L.A. in a day (by train)
If you like variety, follow me to an L.A. experience that will challenge your senses – not your purse. The walking exercise on this day trip approximates six miles; I took all day, but you …
April 7, 2015
Existential Donkey
Unlike Harsh Toke, Soft Lions, and Prayers — San Diego bands that headlined at this year’s South by Southwest music festival — the Donkeys were one of many bands who made the trek to Austin …
April 1, 2015
Issa's new beard and an aide's free travel
An assistant to North County Republican congressman Darrell Issa — whose failed bid for a repeat term as chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee has been chalked up by some to his …
March 27, 2015
River pilots fleeced by San Diego pirates
Timothy Monahan, a San Diego real estate developer, was sentenced to a year and a day in prison Thursday (March 19) in New Orleans. Monahan and another San Diego real estate operator, Mark Hoffmann, convinced …
March 21, 2015