Western Skies...

I recently had the good fortune to travel out to the Bay Area with my sister, Cynthia.  We stayed mostly with our friend Jess and had all kinds of adventures.  Truthfully, I've been reluctant to put it down on paper, so to speak.  Now that I'm home, there's a finality to it.  I've been holding on to the experience like a worry stone, rolling it around in the palm of my hand, smoothing it like a piece of agate plucked from the sea.  I've been sucking the juices out of the memory, like the last bite of a delicious meal, not wanting it to end.  I know now why there is that saying... "I've left my heart in San Francisco."  It truly is a beautiful place, full of magic and wonder.

My heart is brimming with gratitude to my sister and Jess for making this trip possible, being amazing traveling companions, making me laugh until it hurt, and for kinship and camaraderie; also to William for holding down the fort while I explored and for not being too disgruntled while I described all the awesome things we were getting up to.  Many thanks also go out to Kate Richbourg, who generously opened up her studio, arranged art outings, provided wise counsel, and made arrangements for memories that will last a lifetime.  Much love also goes out to Diane, Emily, and Elsa.  Really there were so many lovely souls that I met during the trip that I will surely miss someone.  I am remiss that I didn't see more of my friends out in the area, but our days were so full, it is hard to imagine filling them any fuller.

I've partially documented my adventures as they were happening over on Facebook and on Instagram, but I felt that I needed to fill in the gaps and capture all the little details before they've faded too much and are too far gone.  If you're interested in more moments from my trip, swing by those various social media outlets and scroll back through, as I've tried to keep things relatively unique to each platform.

Normally, I would try to describe everything, but really there was so much that it's hard to wrangle it all and I know that if I try, I won't do it justice.  So, instead, I'm going to go about this in a photo essay style with captions.

Good morning, San Francisco.

View from Buena Vista Park.

Golden Gate Bridge.

Alameda Point Antiques Faire.

We stayed in a cottage once owned by writer, Kathleen Norris.

Montara sunset.

Pillar Point Marsh Beach near Half Moon Bay.

Tide pools at Pillar Point Harbor Beach.

Montara seascape.

Sea anemone, mussels, and goose barnacles in Montara. 

Vivid green algae flowing down the cliff in Montara.

Sea Star in the tide pool.

Raven posing on a fence post near the entrance of Muir Woods.

Carpet of clover (wood sorrel) in Muir Woods.

Muir Woods Cathedral Grove.

Towering redwoods in Muir Woods.

Mini roses and ferns in Muir Woods.

Wildflower path to Muir Beach.

A feather in the foam at Muir Beach.

Flotsam and jetsam and a crab claw at Muir Beach.

Muir Beach.

20th Century Cafe.

Cynthia admiring our delicious yield at 20th Century Cafe.

Goodbye, San Francisco.