We had a great hike up and down and up in the mountains, with some great views of the ocean along the way. In one of the sunnier spots, we snagged a picture.
We then descended to Berry Creek Falls, where I found an eminently huggable and exceedingly large tree.
It's humbling to be surrounded by plants so much older and bigger than I. In NorCal, there are so many beautiful natural features - the ocean, the mountains, the redwoods, not to mention fruit growing everywhere - that it seems like some kind of magical fantasyland. In my part of Texas, there just aren't as many natural wonders to enjoy.
The next day, I visited San Francisco with a borrowed bike while the Schuhs went to work. One of my favorite sites was the Palace of Fine Arts, which was constructed for the Panama Pacific International Exhibition to commemorate the opening of the Panama Canal and generate some serious tourism for the Bay Area. It once housed hundreds of works of art, but now is a lovely little park that resembles a Roman ruin.
I biked onward to the Golden Gate Bridge, where San Francisco's famous fog was finally lifting.
I proceeded to bike across it to Marin County, and then right back. I followed El Camino Del Mar along the coastal cliffs until reaching Golden Gate Park. After that, I biked straight through the city to hit up Grace Cathedral, a magnificent Episcopal cathedral in downtown San Francisco. I walked the labyrinth and finally had some time to sit, reflect, pray, and admire some beautiful stained glass.
Between San Francisco's hills and the mountains in Big Basin, I am pretty sore. Hopefully this means I sleep well tonight on the way to Seattle.
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