I just returned from an exotic adventure with tropical beaches off the coast of.....Ventura!
The Channel Islands National Park is one of California's best kept secrets. I made my second visit to the series of Islands - this time to beautiful Santa Rosa. There were only 5 of us on the Island Packers catamaran visiting for a day trip. The ride started off bumpy but after about 30 minutes, I spotted a glimpse of keyhole rock on the Anacapa Island, and our boat slowed down to enjoy the view. A few minutes later, we coasted along Santa Cruz Island, which is 28 miles long with beautiful soaring cliffs. A school of dolphins came out to join us.
We quickly approached a windswept island with translucent turquoise waters, which were filled with kelp. We had arrived!
Once we got on land, we had a briefing with the Park Ranger who encouraged us to take shorter hikes to ensure we would be back for the 3pm departure (otherwise we would have to camp out on the island). We chose the Torrey Pines Trail which is about 6 miles round trip, and meant we had to hustle to get there. Along the way, the entire (I mean entire) island was covered withpurple wildflowers. I have never seen so many wildflowers in my life.
We hiked up a hill covered in Torrey Pines, which are a rare species of pine tree that only grow on Santa Rosa Island and La Jolla in San Diego. Their pine cones are shaped like round bowling balls. Hiking through the pines was refreshing and we could see the entire coast from the top.
Like most travelers, I have driven past Barstow many times on the way to Vegas, only to stop briefly for a stretch break without giving much thought into exploring the town. The town is situated in the middle of the desert and I never thought it had much to offer outside of the outlet mall and fast food arena.
This time, I decided to do something different. I decided to stay there overnight and found out that there are many scenic detours within Barstow that are well worth a visit. To purchase the limited edition prints from this photo trip, click here. View the behind the scenes video:
Barstow Amtrak Station
The Barstow Amtrak Station, aka the Harvey House, aka "Casa Del Desierto" is a National Historic Landmark built in 1911. Before there were outlet malls, Barstow was mostly known for being a major train junction due to its central location. This structure has an elegant presence in the middle of the desert. The architecture is done with arches, domes, and brick. This station is mostly deserted except for a Train Museum and Route 66 Museum. There are plenty of colorful vintage train engines to visit too.
Calico Ghost Town
This Ghost Town is about 20 minutes from Barstow and was definitely worth a trip. We originally reserved one hour to tour this ghost town, but it quickly turned into two hours and we begrudgingly had to leave even though there was plenty more to see. I expected the ghost town to be a barren wasteland of old abandoned buildings, but instead it was more like the Knott's Berry Farm Ghost Town. The town is a registered historic landmark and was once settled in 1881 as a silver mining town which has been completely recreated with a blacksmith house, schoolhouse, hotel, and saloon. It even featured an impromptu gun show with actors recreating the lifestyle of the 1800's silver boom. Visitors can go inside the actual silver mine (hardhats provided) and ride a train around the miner's village.
Next time you pass through Barstow, stay a while and check out these detours.
This pink and grey bridge features a pedestrian friendly path that links to Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The path is split between bikers on one end, subway down the middle, and pedestrians on the other end so you don't feel like you're going to get run over like on the other bridges. Unlike the Brooklyn bridge, which was under construction during my visit, the Williamsburg Bridge is much less touristy and crowded with equally cool views. The path is also filled with interesting sidewalk art, including rainbows, and Paul Richard drip art.
-Manhattan Bridge-
New York City is filled with endless photo opportunities. During this visit to New York, I visited some of the bridges and off-the-beaten path museums to get a unique view of the city.
To purchase the NYC prints, visit our Architecture Gallery. Here are some of the points of interest: -Williamsburg Bridge: |
Published Travel ArticlesWelcome to Run The Atlas!
We are two adventurous young professionals who turned our passion for travel into a blog to help others travel more.
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