Above the clouds - On the way to California via Houston on Monday 8/24
Looking out over the Gulf of Mexico
August 26 - At Rancho San Antonio for an after-work walk
Here's something you don't see at our Smokies trailheads
Rancho San Antonio - Looking over the open fields from the beginning road walk
Rancho San Antonio - Heading down the road to start the real trail
Rancho San Antonio - A huge Bay tree (see joggers for scale) - this is the tree of Bay leaf fame.
Lower Meadow Trail - Heading 0.8 up to the connection with Wildcat Loop Trail
Lower Meadow Trail - Looking at the hills from the Lower Meadows
Lower Meadow Trail - Crossing right in front of us was this big Western Rattlesnake.
Lower Meadow Trail - This big rattler gets the right-of-way on the trail
Lower Meadow Trail - Black-tailed deer
Wildcat Loop Trail - Brian checks out the sunflowers at the ranch
Wildcat Loop Trail - Big sunflowers
Wildcat Loop Trail - California Quail
Wildcat Loop Trail - Beginning the climb
Wildcat Loop Trail - Looking west from the trail as we climb higher
Wildcat Loop Trail - Looking north towards the Bay
Wildcat Loop Trail - Reaching the summit
Wildcat Loop Trail - Views of a neighborhood just outside the Rancho
Wildcat Loop Trail
Wildcat Loop Trail - Looking towards the Bay
Wildcat Loop Trail - I bet these houses aren't cheap
Wildcat Loop Trail - The south Bay and Moffitt Field in the distance
Wildcat Loop Trail - Fog rolling into the Bay in the distance. In the foreground, a monster house on the hill.
Old Dan at Vista Point on his birthday
Vista Point - Brian and Mike. Brian had to fly all the way to California to meet another Illini grad :o)
Vista Point - Moffitt Field in the distance
Vista Point
Wildcat Loop Trail - Mike and Brian cross a dry stream bed
Wildcat Loop Trail - The only Coastal Redwood we would see on this walk - they were small by redwood standards
Wildcat Loop Trail - More black-tailed deer
Wildcat Loop Trail - Black-tail buck
Wildcat Loop Trail - Huge euchalyptus tree
Return trip - Flying over the Sierras
Exit row seats are great
On the return leg - a blanket of clouds
Heading back east and saying goodnight to August 27
