Coastal Range

[moribundman]

I drove to Stinson Beach in Marin yesterday, but it was very foggy. I saw this VW Type 181 with a homemade roof and a sleeping dog. That's HWY 101 at Stinson Beach's main intersection.

While I was walking on the foggy beach, I noticed a helicopter circling once and coming down behind the dunes and trees. I saw the copter touch down gently in a corner of the beach parking lot. Once I got there I heard a park ranger say on his radio that the helicopter had to make an emergency landing.

I then drove up into the coastal range around the area of the Bolinas Ridge Road and Mount Tam. Under all those clouds is the Pacific.

The clouds can rise up the slopes of the mountains rapidly. If you stand near a steep drop, the effect can be dizzying.

A cloud is advancing fast. Looks like fog, but I am really walking into a cloud.

On Mount Tam are various communication facilities. This is the largest dome up there. You can also see the morimobile.

Descending the coastal on the east side towards the town of Fairfax, you cross a reservoir via a dam.

Near the bottom of the dam is for some inexplicable reason Captain Piccard's Trieste with a tree growing out of her stern.

 

[addyguy]

Those cloud pics are AMAZING, Mori! You can clearly see the cloudes 'rolling in' right around you!

Awesome show - thanks!

 

[flanso]

All are great photos, but the one above the caption, "A cloud is advancing fast. Looks like fog, but I am really walking into a cloud," is ready for a frame and price tag in a gallery.

 

[JHZR2]

what lens did you use

Nice pics, neat to see the cloud like that.

 

[ChiTDI]

"Golden State" for a reason.
Nice pix.

The "Trieste" - priceless.

 

[moribundman]

Originally Posted By: JHZR2
what lens did you use

I used the inbuilt lens.

By the way, in the sunlight, the ambient temperature was about 75°F. Standing inside the cloud, the temperature dropped instantly at least 25°F. Elevation was around 1,900 feet above sea level.

 

[Sayjac]

Very nice pics mori. Haven't seen a VDub Thing-y in quite some time. There is some beautiful scenery out there.

 

[moribundman]

Originally Posted By: sayjac
Haven't seen a VDub Thing-y in quite some time.
There are plenty of them here, but that's the only one I've seen with a roof that looks like it came off Fred Flintstone's car. Once the floorboards are all rusted through, I suppose the driver will walk his car to work, or more likely to the beach, just like Fred.

Originally Posted By: sayjac
There is some beautiful scenery out there.

The scenery never really goes away, which can become annoying.

 

[Sayjac]

Originally Posted By: moribundman
There are plenty of them here, but that's the only one I've seen with a roof that looks like it came off Fred Flintstone's car. Once the floorboards are all rusted through, I suppose the driver will walk his car to work, or more likely to the beach, just like Fred.

Good analogy. Now that you mention it, it does look like something you could see in Bedrock. Yabadabadoo!

 

[tom slick]

I'm headed to stinson beach and bolinas in a couple of weeks, any recommended "gotta see" spots?


BTW don't you mean hwy 1 at stinson beach's main intersection?

 

[moribundman]

Tom, yes, it's HWY 1 of course! Sorry about that.

Well, the Bolinas Ridge Road is a must. You can drive up into the mountains right after exiting Stinson Beach to the south. You can also drive a towards north for a few miles past Stinson Beach and hang a right and go up all the way to the Ridge Road. Best time of day is late afternoon and early evening. From the Ridge Road you can, at the north end, drive down through a dark forest to Alpine Lake (the one with the dam). From the south end of the Ridge Road you can drive up to Mount Tam. The parking lot near the summit is not free. From there you can hike up to the watchtower that tops Mount Tam. From there you have usually an excellent view across the whole Bay Area, with often the Sierra Nevada's peaks showing in the east.

If you have time, and it will take a half a day, you should check out the Point Reyes peninsula. Also worth checking, depending on your interests: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomales_Bay

Tomales Bay is of course famous for oysters, so that may be a good place to find some food.

If you want me to point some spots out on a map, let me know.

 

[asiancivicmaniac]

I've always wondered what it would be like to go through clouds (sans airplane). Those are nice pictures. Thanks for sharing.

 

[oilboy123]

Sweet pics as usual!

You have inspired me.......I might pull the trigger on a Cannon T1i camera.......

I am thinking about getting more serious about photography.

 

[moribundman]

Originally Posted By: oilboy123
You have inspired me.......I might pull the trigger on a Cannon T1i camera.......


Since you often are on or around the ocean, you may want to look into weather resistant bodies and lenses. Also keep in mind most DSLRs are only cold resistant to about 32°F.

 

[Julian]

[censored] awesome, nothing like that here. Very jealous, hope you enjoyed your trip. Thanks for the pictures. Cheers.

 

[moribundman]

I hate it when I fail to disappoint you in one way or another, Julian.

 

[Julian]

And I like watching you twitch in agony as I confound your misconceptions about me. I may be sadistic, but at least I'm not a voyeur! Keep trying!

 

[Pablo]

Nice shots. Could use some of that fog....

I've been to those spots several times. Bought limes in that market in 1977.

 

[ravenchris]

The dam, another example of timeless engineering concepts...