boxy bear's adventures » outdoors

Summer trip to Washington DC

boxy — Mon, 06 Sep 2010 01:42:31 +0000

I love summer vacations! I recently took a trip to explore Washington, DC and took some time to walk the National Mall. It was very cool seeing all the monuments, although the weather was very very hot and humid!

Virginian Suites Arlington

This is the Virginian Suites Arlington, the hotel where I stayed!

boxy at washington memorial

Here I am looking out at the Washington Memorial with the reflecting pool in front from the Lincoln Memorial

WWII Memorial

The pool at the WWII Memorial…where people aren’t abiding by the rules

More photos to come from my trip!

traveling or planning to travel?

boxy — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 03:29:02 +0000

as a bear who loves adventures, there’s nothing i enjoy more than going to new places! if course, when you travel, you usually need a way to get there, a place to stay, etc….so here are a few of my favorite websites to book travel plans:

winter vacation in utah

boxy — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 02:29:40 +0000

fun in the snow in utah!

snowboarding on fluffy white snow, weeeee!

boxy snow monster

beautiful dusting of snow in zion kolob canyons

snowman friend

hiking the fish canyon narrows trail

boxy — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 01:00:10 +0000

pretty wildflower i found on the trail

Hope everyone had a fabulous and fun halloween!

I went hiking last weekend up near Castaic on the fish canyon narrows trail, whew, what a long hike but it was nice being out in the wilderness. We saw only 2 other people on the trail the entire day, so it was a nice excursion if you like less crowded areas. One thing I didn’t know though is that quail hunters also use the area, so it can be a little worrisome to know that hikers and people with guns are using the same space. Just FYI! The hike is ~ 8 miles roundtrip but can get longer depending on how much you explore. I was expecting a lil more water in the stream but there were still nice clear pools of water, very cold and refreshing on a hot day.

To get to the trail head, exit Templin Hwy off the 5 Fwy just past Castaic, and head east ’til you reach the end of the road (blocked by a gate) and park your car. Hike on in past the gate and follow the paved road, which turns into dirt. Take the left fork and continue down the path, eventually passing through an old campground. This is the part that gets a bit tricky…the directions I had told me to follow a dirt trail heading north, but it was just climbing in elevation so i eventually turned around and backtracked to the campground. A hiker we passed earlier on in the day mentioned he had followed a dry streambed, so we tried that option and eventually came upon an area that seemed to be the narrows. Nice shady trees, boulders and rocks to hop around, and some water to play in.

taking a break

throwing rocks and making the water splash!

hiking the paseo miramar trail

boxy — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 03:23:38 +0000

me at parker mesa overlook, the end point of my tough uphill hike!

isn’t the view gorgeous? this is the parker mesa overlook, reached by hiking the tough, mostly uphill (on the way to the overlook) paseo miramar trail in pacific palisades. the steady incline got me huffing and puffing, but the overlook was worth it. there are a couple of benches at the overlook where you can sit, catch your breath, and take in the panoramic view of the coastline and ocean.

to get to the trail, follow paseo miramar (located just off sunset blvd. and PCH) ’til you reach the dead end. find street parking and hit the trail, which is technically part of the east topanga fire road. keep in mind that most of the way up is uphill with sporadic shade, so don’t forget to bring a hat/sunglasses if it’s a warm day, and water to keep you hydrated. during a lot of the hike, you’ll also be able to see the coast and ocean. enjoy the views!

taking in the views at parker mesa overlook

a visit to lake shrine in pacific palisades

boxy — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 04:03:16 +0000

enjoying the serenity of the gardens and lake!

The Lake Shrine Temple off PCH and Sunset Blvd in Pacific Palisades is my newest discovery…it’s a beautiful 10 acre garden complete with a lake, swans, ducks, turtles, and koi fish. Many people come here to meditate, so you gotta remember to keep your voice low. There are plenty of benches to sit and enjoy the quietness and serenity of the gardens, and they even provide pellets you can use to feed the animals!

one of two pretty swans in the lake. if you look closer, you can see turtles and koi fish

cute lil turtle

so after feeding the duckies and fishies, i strolled through the rest of the gardens. here is a bench tiled with a swan design…soo purty!

relaxing on a bench with a tiled swan design

i even came across a nice black kitty who i played with and agreed to take a picture with me

me and cute black kitty

and there are lots and lots of flowers and shady trees! if you’re ever in the area, you should stop by…great place to enjoy some alone time, read, or just take a walk.

camping on the kern river!

boxy — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 01:16:32 +0000

finally, here are my photos from my camping trip over the weekend at the lower kern river. i had so much fun relaxing and am so excited to share my photos! i took sooo many pictures and i hope you guys will go through them all to see my adventures and yummy eats

we stayed at hobo campground on the lower kern river, and pretty much all the campsites have river access…how cool is that? our particular site had giant boulders submerged in the river which turned out to be awesome places to sit and dangle your feet in the river. the weather was hot but the river had cool breezes and was perfect for lounging around and reading. i didn’t bring my fishing pole, but our neighbors seemed to have good luck. i saw lots of fishies jumping in the river, and duckies cruising by.

on the road! ...are we there yet?

driving through Bakersfield, we're getting closer!

i got to take a picture w/ smokey the bear! he's so much bigger than i am...can you see me?

grilled chicken kabobs with pineapple, bell pepper, and onion for dinner the first night

there was chicken leftover from the kabobs, so i made a salad with tomatoes and a balsamic vinaigrette dressing

yum! a breakfast scramble of eggs, jalapeno sausage, onion, and bell pepper

time for a hike!

taking a break to relax by the river. it's so peaceful here!

spaghetti by the campfire. nom nom nom

...along with some wine! i am a content bear =)

doing some rock climbing while enjoying the kern river

nice peaceful spot along the kern river...i'm not ready to go home!

the weekend passed much too quickly…i definitely wanna go back to camp again. i heard there are some natural hot springs in the area so exploring those are on my to-do list when i return. who wants to come with me?

summer’s almost over

boxy — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 02:20:11 +0000

relaxing at the beach at sunset...isn't it beautiful?

now that labor day has passed, summer really is almost over. one thing i’ve noticed is that it’s slowly getting darker earlier…which means less hours of natural sunlight. hope everyone enjoyed their long weekend! i spent good quality time with friends and got to go to the fair! i posted a picture of me with the piggies via twitter today, and will post the rest of my photos soon!

afternoon at the pool

boxy — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 22:07:38 +0000

it’s scorching hot here in southern california, even at the coast. this is perfect weather for a lazy sunday at the pool!

it's soooo hot! i'm roasting in the sun (& working on my tan)

tanning by the pool gets pretty hot! i'm trying to get some shade under my umbrella

the sun got to be a lil too scorching for me. here i am relaxing in the shade

how you do like to spend a scorching summer day?

Blue sky, fluffy clouds

boxy — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 06:03:24 +0000

pretty day to go for a drive!