Topanga State Park

Early  morning drive to Topanga Park doing some geocaching

Hardly on the trail and there was a deer.

Fire Ants

Eagle Rock (there was a geocache here)

View from Eagle Rock Ocean in the back

 Eagle Rock

Eagle Rock Sign

These pictures are from a few months ago.  I took the day and did some hiking and geocaching.  It was one of those hikes that you say I will just go on this trail and come back, but I just kept going and going and going, finding more and more caches.  I had no water left, was really thirsty and dehydrated and was getting really sunburn.  I came to an end of a trail to look for a geocache.  I passed by a house and there was a kid there about 9yr olds asked if I had a GPS in my hand I said yes and went on to my cache.  I found it came back toward the trail and the kid was still there with his younger siblings as if he was waiting for me.  He asked if I found what I was looking for.  I said I did.  Then he asked if I was a geocacher.  From there I ended up meeting his mom, getting a map of the trails around there, getting a nice long drink from the garden hose and then ventured with the kid to another nearby cache that I couldn't find...he had found it before. He was so happy that he could help and was chattering away about all the caches that they had found in the park.  I was happy for this encounter.  It was a good day. 

Don't Even Try It

I had to laugh when I saw these signs.  First because I am in shorts and my legs are unprotected from the rattle snakes.  Second because the next two signs add on an older sibling threat.  "Don't Even think about it."

dun dun dun...or else~

Wayfarer's Chapel

Happened to see this Chapel along my route to the sunken city.  I had read about this chapel before and was happily surprised to actually see this place.  Lots of weddings here. http://www.wayfarerschapel.org/

The Sunken City, San Pedro, CA.

http://www.uer.ca/locations/show.asp?locid=24548

Came here very early a few months ago to find a geocache  (I found it) Lots of very colorful graffiti but maybe not so appropriate for this blog.  Very cool place and lots of places to see in the area too. 

Chanty's New Sails

Rolland working on the asymmetrical spinnaker

Storm trysail (this takes the place of the mainsail and doesn't use the boom)

Rolland and Bianca

Bianca modeling for scale with the new main sail

Jannelle modeling for scale on the spinnaker

  Back in July of 2009 on the way down to New York City from Newfoundland, Chanty's  main ripped. (see old post).  It ripped at a seam so I was able to do a really rough job of hand stitching it back together until I could get someone to beef it up a little.  When I got to Lunenburg, Nova Scotia (see old post) the jib ripped.  Luckily there was a sail maker in town to assess my sail situation.  It was concluded that there was too much sun damage on the jib and was beyond repair.  Lucky I had a Genoa that hadn't seen much use yet.  The main was then reinforced and usable.  I was given strict instructions to not take another big trip until these sails were thrown in the trash and new ones made.  Well here we are, a trip from NY to Florida later and in August of 2010.  A little late but at least happening.  I will now have a new main, a storm jib and storm trysail (main) and the most exciting of all and new to Chanty is the asymmetrical spinnaker complete with the spinnaker sock.  Chanty has never done good in light winds so this will be a great addition.  Rolland with the help of Jannelle and Bianca decided to take on the sail making challenge and put his industrial sewing machine to the test.  I don't think I will be disappointed. 

Butterfly Garden

Natural History Museum of Los Angeles-The Vault

This is the Kazanjian Red Diamond

The vault in the museum

Magic Crystal ball