Socal Quick Trips
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Venice Beach: A Must-See Slice of Los Angeles
If you talk to locals about Venice Beach, you’ll get mixed reviews. Some people enjoy it; some people hate it. Of course, many people will tell you, “It used to be great, but now it’s horrible.” I’ve been enjoying Venice for over 30 years and I can tell you that Venice Beach is one of…
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Descanso Gardens: Ninety Minutes of Tranquility at the Edge of Los Angeles
Los Angeles is not a city known for its gardens. We live in a desert and Palm trees constitute our iconic greenery. But, if you dig deep, we have some really lovely gardens here! To start: The Huntington Library in San Marino has amazing gardens. South Coast Botanic Garden in the South Bay draws rave…
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Watts Towers: An Inspiring Los Angeles Icon
Although unique to Los Angeles, Watts Towers are not on every tourist’s must-see list. If fact, though most Angelenos have heard of them, most have not visited. They are out of the way, in Watts, a small community in South Los Angeles. Though Watts has produced a wide variety of artists, musicians, and community leaders,…
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Cabot’s Pueblo Museum: Exploring the Home of one of California Desert Pioneer
After a night of glamping on a date farm in Desert Hot Springs (with two mineral pools just to myself!), I had planned to hike at the Whitewater Preserve before heading home. Alas, high winds gave me pause and then a quick check on the Internet showed that they had actually closed the preserve due…
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Ladder Canyon and Painted Canyon Hike: Slot Canyons in the California Desert
I don’t know how long Ladder Canyon has been an established hike, but I feel like I’ve been wanting to try it for decades. Every time I’m out in the Palm Springs/Palm Desert area, it calls to me. But it never seems to be the right time. This week was finally the right time. I…
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Art Off the Grid: Exploring East Jesus and Salvation Mountain (More adventures around the Salton Sea including Slab City)
East of the Salton Sea, past the small town of Niland, exists an outpost called Slab City. Some call Slab City an off-the-grid haven for artists, snowbirds, and modern nomads. Others see it as a den of homelessness and drug use. I felt deeply ambivalent about visiting: I wanted to see the no-boundaries art created…
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Art Rising from Ruin: A Day Exploring the Salton Sea
If you live in Southern California, you’ve heard of the Salton Sea, that way below sea level, once-glamorous resort turned dead-fish landscape, out in the middle of the desert. But if you did a little deeper, it seems like there might be something to see: a free-wheeling artist community that has sprung up in the…