Frisco Vista

North of Cambria is a stretch of coastline accessed by Moonstone Drive. The drive is dotted with motels. As along much of California’s coast, highway 1 is all too near. But the coast itself is scenic, and sea otters may be seen. At this time of year whales migrant along the coast here, and they [...]

Just down the road from the Fiscalini Ranch Preserve in Cambria on the central California coast is a small country park called Lampton Cliffs.

The park features a wooden stairway providing convenient access to a sheltered, rocky inlet.

Near the park is an open area that is marked as an ecological study zone. This is fenced and [...]

The struggling town of Martinez at last has a bona fide tourist attraction — the delightful beavers who have built a dam downtown on the Alhambra Creek. Some of the videos featuring these YouTube stars can be seen above and below.
So, if you’re Martinez, how do you capitalize on this attraction? Do you go all [...]

Each fall the tarantulas come out on Mount Diablo to mate. We saw a couple this year and read about a couple of cyclists — Mt. Diablo is popular with high-endurance mountain bikers — who got so distracted by a pair of mating tarantulas that they crashed into each other and had to be hospitalized.
It [...]

Good question! And here is the answer:

Find more videos like this on www.truveo.com.
|

These handsome bucks were part of a herd I spotted near the Point Reyes Lighthouse. Tule elk — found only in California — were once common in Point Reyes, but within a decade of the Gold Rush they had been hunted nearly to extinction. In 1873, the state made them a protected species. About [...]

The coyote pup was apparently hit by a car. A week or so ago, when adult coyotes attacked a large dog and were later shot, I speculated that “to go after such a formidable opponent suggests the coyotes were protecting a den.”
“Officials are trying to determine if the youngster is related to the pair of [...]

According to the Chronicle, a great white shark took offense at a red kayak in the waters near San Mateo. A guy identified as “Dan” was fishing for rockfish from the kayak at the time of the attack.
When the shark hit the kayak Dan was thrown into the water, from which vantage he observed the [...]

First it was uppity sea lions. Now it’s coyotes. According to a report in the San Francisco Chronicle, coyotes are attacking dogs in Golden Gate Park.
Coyotes disappeared from the city after the 1906 earthquake. They appear to have returned sometime in the past decade via the south peninsula. Recently a coyote was tracked with [...]