Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[JCZ]

By the tree and the telephone pole on the left are several deer....





We stopped by and visited Andy and Sherry.  Sherry has missed her calling (interior decorator).....their home is decorated very nice.  And a decorated tree in every room......



view from their dining room...



etched glass door between the kitchen and dining room....



and a view of the pool from the dining room...



the living room...



and the view from the living room....



the breakfast area....



Andy working on his photography skills....while I'm workin on my modeling skills

a view of the pool from the family room...



the tree in the family room....





photographer extordinaire....



We're off.  The sun is going down and we have to get back over the mountain on Hwy. 17 (aka blood alley)....



a little more relaxed, but we had a great day today, as well. 

[1sharprdkg]

JC the Christmas trip pics were great and really helped cheer me up. I saw Terrie was sporting a shirt from my local HD (Thunder Creek), small world huh. I think you are 100% correct about getting a little bored and taking for granted our riding area. I know I am guilty of that. I hope to start doing better and taking more and better pics, maybe even try the ride report thing. No matter how easy you make it look it still takes some talent and you my friend have a good eye for the view finder in your camera. Thanks and great job!

[JCZ]

JC the Christmas trip pics were great and really helped cheer me up. I saw Terrie was sporting a shirt from my local HD (Thunder Creek), small world huh. I think you are 100% correct about getting a little bored and taking for granted our riding area. I know I am guilty of that. I hope to start doing better and taking more and better pics, maybe even try the ride report thing. No matter how easy you make it look it still takes some talent and you my friend have a good eye for the view finder in your camera. Thanks and great job!

Yep, we were through there a few years ago.  Ruby Falls, Lookout Moutain, Rock City, some of the battlefields, etc.  A year before that, Andy, Jon and I rode through there....spent a couple days in Chatanooga.  You've got some nice riding area back there, too.  Lookin forward to your ride reports. 

[JCZ]

Christmas was a pretty lazy day for us.  We didn't even get out of be until 10:30 a.m.

Headed out to breakfast in Aptos, Calif. at the historical Bayview Hotel and Ristorante Barolo.....a French Basque restaurant.













They had an interesting sword and other weaponry collection on the walls....

[Robmay]

Not really all that different from some of the others on this forum.  A blue collar hourly employee just bumpin along in life.  Just happen to really enjoy photograpy as a hobby and I do ride reports of simple day rides, and other places that all of the Nor Cal have been a million times.

The difference being.....that I'm constantly thinking of those from other places around the country and around the globe that have never been or only been once or twice and the ride reports will help them to reminice their visits.  Everybody on this forum could do the same thing with their rides, wether they're day rides, over night rides or touring.  It would all be places that I and many others have never seen.  Come on now everybody.....get those cameras out and start working on "your ride report"!  Let's see em!

People think thoughts like "well, it's just flat farmland"......or "there's just not much here to see", etc. etc. and that's because they've grown complacent with their area and take it for granted.  But it's places the rest of us have never seen.....take the picture and post it.....we really do want to see your area.

I for one have never been to California and really appreciate all of the reports and photos even though I rarely comment. Thank you!

I agree that no matter where you live and/or ride, there are lots of folks that have never been there. I'll try to take more pics! 

[JCZ]

We spent the afternoon out on the Santa Cruz pier.  I've been on a lot of piers up and down the west coast and a few on the east coast however, I believe this is the longest pier I've ever been on.  It just keeps on going out into the ocean.  Those of us from Nor Cal know how hard it is to find parking out on the pier but not the case for Christmas day.  Although it was pretty busy, there was plenty of parking still.

A view of the Santa Cruz Beach & Boardwalk amusment park....where one of the few remaining wooden roller coasters still operates.  Childhood memories.....







They have large openings cut into the deck of the pier so that you can view the sea lions laying on the pier pillings below....



The blocking is 8-10 feet above the water.  These warm blooded mammals weighing from an infant of a couple hundred pounds to a full grown sea lion in the 800-1,000 lb. range are graceful enough to pop up out of the water and get up on the blocking.  Being warm blooded mammals, they loose their body heat while in the water through their fins.  They lay there for hours, to get warm.

What everybody was assuming was a mother and her calf....



When is the last time you were on a wooden roller coaster?





Make some room......here we come....













Can't imagine what this home might look like at night......




even out into the street.....don't park your car there to long........

[JCZ]

We decided to walk out to the lighthouse, so we're on the opposite side of the harbor from the condo....





a look back at Crow's Nest where we ate Friday afternoon with Andy....



We accidentally stumbled upon this guy practicing his rock hopping.  Not sure what they call it with bicycles but when they do this with motorcycles it's called "Trials".....I assume it's the same for bikes.  They do not have a seat...it's all done standing on the pedals.  Very soft rubbered tires with low air pressure for grip and traction.  This guy was incredable and I consider it one of the highlights of our trip.  It didn't escape me that he was wearing a windbreaker that has USA on it.......he's definately world class!

I kept the shutter button pressed on my camera for the two or three minutes it took him to do this loop and if I play them back real fast it looks like an old time movie.  I'll post a few here just so you can get the idea....













He stayed balanced in this position, with his wheel turned for at least a couple of minutes.....and surprisngly, very still.  Incredable balance and he was the master.  You'll notice the seagulls in the pics......they seemed to not be bothered by him at all.  I can only assume he practices there quite often.  He was definately drenched in sweat.

























From the top, down to water level and back up without once putting his feet down!



as we left to walk on over to the lighthouse Terrie told me "that guys legs and butt were as hard as those rocks!".  I told her "I never noticed.....I'll have to take your word for it".......now where's that hot babe in that skimmpy bikini?

[Mrs Rooster]

 Thanks for all of the pictures JC. Merry Christmas to you and Terrie!!!
Ahhhh, all of the memories of Santa Cruz and growing up   My Grandfather taught me to rollerskate there. My first time on a surfboard (I was 2) was there with my father. Lots and lots of family memories, then Terry came along and we created our own there.  
Surfing at Lighthouse Point...lots of memories....Uncles, cousins, and lots of friends.   The picture you posted of the surfer waiting looks like it could be my girlfriend's husband...sure looked like him.
Santa Cruz is always one of my favorite places to go visit...minus all of the traffic now a days.
Pacific Garden Mall, sitting at an outside cafe and people watching. It's one of those things if you have to explain you wouldn't understand. We took some of our friends from Washington there and they get it now.
Cafe Verve...my cousin about lives there. It's her favorite coffee spot...then comes Gail's in Capitola  
It looks like we need to plan another trip down that way again. 

Thanks again JC...great job on the pictures.

[JCZ]

There's a large pod of dolphins....or is it porposes.....maybe 12-15 of them swimming off shore about 50 yds.  That was interesting to watch.  Of course being a land lubber, I tell Terrie "look sharks" as I just saw a bunch of fins sticking out of the water.  No....they burst my bubble and told me it was dolphins.  They sure do move fast.





Terrie, looking down in there at the sea life in the tidepools....



Clams, barnicles and star fish every where.....

















This dog was hilarious.  The lady would throw the ball and the dog would chase it....along the beach....out in the ocean, etc.  But every once in awhile the dog would take the ball and go dig a hole in the sand, very quickly, put the ball in it, cover it up.  Then dig it back out and bring it back to her....

[cvobiker]

JC - Those are some great photo shots and many thanks for sharing.  I've been following your photo post's here and on Pashnit and gotta hand it to ya,, your photo skills are getting pretty darn good    If i remember correctly you shoot with a Nikon P-90 (or was it a P-60  ). Are you still using this camera, or did Santa bring you a new surprise.  I wrote a letter to Santa earlier this year and asked for a Nikon 5100, I guess i was a 'bad boy' this year cause Santa didn't deliver my wish. But i cant complain Santa did bring me Adobe Lightroom and Adobe Creative Suites which includes Photoshop CS5 Extended..  After messing with these for the last day, my brain is fried    defiantly a huge learining curve here, think i'll stick with Lightroom for awhile and curious which one you are using  
Keep up with the good photo shots and look forward to seeing more.  

[kb]

JC  Thanks for taking the time and effort to post all of this. Looking at all of you're pictures was like having a mini vacation to the west coast. My "bucket list" just gained another location. Thanks I enjoyed the trip.  Kevin

[JCZ]

JC - Those are some great photo shots and many thanks for sharing.  I've been following your photo post's here and on Pashnit and gotta hand it to ya,, your photo skills are getting pretty darn good    If i remember correctly you shoot with a Nikon P-90 (or was it a P-60  ). Are you still using this camera, or did Santa bring you a new surprise.  I wrote a letter to Santa earlier this year and asked for a Nikon 5100, I guess i was a 'bad boy' this year cause Santa didn't deliver my wish. But i cant complain Santa did bring me Adobe Lightroom and Adobe Creative Suites which includes Photoshop CS5 Extended..  After messing with these for the last day, my brain is fried    defiantly a huge learining curve here, think i'll stick with Lightroom for awhile and curious which one you are using  
Keep up with the good photo shots and look forward to seeing more.  

I've received a couple of PMs asking me the same thing.  I use a Nikon D-60.  I have a natural interest in photography but I'm really technology challenged.  I mean I probably don't use half the features that my camera has.  I think I do have a pretty good eye for framing pictures of setting it up, if you will.  I just kind of seem to know or suspect what might make a good picture as far as scenery or background goes.  But as far as the equipment goes.....I don't really know what I'm doing.

Thanks to Jock and Terry (TCinBham), I've learned two or three settings.  The setting that has the little picture of mountains enhances the color and I use that one often.  I also know that if I'm taking a photo of a subject that has a lot of light behind it, that there's a setting that will provide fill flash up front (thanks a bunch Terry!).......and another setting for super close ups, with yet another for anything that's in movement (races, etc.) and a setting for no flash.  That's pretty much it as far as my technical knowledge goes.  I rarely use a flash indoors, if at all and then it's usually just a fill flash.  Beyond that, I don't have a clue.

I don't know anything about Lightroom, Creative Suites or Photoshop.  I've only had this camera a couple of years.....may never know all the features and functions it has but I do OK with it considering it's all just hobby at 80 mph.

[JCZ]

We returned from the lighthouse at about 3:00 p.m. yesterday and dinner reservations weren't until 5:30 p.m. so we went back to the condo and kicked back for a couple of hours (I posted pics here).  When we stepped outside to go to dinner, this was a pleasant surprise.....look at this incredable sunset.







We had Christmas dinner with this guy, last night.  Andy, he said you just need a little stache wax! 



By the way......Terrie had steak and I had baby back ribs....two of the best dinners we've had in a long, long time.  We'll definately be going back o Hindquarter in Santa Cruz.    http://www.thehindquarter.com/ 





It was a great Christmas 2011! 

[JCZ]

The ride home today was equally nice.  We left Santa Cruz and stopped in Los Gatos for breakfast.  We decided to take Hwy. 9 (Skyline Blvd.) up past Alice's Restaurant and then down across the bay, to escape the bay area traffic.  Took a little longer to get home but well worth it.  For those that don't know Skyline.....it runs the length, at the top of the coastal range on the San Francisco penninusla.  There is one area (between Half Moon Bay and San Mateo that you can turn your head and look to one side and look out across the Pacific ocean.....turn your head and look the other direction and look out across the southern end of San Francisco bay. 

A beautiful ride and beautiful scenery down the slopes on either side!

In this first pic.....if there weren't fog down there, you'd be able to see San Francisco bay and the east bay (San Leandro) side.

 

This pic also lookin east....if you'll look dead center (L to R) and just above the fog line, you'll see the peak of Mt. Hamilton (Lick Observatory) peaking out above the fog.




random shots of Skyline....























Couldn't tell it by the awsome weather but yes.......it was Christmas 2011.   

[johno]

Great shots as always JC!  Hope to see you and Terrie soon.  I too don't post enough and should post more, but don't take as many pics as you and never seem to find the time to get it done, but will try to do better next year as well.  That area is great riding and great views, especially the loop through Big Basin state park too.

Take care enjoy the holidays and thanks for sharing!