Summer Camping in the Angeles National Forest: Part Two

My bag, tucked close under a tree to help keep it dry during the intermittent rain.

The K-Bar my father gave me a few years back, this time being used as a hanging device.

Late afternoon sun, looking south.

A Stellar's Jay (closely related to the Blue Jay) hung out in and around the campsite for the duration of our stay.

Summer Camping in the Angeles National Forest: Part One

Mount Baden-Powell (9,406ft.)  to the southwest of the campsite. From what I've read, there is an 8 mile hike that climbs 2,800ft up the north face to the summit that is a "must-do" for any serious Southern Californian hiker.

Mid-afternoon sun coming down through the trees, warming the fallen pine needles below.

A surplus of wood, ready for that evening's fire.

Home for the night.

A late-afternoon stormed rolled through, bringing with it rain and lightning. This was the calm before the storm.

Summer Camping at Chatfield Lake, near Littleton, Colorado

GoPro getting up close and personal with the flame.

Home for the night. Chatfield Lake, Colorado.

The Jeep by the fire.

Making dinner. This is the same pot I've been using for my entire life--literally.

Sundown.

Hiding in the hills.

Most of the camping I've ever done has been at least a few hours away from home. I've never aimed my eyes close by when looking for a destination, but when the time came to have a quick, leave after work on friday, one night camp trip, I began searching close by our home in Corona and settled on going to Blue Jay Campground located in the Cleveland National Forest a few miles off of Ortega Highway on the  North Main Divide Road. I had heard of and read about Blue Jay before, but had talked to no one who had actually been there before (my dad took me once when I was 8 or so, but I don't recall the event). Despite the uncertainties going into the trip, Blue Jay ended up being a great choice. We found the quiet and relaxation I love about camping in remote areas close by home, which only makes me want to explore the Ortega Corridor further.

Prepping the camp gear a few hours before leaving Friday afternoon. 

After finding a site and setting up camp, we were treated to an exceptional sunset.

Our home for the previous night shortly after sunrise.

Because of its location on the edge of a valley, our site had a view and no neighbors: exactly what we like.

Somewhere on the San Juan Trail heading south out of the campground on our morning hike.

Trail head for Falcon Trail, which runs north out of the campground.

A view along Falcon Trail of the sprawling valleys and mountainsides.

The morning was ideal for strolling through the surrounding meadows dotted with Oak and Pine trees.

It's the little details that matter.

The three of us, along with a jug of water in hand.

A friendly reminder.

Waking in the desert

Jeep Camping

A friday night trek out to the high desert to camp in the car and watch for shooting stars.

Oops, I disappeared to Joshua Tree

The desert greeting us after arriving not long after dawn. We were running off of four hours of sleep and coffee at this point, but seeing this added a huge boost to our energy levels.

Yucca plants in full bloom near Desert Queen Mine. It is hard to describe the large scale of the blossoms on these plants.

Bigfoot's face happend to adorn this late 1800's water tower we happened upon while hiking in an area of the park that was once a ranch to the Ryan family. Truth be told, we were looking for rumored multiple graves in the area we when came across this.

A peace sign on the opposing side of the same water tower, along with a better look at said Bigfoot. What I'm bummed I didn't shoot was graffiti scratched into the metal itself that read "Respect the Earth our mother."

Essentials

There are some of my possessions that have proved their value time and time again on the road. My tent, suitcase, and Little Martin guitar are some of those items.

Desert Exposure

Stretch.

Early morning in the Anza Borrego.

The nearest store to the campground, which was the nearest store for untold miles.

Decent into Moonlight Canyon.

The road calls

Well packing is about done. Only a few minor items left to throw in the car, then I will be ready to get out of here for the next few days. I've never camped in the Anza Borrego desert, so I'm pretty excited to be somewhere new. The weather is lining up to be perfect, and this is the time of year when the desert is in full bloom, so as of now things are looking to go well. The almost three hours it will take to get there will be just enough time to settle into the car and enjoy some good music and the desert scenery passing by. Tonight I'll be staring at stars.

Weekend camp trip on the horizon

Super stoked for tomorrow to hit. I'll be out in the desert from Friday through Sunday. Looking forward to the good times that shall ensue. If you want to find me...

Behind the curve

I’m a little behind on developing film. Actually, scratch that, I’m a lot behind on developing film. I’ve got 12 rolls last time I counted. Some 35mm, some 120mm, some slide, two rolls shot out in the water. Tons of stuff. I’ve been itching to develop them. Hopefully can get a few done this week. Until then I’ll have to make due with some digital snapshots from my trek to the north. Here’s my Jeep, leaving Refugio at sunset after a solo surf.

Home from the road

To say the least, I think I've had a life changing trip. I just got home from spending all of the last 4 days camping alone and surfing in Santa Barbara. I scored all day glass-offs (alone for the most part until three guys showed up and crowded up the place), some of the clearest water I've seen in my life, shot 7 rolls of film, and was able to really unwind and relax. Seeing some close friends and spending some time wandering around the city shooting some photos at night capped it off.

I’ve got to say thanks to Surfline for calling for it to be flat in Santa Barbara all weekend. It wasn’t. And no one bothered to check but me.

Heading north

I'm really looking forward to this upcoming weekend. On a whim I've decided to take a 4 day surf/camp/explore/soul search trip to Santa Barbara. I've got the Jeep loaded down with surfboards, cameras, wetsuits (I'll need them), and is fueled up and ready to go. Hoping for some swell (i.e absolutely any waves), and good conditions. Stars should be epic.

This is Brian

Camping at trails.

Land surfing

This last camping trip saw many afternoons killed by skating. The onshores would blow out the surf, so as soon as midday rolled around we would spend a lot of time cruising and carving what we could. We came back with a few wounds that'll for sure leave scars, but that's what it's all about, right?

Update on life

So I’ve been MIA lately. Here’s the latest scoop:

This past week I spent camping and surfing my brains out with two of my best friends down at Trails. Photos coming soon from that. I need to develop the film and scan it first. The trip was epic. We video taped damn near everything. I’ve got nearly 4 hours of video from the trip. Everything from the random BS in the campsite, hiking into canyons, cruising around on skateboards, even shower time was caught on tape (no homo). I’m going to get to editing that all this week (for real this time guys haha). Hopefully have some short little clips soon from that. But now it’s back to my regular work week schedule. On the plus side I’ve been playing a grip of shows lately, and it’s looking like I’ve got a drummer lined up for a show saturday night. It’ll be cool to play with a drummer for once. So for now it’s back to the grind for me. But there should be some good photos on the way. Until then, here’s a shot of my Almond Lumberjack in action.