The whirlwind.

I did a lot of things while in California, and I mean a LOT. Each could have its own post here but I don't have that kind of time or strength so, here in one post is a menagerie of many of the places I went to and experiences I had.

My first week I went to the John Muir Woods and Aquarium of the Bay, as you've seen. I also went to the California Academy of Science in San Francisco (and drove myself there!). The Academy boasts several large atractions, including an aquarium, a planetarium, a living roof, and a rainforest. (They also have a cafeteria that serves a dozen different styles of food and you can get anything and everything you want. My recommendation: the baked mac 'n cheese)

I went to the aquarium first.











Can you find Nemo? I can!

I have decided that anemones are my second-favorite underwater creature after jellyfish. The way their tendrils undulate in the water is mesmerizing, and though I know they're alive, it really makes them seem alive. And though there was a scuba diver in the aquarium tunnel, he wasn't swimming with the sharks - just cleaning the glass.

What made photos of the sea life possible was my 50mm f/1.8 lens, a prime lens (meaning it has no zoom) that's also known as a fast lens, because at f/1.8 you can photograph in low-light situations with virtually no motion blur. The trick is getting the focus right. That takes practice.







There were reptiles on the lower level of the circular rainforest (but, sadly, behind glass), and on the upper levels, mostly butterflies and birds. The rainforest was actually a composite of several different types of rainforests and jungles in the world; it was very well put together.

Later in the week I visited the John Muir National Historic Site - his house - either in or near Martinez, California. I took lots of photos inside but the best are really of the house itself. I love the planning of planting the palm trees out front symmetrically with the house, and as you'll see they're visible from the bell tower, again, almost perfect symmetry.







A word about palm trees. So yes, they're fascinating for a person from the Midwest. But the co-worker who picked me up from the airport told me they are actually a part of the grass family. I think I knew that once upon a time, but forgot for my own sanity, because really, that is One. Big. Blade of grass.



The same day, I visited a friend of my employer at his house, a really, really interesting man who allowed me to photograph his beautiful backyard. The Bay Area was just overflowing with gorgeous flowers of all kinds in May, just literally everywhere you looked, and his property was no exception.













The last flower is a California tufted poppy, and I think the poppy might be the state flower. I think they're so cute. I found large volumes of them cultivated in circular medians in the suburbs of Berkeley, but never had time to go back with my camera. :-(

Okay, so, still the same day, I visited the SS Red Oak Victory, a ship docked in harbor in Oakland, built during WWII and probably by lots of Rosie the Riveters. When I went inside to the lower decks, it was like being in an awesome X-Files episode. (And yes, only fans will know what I mean...)











A few days later I managed to make my way to Tilden Park in Berkeley, a regional park that has plenty to offer including a lake, steam train rides, and incredible panoramic views of the bay. The morning I went I didn't have lots of time, and it's a really big park, so I dedicated myself to the botanic garden.









Those were the first cacti I'd ever seen in real life! =)

There's still more to show from the trip. I stopped along the way lots of times and took photos of vistas, and I spent a good afternoon in San Francisco during my last week and took a bay cruise (in the rain) which got me up close to the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz Island. So those will come eventually, never fear.

Gilman Street.

I was headed out to my first excursion, the John Muir Woods, and because of the poorly positioned highway signage missed the turned onto 580 and ended up headed to the end of Gilman Street in Berkeley. I quickly went from being highly ticked to pleasantly surprised - for in addition to there being a race track around the bend, there was a fantastic view of the Bay. Naturally, I took advantage of the situation.



In addition to the awesome hills in the background, there were rocks leading to the water and wild grasses to enliven the landscape.













On the way back from the John Muir Woods there were enough clouds in the sky that I stopped back by the end of Gilman Street to see the view at sunset; although it wasn't perfect, it was still nice and atmospheric.

Yosemite.

Let's be real. It's all about the pictures. So let's get started.

When you're driving into Yosemite Valley (if you don't have time to go off the beaten trail before you reach the Valley because you only have one day to soak everything in), it takes about an hour. It would take about half an hour less - if you didn't have to screech to a halt every mile or so and snap, snap, snap away at the beauties of the earth everywhere.





And as you go, eventually Yosemite Falls dominates the scene, and there are so many vistas to choose from; pulling over is encouraged and those of us new to it all certainly did so.







I eventually made it to Curry Village where I was staying the night in a tent cabin; I checked in, packed what I needed for hiking, and headed over to the shuttle stop. I honestly had no idea where I would go first, but fortuitously, the Mirror Lake trailhead was just a couple of miles down the road. So I got off there and got to hoofing it (2.4 miles roundtrip).







Half Dome and El Capitan, respectively, are visible along the trail, and it's very nice that a ten-mile upward climb into bear-infested woods isn't required to get the view. :-)

I took the shuttle to Yosemite Falls next. Because of a particularly precipitant winter and spring, everyone has been buzzing about how the waterfalls would just be gushing forth, and this was the perfect time of year to see them. (Some do eventually dry up later in the year) I was pleasantly surprised by a very short hike to the perfect vista of the falls.







You can walk all the way to the base of the lower falls, which I did; to get a close-up visit to the upper falls requires, of course, a long, more strenuous hike.

I decided that, in order to not get caught out in the middle of nowhere and miss the last shuttle, I would go back to Mirror Lake and capture the warmer light of sunset. It was a cloudless day which was a teensy bit disappointing, but I really couldn't complain.









The photo just above is the result of my first experiment with photomerging. Which is basically the poor man's HDR. More to come on that, later!

The next morning I made a few last photo stops, in the Valley and then closer to the edge of the park, at Cascade Creek.





So, all in all, the chance of a lifetime, and I wish I could share all of the photos that I came away liking but this post would be far, far too long. So, I hope you enjoyed it as is!