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Back in November, Eli, Dave, and I went to Catalina for a weekend to camp at Two Harbors, hike the Trans-Catalina trail, and camp at Parson’s Landing.  I took a similar trip to Parson’s during the summer of 2007, but this was my first trip to Catalina in the fall, and I was surprised to find what seemed like a nearly deserted island. We attributed it to the time change.

So on a nearly deserted island there isn’t too much else to do besides sit back, relax, read books, and play some horseshoes, and that’s how we occupied our time in Two Harbors and at Parson’s. The 5 mile hike on the Trans-Catalina gave us an intro to the majestic views that could be had on a clear day, but the fog and clouds we encountered made it a unique and windy experience.

Back in mid-October an opportunity arose to return to the Sierras, so Jimmy and I joined Paul for what promised to be a relaxing time camping and hiking near Lone Pine. After stocking up on groceries and firewood we made camp at the Tuttle Creek Campground near Alabama Hills and Paul prepared a meal of salad with spaghetti and meatballs. (The menu was courtesy of Paul’s wife Lindsey.) While we ate and enjoyed the views of the night sky we made plans to stop by the Mt. Whitney Ranger Station in the morning to ask about hiking recommendations.

The rangers were extremely helpful, and after a number of recommendations for possible hiking trails, we knew that we would be hiking the trail from Onion Valley to Kearsarge Pass as soon as it was mentioned.

The 5 mile trail took us from an elevation of approximately 9,200 feet to 11,760 feet, past five lakes, and across many ridges with majestic views. What made the hike even better was the fact that the weather was a sunny 70° with fresh snow at the higher elevations from a storm a few days before.

The next morning Paul and I trekked to Alabama Hills to photograph the sunrise on the Sierras. It was a fitting end to an incredible trip. Be sure to check out Paul’s blog for his posts on Kearsarge Pass and Alabama Hills.

Sometime early in the summer Grandma Mary called to let me know that she would be visiting her sisters in Napa Valley in mid-August and that I should plan to visit and bring a friend. Done; I love trips to Napa Valley. So, I asked Mary (from Vanuatu and Hawaii) to join since we still had yet to meet on the mainland.

Mary and I set out on Highway 1 for the long and beautiful road trip to San Francisco, where we spent the first night with Sara, one of Mary’s friends from the Peace Corps. (She had a knack for telling some pretty amazing stories about life in Vanuatu…)

After a whirlwind tour of San Francisco the next day, we drove to my great aunt’s ranch in Napa Valley. Here we spent the next two days laying around the pool, wine tasting, and going to church where we ended up shaking hands with Nancy Pelosi during passing of the peace.

The drive home went much faster, and like many Californian trips we decided to wrap it up with a celebratory stop at In-N-Out burger. Animal fries are so good.

Mt. Whitney is the highest mountain the contiguous United States, with an elevation of 14,496 ft. Most hikes to Whitney start at the Whitney Portal, which results in a roundtrip hike of about 22 miles with an elevation gain of over 6,100 ft. It’s extremely popular during the summer months, and because of that Inyo National Forest has implemented the Whitney Lottery to decide who gets a permit and when.

Back in June 2007, Paul, Jimmy, Marc, and I hiked Mt. Whitney for the first time. Just for kicks, I entered the lottery once again this year. Luckily, my ‘09 permit application was chosen, and even more luckily, the permit was awarded for the first choice of dates (a weekend in early August). Ben, Andrew, and Jimmy joined the adventure this time, and our three day, two night hike took us through some very picturesque mountain scenery.

Although the Whitney Portal is good, Jimmy and I agreed that now after having done the hike twice, any future trips to Mt. Whitney will have to be on a trail less trodden. Alternatively, there are many other 14,000+ ft. peaks that see many less visitors. The options are wide open for next summer…

At the end of July and a week after the Horsemanship trip, John and Greg traveled to California to join Jimmy and me in an epic backpacking hike across Yosemite National Park: 4 days, 3 nights, and 30 miles from Tuolumne Meadows to Yosemite Valley via the Vogelsang Pass. The views and experiences were amazing, and the photos below are only the beginning of what was another great summer adventure.