The horrific fire that swept through the Botanic Gardens area left some homes untouched, and in the months since some have been or are being rebuilt. Some like this have been removed with only traces remaining.
6758 Traces of Home
On the other side of the Gardens, two other homes are in different stages.
6766 Traces of Homes
I feel contemplative looking at places like this. Imagining family memories, hopes and dreams swept away in an instant by a river of fire into the sea of Change.
Could anyplace be nowhere, or is paradise arrayed everywhere around and within us? My answer as you’ve guessed, tends toward the latter. 🙂
There’s a place locals call the “bridge to nowhere” that has a lot of somewhere about it for us.
6737 Bridge to Somewhere
It crosses Highway 154 just North of Foothill/Cathedral Oaks, and opens a world of adventure for those who go there. The formal name is Salvar Bridge and it was presumably built in anticipation of housing development that (so far) hasn’t happened. When wildfires have scorched our mountains, helicopters and fire crews have used the short road as a staging area. Hang gliders launched from the mountains land there. Radio control model plane enthusiasts gather there to fly their cool toys. At the top (North) end, hikers and bikers have used it for years as the entrance to the area locally known as the San Marcos Foothills. Because it’s a bit above town and open, sunsets there can be especially spectacular when the whole dome of sky lights up to overwhelm the viewer unimpeded.
6737 Cycle Jump Closeup?
This closeup cropped from the bottom (South) end of the short road seems to reveal a spot used for jumping with bikes. We didn’t see it last time there a few months ago, so maybe it’s new. Looks like concrete or something similar has been put on part of it, and they turn around on the dirt next to the intersection at the top-left of this closeup. Below is a snap of the whole area taken a moment later as we passed. Though it’s hazy due to looking more in the direction of the late afternoon sun, it gives an impression of how wonderful it is to walk these hills. Maybe contemplating the opposite of nowhere as each step brings us closer to someplace quiet within.
6739 San Marcos Foothills
I love to fly. Guess you didn’t know that. 🙂
Seems like I’d love everything that involves going up, but oddly that’s not so. Not so keen on roller coasters, no interest in bungee jumping, little interest in skydiving, though I would like to try hang gliding. Another in the long list of vertical “not so much” options is rock climbing. I like the idea, but it just seems like too much work before/after a climb, and lots of expensive, heavy gear to haul. It’s fun to watch though, and right next to Gibraltar Road above Montecito is a great spot even more fun than the little rock on Painted Cave Road. So flying the hills I often look at rock formations to see if there’s anyone climbing, but have yet to spot anyone while flying.
6773 Going Up
Yesterday we went on a short flight before the weather changed to blustery and wet today, and though I couldn’t tell from the air this telephoto shot when cropped down reveals someone going up the rock face. Cool! Looking at this does give me the urge to try rappelling some time. Maybe someone will offer a swap for flying, since there’s no way I’d buy or rent all the gear much less learn to use it. Any takers? Meanwhile, I’ve put different pix of this on my Photo Page and on Edhat that show the others further down on the rock.
There was a Booth cartoon years ago that featured a guy in a cafe, and there was a detail in the drawing that got me giggling many times. Backwards on the glass door looking out toward the street you could read the name of the place: Terminal Lunch. Well as you may have guessed, my theme tonite is a followup on Anne’s post yesterday about the new SBA airline terminal construction.
6729 SBA Construction
Being so much larger than the old one, I’m hoping it will have at least one nice cafe where we can sit and watch planes come and go as we enjoy a snack and some snippets. You know, those little tidbits of overheard conversation like when someone passes on the street just as they say, “So are you going to sue?” We like to tell each other stories based on those snippets.
6727 Copper Top
Of course, my fav feature of the new building is the copper-topped turret. I’d pay extra if we could sit up there! As you’ve guessed, I snapped these just after takeoff today so they’re closer and maybe you can more clearly make out some details.
There’s an old Woody Guthrie folk song named “This Land…” that included a verse about private property, and I’m reminded of it by a discussion in the Comments to some of my aerial photos of waterfalls published lately on the Edhat.com local community website. I know several hikers who tend to be creative in their interpretation of private land rights, and many who would never cross a fence of any kind even if no signs are posted.
An especially beautiful set of at least four waterfalls just South of Hwy. 154 and East of Old San Marcos Road is a case in point.
6315 Secret Scene
While someone on Edhat has said these falls are on private property, it does seem a shame that the only people who get to see them other than the owner and authorized guests or trespassers, is a pilot like me who takes time to “smell the roses” rather than just race from one airport to another. I wonder if people routinely visited these falls for countless millennia up until a few decades ago, and whether we may see a change in laws and norms that would allow that again. Meanwhile, this is yet another reason I love to fly!
John & Anne Wiley 
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