September Landscape: Forecast Dry

The region of California that I live in gets very dry and hot in the summer. We rarely have rain between early June and late October...it is our "drought" season. Pretty much by now all the wildflowers and grasses are brown and very dry.

This is a typical landscape along our walking trail.



But with willing eyes, you can find beauty even within this dry landscape.



These are such pretty white dried-up flowers and they are everywhere right now.

Oh, see those clouds in the top photo? Not a drop of rain that day....just lots of ominous looking clouds. I was hoping we would get a shower to water the garden but I had to go out and hand water as usual.

Looking forward to another week that promises to be a little cooler.

Barb-Harmony Art Mom

Redwood Dreams

After we left the Oregon coast and the wonderful tidepools, we headed south back down into California and to the redwood forests. We stayed two days near Redwood National Park and then inland to Humboldt Redwoods. Both places were refreshing and awe inspiring. I know that many of you dream of seeing the big trees and I hope you get to in real life someday. It is worth the effort and the dreaming.

In the meantime, I will give a little glimpse into our few days there this time around.

The majesty of these trees has inspired many before us. I spent some time this trip meditating on the men and women who dedicated parts of their lives to saving these forests and their ancient giants. Many of these trees have been alive since at least the time of Christ....that gives you something to think about as you walk alongside these living things so tall they make your neck hurt to look up at them.


One person that I learned about on this trip was John D. Rockefeller. He played a huge part in saving thousands of acres of these trees at a time that it was crucial. These trees were being cut down for a growing nation's hunger for timber. He was invited to visit these groves of trees early in the 20th century and he immediately jumped in with a million dollars to purchase great forests of the redwood trees. He donated another million later on and saved many more. Today you can walk through the Rockefeller Redwood Forest and see many of these ancient giants up close because of efforts of the Save the Redwoods League and others.


I prayed a silent prayer first to our Grand Creator thanking him for these unique and special trees. Noting their qualities and their beauty and how they so wonderfully tell us of God's qualities and beauty. Then a prayer of thanks to having created us with the ability to appreciate these trees and forests. Lastly for those that have appreciated and loved the forests before us, keeping them safe for our families to enjoy.



These forests just seem to make you want to seek a little solitude as you hike, even my energetic teens are struck with their awesomeness.


But boys will be boys and they tend to want to climb up on the fallen trees to get a new perspective on the scene.


Hiking in the redwoods is quiet because the trails are softened with "duff" which makes a matted forest floor. It is spongy and easy to walk on with little dust. I find it very enjoyable and your eyes are free to take in the contrasts of light and dark of the forest. The sky is bright above but under the canopy of the trees it is sometimes quite dark. This is the stuff that storybooks are filled with...lots of interesting sounds, smells, and curious sights.

We took a drive one of our days to a place that we had never ventured to before...the Lost Coast of California. What a day!


Leaving the dense forest and heading down into the coastal valleys was an awesome experience. The road was crazy with potholes, narrow sections, crazy curves, steep ups and downs, and wild drivers.


We stopped at several spots along the way to take in the view and snap a few photos. Here is my oldest son setting up his photo with the redwoods, the rolling hills, and the ocean in the distance.


Here is one of his photos from the day's trip along the Lost Coast. Amazing color in the water. We spent the whole day exploring and taking in this unique place in California.....a little off the beaten path. We had a picnic lunch along and stopped in a little town called Petrolia to sit at a picnic table and enjoy our afternoon.

There is so much to write about but at the sake of turning this into a travel journal, I will finish here. If you have any questions about anything I have shared in this post, please feel free to email me for more details.

I hope this gives you a glimpse into our time in the redwoods and along the redwood coast. Keep dreaming your redwood dreams.

Barb-Harmony Art Mom

More info on the Lost Coast Drive
More about the Save the Redwoods League and Rockefeller


My favorite hiking guide book to the redwoods.


My favorite picture book for the redwoods.

California Buckeye: Outdoor Hour Challenge #38

This week our challenge was to find an elm, hickory, or chestnut tree. In doing research, both in the Handbook of Nature Study and in our field guide, we discovered that a tree that we have an abundance of in our area is actually know as the California buckeye or the California horse chestnut. (Aesculus californica) This tree is more like a tall shrub that grows to between 4 and 12 feet tall.

"The Ohio buckeye is our most common native relative of the horse chestnut. Its leaves have five leaflets instead of seven. The sweet buckeye is also an American species and grows in the Allegheny Mountains."
Handbook of Nature Study, page 649

So we were off to find a buckeye tree to observe this week for our nature study.

My trusty assistant helps gather a fruit to observe and then leave on the ground.

This time of year the buckeye has no leaves so we had to look for the trunk and the fruit of the tree to identify it. In the spring this tree is covered in blossoms and fill the woods with clouds of whiteness. In the summer the trees turn brown and are not quite as lovely.

There is one big difference between a buckeye and a horse chestnut, the seed is highly poisonous so don't eat it!

Here's what it says on eNature.com:
"California Indians made flour from the poisonous seeds after leaching out the toxic element with boiling water. The ground, untreated seeds were thrown into pools of water to stupefy fish, which then rose to the surface and were easily caught. Chipmunks and squirrels consume the seeds, but bees are poisoned by the nectar and pollen."

I really enjoyed this challenge because our whole family learned something about a tree we see in our own neighborhood but we didn't know much about before this study. I am going to sure to read up on the elm and the hickory to see if I can find some local connections as well.

Barb-Harmony Art Mom

Family Outdoor Hour: California and Oregon Coast

All photos from Patrick's Point State Park, California

Some of our Outdoor time this week was spent at the ocean. We took a few days and drove along the California and Oregon coast enjoying the views and the outdoor life that early October allows. We were sprinkled on a few times but nothing that really dampened our spirits too much. We had anticipated the weather and came equipped.

Our first beachcombing adventure gave us some things to be excited about. We saw three sea otters in the surf playing and diving as we watched. Then out past the waves, we saw another creature pop up….a sea lion. He didn’t come too close but we had a clear view of him from the shore.

We hiked around the cove a bit from where we were camping and found lots of interesting items. We saw several colors of sea stars, some brightly colored crabs,

some bones, and lots of sea kelp.

The beach was covered in an area of rocks and this area is known for its agates. We joined in the hunt for our favorites and soon had a whole collection in dad’s sweatshirt pocket.

We also found this driftwood with barnacles on it which was interesting to me at the time but now that I zoom in on the photo, I realize there was a creature on the driftwood too….don’t know what it is.

On the hike back up the trail from the beach, I was able to spot two new plants to identify. One is twinberry

and the other is pearly everlasting.

We had a fantastic time on the beach and there were so many things to explore.

Barb-Harmony Art Mom

Squeezing Some More Fun Into the Last Days of Summer

There is nothing more refreshing than soaking your toes in the crystal clear water of mountain lake. It is one of my favorite things to do on a hot summer day. We started out at our house with the temperatures at around 97 degrees and by the time we drove the one hour trek up and over the mountain it was around 82 degrees and breezy at the lake. As the afternoon wore on, it cooled to a perfect 78 degrees.

We had some beach time, a long walk, and then we grilled up some dinner.


Someone had piled the rocks up at the lake's edge and it captured my attention as I waded along the edge. A lone duck swam by and decided to get in the photo for all of us to enjoy.


The pinecones are littering the forest floor and you can see how dry this area is in the summer. Not much rain falls here in this season except for the occasional late afternoon thundershower. Many of the forest animals use the pinecones for food. This forest is mostly Jeffrey Pines and Lodge Pole pines.


We had a late afternoon bbq/picnic that was yummy. The best part of our bbq according to the boys was the marshmallow roast. Afterwards, the skewers were used for a little sword fighting...of course.


I am still working on drawing trees in my nature journal. Each time they look a little different but not quite right yet. :) I will not let it stop me from trying though since I still love the memory attached to each imperfect tree I draw.

We saw many Brewer's blackbirds with their "distinctive yellow eye". The other bird that we observed in an unusually large number was the American robin. The robins were actually being chased by the Golden mantled ground squirrels that were running around gathering seeds. As we were eating our dinner, three white headed woodpeckers were climbing up and around a tree just across the path.


The leaves on this aspen looking like jewels fluttering in the breeze. The leaves have the slightest hint of yellow, letting us know that fall is coming quickly.

I am really surprised to see that the aspen tree is not included in the Handbook of Nature Study. I found a great additional resource for California residents to use as a supplement to the Handbook. It is called, California Forests and Woolands: A Natural History by Verna R. Johnston. I love to read the narrative style of this author and the sections are the perfect length to read out loud to the family after a nature walk. I highly recommend it to California residents.

In this additional resource, it has a wonderful description of the aspen tree starting on page 140.

"The most widespread tree in North America, Quaking Aspen in California occupies a narrow zone through the high elevations at 6,000 to 9,000 feet, from San Bernardino Mountains of southern California to the Oregon border. It's airy, sun-dappled groves enfold white trunks supporting leaves that shimmer in the slightest wind on their slender, flattened leaf stalks."

The end of another great afternoon was spent watching the creek from the bridge. We were observing the crayfish (crawdads) in the creek and some small little fish. In a few weeks, this creek will be filled with spawning Kokanee salmon that swim upstream. Can you see our reflection in the water in the photo above?


Here is a scene from the hike back to the car...really dry right now.

I just hate to see the days getting shorter and shorter. We spent some time outside last evening on our back deck just taking in the sounds and sights of the darkness of the late summer twilight. We heard an owl screeching in a tree in our yard and we saw two shooting stars. The air was warm and we were feeling a little melancholy about the changing of the seasons. My husband and I are both very much summer people so when the change to fall hits we feel it acutely.

We are busy squeezing as much summer into our days as possible.

Barb-Harmony Art Mom