surprise! inner sunset park tour

The Inner Sunset, in addition to being a fun, albeit foggy, neighborhood, has several visit worthy parks. I surprised Ryan with an afternoon touring a smattering of them. My plan was to begin the day with breakfast at Arizmendi Bakery on 9th, which has a great parklet for outside noshing. In a very O'Henry moment, Ryan hijacked my surprise date by surprising we with Arizmendi at home. So, with a quick change of plans, and after indulging in our morning pastries, we were on our way. 

We opted to take Muni to the Sunset, then headed out on foot to Hawk Hill Park. Hawk Hill has steep, sandy trails. After taking in the views of South San Francisco, the Outer Sunset, and the ocean, we decended the steep trail, and emptied the gallon of sand that had collected in our shoes. 

Our next stop, Golden Gate Heights Park, was just around the corner. Trails weave through a forested canopy. Views of the ocean and Outer Sunset occasionally peek out between branches. The fog collects on the branches, drips on the ground, and creates permanent mud, but that's ok because it feels remote and peaceful.

Rocky Outcrop Park was next up. Turns out this is literally just a rock outcrop. There are no trails and no access points. There is no visiting this park. We just kept on going. 

Our last park was Grandview Park. It's more of an outlook point than a park. An epic staircase climbs to the top of a steep hill, where there are views of Golden Gate Park, downtown, and various neighborhoods. There's also a bench for resting after the steep climb. A trail winds around the perimeter. 

At the bottom of Grandview Park are the Moraga Steps. These iconic tiled steps were bustling with visitors, making it difficult to get a good view of artwork. As it turns out, there are the 16th street steps up the street. These are just as spectacular, and completely deserted. Either head to the Moraga Steps first thing in the morning, or skip them altogether in lieu of the 16th Avenue steps. 

Moraga Steps

16th Avenue Steps

16th Avenue Steps

On our way home, we stopped off at The Ice Cream Bar in Cole Valley. This place has seriously good ice cream. My favorite is the vegan coconut chocolate almond. Don't judge, it's delicious, and you would never know that it's dairy free. Ryan ordered a milkshake from their old timey soda fountain bar. Soda drinks and shakes are concocted with droppers and formulas. It's all very scientific. 

Even though the fog impeded the views, we still had a fun time checking out new outdoor spaces in our city. The best part is the close proximity to our house. 

(Photo via The Ice Cream Bar Website)

surprise! it's a secret island

Last week was my birthday, and to celebrate Ryan planned a surprise date. We hopped on our bikes and headed to, of all places, Fisherman's Wharf. I was convinced that he was taking me to Ripley's Believe It or Not. I would not have been disappointed. But, he had other plans. We queued up at a little pier next to the sea lions, boarded a small vessel, and made the 2 minute journey to Forbes Island. An island that after nearly a decade living in the city, somehow managed to evade my awareness.

Originally a bachelor pad in Sausalito, Forbes Island now houses the coziest restaurant I've ever set foot in. The kitsch factor is high. There is a lighthouse to climb, pirates to admire, and sailor paraphernalia is scattered throughout. The restaurant itself is slightly submerged in the Bay. Fish periodically swim past the cloudy windows, as you sway with the waves.

The wait staff were friendly, and even treated us to dessert and two bonus glasses of wine. We ended up closing down the restaurant and took the boat back with the staff.

Don't let the notion of Fisherman's Wharf scare you away. Apparently they feed mostly locals, and I can see why. It's a weird, quirky place with delicious food.

 Ryan definitely wins the prize for most unexpected and surprising date night.

(Photo via Forbes Island Facebook Page)

emigrant wilderness

For Memorial Day weekend, Ryan and I headed out of town to do a bit of camping. To try something new, we went east to Emigrant Wilderness in Stanislaus National Forest. Even though we managed to leave town early, we were still running late. Maybe it was because of our stop to check out the Bass Pro Shop. That place is more intense than Disney Land.

Post horsing around at the Pro Shop, we continued on our merry way. We were planning on hiking into Relief Reservoir. The trail begins at Kennedy Meadows, where there are car camping spots, little cabins, horses, a restaurant, and a bodega. Our hike in was about 7 miles, and we left Kennedy Meadows around 5:30. Since it stays light so late, we were fine on time. The hike to the reservoir is strenuous. The trail relentlessly winds up steep and rugged terrain. Our map had a misprint, which left us momentarily lost and confused, but we sorted out directionality after just a 1/2 mile misstep. FYI, you go over two footbridges, not just one.

We hiked to the south end of the reservoir, then left trail to find a camping spot. In order to be near the water, it is necessary to leave the trail, but it's easy enough to find again. We found a great spot, near the creek and with a view of the water. The best part about Emigrant Wilderness is that you can have a campfire. There is plenty of wood to collect in the nearby forest. 

After a chilly night, we awoke to a blazing hot morning. We gathered the necessary items for a day hike and set off to explore the area. Since it was hot, we were drinking water like fish, but there are plenty of creeks as you go, so finding water was a breeze. We just needed to treat it.

We continued south on the trail for another 4 miles. We caught views of the surrounding snowy mountains, a few waterfalls, and the reservoir. The trail continues uphill, so it was another day of strenuous hiking. 

After two big hiking days, we devoured our dinners and then indulged in some hot chocolate with bourbon. Not a bad campfire treat.

On Monday morning, the reservoir was glassy and still. We took in the sights before we packed up and said good-bye.

With sequoias, campfires, and proximity to San Francisco, the Emigrant Wilderness has a lot going for it. Just make sure to bring the deet. 

10 books

It's nearly half way through the year, and I'm nearly half way to my goal of 20 books in 2014. 

Here are my first 10:

1. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, by: Ransom Riggs

Basically, a teenage boy must solve the mystery left to him by his grandfather on his deathbed. The author uses creepy vintage photos as inspiration for this quirky and imaginative story. This young adult novel is the first book in a series, so don't be surprised when it ends abruptly, like I was. It's a quick and fun read. Perfect for a beach afternoon.

2. Gone Girl, by: Gillian Flynn

I've already read Gone Girl, but to stay awake during a long drive on our honeymoon, I decided to reread it out loud to Ryan. First of all, it was fun to read together, second of all, it's a fairly entertaining book. It has twists and turns galore, although Ryan was able to see it all coming. I have to say, it starts out a lot stronger than it ends. Read it before the movie is released this October.

3.  The Language of Flowers, by: Vanessa Diffenbaugh

Set in San Francisco, Victoria enters the world as an adult after a life spent in foster care. She deals with a grievous past mistake, learns to move on, and to love for the first time. I enjoyed this book, but the other members of my book club felt differently, finding it trite and unrealistic. 

4. Me Before You, by: Jojo Moyes

After losing her job, Louisa takes up a new position as caregiver to a paraplegic. Louisa's new position results in self discovery and the realization that she is selling herself short. It took a few pages to get into, but once I was there, I couldn't put this book down. As you can imagine, it's a tear jerker, you have been warned.

5. The Storyteller, by Jodi Picoult

The Storyteller flashes between present day and WWII. Sage, a shy baker, befriends Josef, a former Nazi. The pieces fall into place as we hear the stories of Sage, Josef, Sage's grandmother, and a fictional tale by The Storyteller. This was the kind of book that I wanted to cancel plans for. I just couldn't stop reading.

6. The House Girl, by: Tara Conklin

The House Girl has so many glowing reviews on Amazon. I wanted to like this book, but I just thought it was terrible. I actually had to walk away from it for a bit, and only finished this mess of a novel because I had nothing else to read. If Tim Gunn were to comment on this book, he would call it an "overworked and tortured mess." Conklin could deliver an engaging story of the Underground Railroad, but instead she offers up a book rife with unlikeable characters and page after page of superfluous details. In one word: meh.

7. The Aviator's Wife, by: Melanie Benjamin

The Aviator's Wife will leave you wondering, "was Charles Lindbergh the biggest horses's ass of all time?" Anne Morrow, an aviatrix in her time, is completely glossed over as she lives in the shadow of her hero husband. I'm definitely a fan of historical fiction, and love filling in the gaps on wikipedia, or doing image searches on Google as I go. It's a good, well written read.

8: The End of Wasp Season, by: Denise Mina

There's a rich guy who commits suicide, there's a call girl who is brutally murdered, there are some boarding school brats, there's some down on their luck folks in Glasgow, there's a pregnant cop, and it's all connected. It was an ok story, and the author truly wraps up every loose end, but I just didn't care about any of the characters. No one was likable and there was no one to root for. When I finished, I thought, "what was the point of that?"

9: Tell the Wolves I'm Home, by: Carol Rifka Brunt

June is a nerdy teenager with few social skills. When June's uncle loses his battle with AIDS in the early 80s, she must learn to face a world without the one person that she felt truly understood her. It's a moving tale that focuses on an unlikely friendship.

10. Hollow City, by: Ransom Riggs

I'm working my way through this one right now. Hollow City is the sequel to Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. So far, it's a thrilling page turner. The writing isn't the most sophisticated, but sometimes it's nice to have a quick and easy read that requires very little thinking. Plus, I love that he creatively uses the vintage photos to propel the story.

Happy reading!

the future of hiking

The future of hiking has arrived and it's name is Google.  

Gone are the days when you venture to a trail without knowing exactly what to visually expect.  Google is working on a new project, Google Trekker, which will allow hikers to view a trail from Google Maps, much like street view. The catch is, street view relies on cars to capture visual information, which obviously does not work for single track nature trails. Not to worry, the brains behind Google quickly solved this problem by strapping an enormous 360° camera to the back of an uncomfortable backpack and eliciting the help of Google staff, park partners, and volunteers around the world.  I mean, who wouldn't want to lend Google a helping hand. I for one, would. . . and did.  

The Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy is working with Google to map trails in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. Ryan has mapped several trails, but I wanted a chance as well. We headed out to Fort Mason for my training, then loaded the beast into our borrowed car, and made the schlep across town to Fort Funston.  

It was a glorious Saturday, which meant the park was a total zoo, and we were the main attraction. We walked slowly around the trails, capturing every nook and cranny on film, as people chatted with us, jumped into the shots, took our photos, or wanted their photo taken with the camera. Although some people knew immediately what was up, others were a bit more out of the loop, wondering if we were working for Yahoo!, or had a telescope, or even a jet pack. Come on people, Yahoo!?

Awesome or nerdy? You be the judge.  

Get excited for trail views of Fort Funston, taken by your's truly, in the next three to five months.