Have you ever wondered what Southern California looked like before the freeways, houses, and Starbucks showed up. How about what it looked like before Europeans came on the scene with cattle, plows, and agriculture? One of the best examples of native California landscape can be found at the Santa Rosa Plateau Ecological Reserve. The Reserve…
Author: betsydionne
I am a wildlife ecologist working in Southern California. I'm a science nerd with a love for photography and writing. I wanted to start a blog so I could explore my more artistic side but keep with a theme of the outdoors and wild places.
Super Bloom Fever
Thanks to a particularly wet winter, Southern California is experiencing a super bloom. There are many areas that are covered in wildflowers, and everyone and their aunt Mildred wants in on the action. However the quest to experience this natural phenomenon can bring out the worst in humanity. Many people are respectful, but there are…
Feeling Beautiful During Pregnancy
In case you did not know I am currently 26 weeks pregnant! It is such an exciting time. Its also been challenging in so many ways. My body is changing and I have experienced all the aches and pains that comes along with that. Along with my body, my weekends also look a lot different….
A Weekend on Lake Mead
A few weeks ago Joe and I packed up the truck and drove to Lake Mead to meet up with our friends Kimi and Dave. I had never been to Lake Mead despite it being the perfect distance for a long weekend trip. Lake Mead is the largest reservoir in the United States and was…
Mount Washington
Mount Washington, also known as Agiocochook by some Native American Tribes, is located in the Presidential range of the White Mountains in New Hampshire. Historically the White Mountains were the home of the Abenaki and within the White Mountain National Forest archeologists have found numerous prehistoric Native American sites which indicate that indigenous people had…
Fall in Maine
My recent trip to my home state of Maine was jammed pack with country fairs, apple picking, and sweater weather! The only thing I love more than fall in the Northeast is being a able to to spend it with family.
Paiute Pass
Hunting for fall in the Eastern Sierra is never a hard task. The higher in elevation you travel the cooler the air gets, and you start to feel a bite in the air. It takes a bit of effort but any fatigue will be quickly replaced with awe at the beauty of the mountains. As…
Desolation
Glaciers carve the land, scraping the soil away, exposing stone, and all semblance of life is abolished from the earth. Glaciers recede, depositing boulders, large and small, like frozen trolls on the bleak landscape. The wind blows carrying with it particles of sand, seeds of plants, which snuggle into the crooks and crannies of the…
Stories
We tell ourselves stories; who we are, what we are capable of, and all the reason why we can’t do something. The stories we tell ourselves can keep us from experiencing parts of life, and from personal growth. They create a one-way mindset and hold us hostage in our comfort zone. The stories we tell…
