Here and There Blog

In meetings all week so enjoy the beach!

Slight loss of charged camera batteries led to the time delay in part 2 for Hosp Grove. Laziness has been corrected and the blog continues. The entrance to Hosp Grove West is marked by this sculpture of Mother Earth, Father Sky.    The trail even includes a fun little bridge.  And you do wander around some pretty large eucalyptus trees.

In 1908, F.P. Hosp & Partners planted 40,000 eucalyptus trees to create a grove as a way to meet lumber supplies for the railroad. In 1987 the grove was aqcuired by the City of Carlsbad as an open space with urban hiking and picnic areas. The main area of the playground and tables is accessible but the hiking is all dirt and does go up and down hilly terrain. For most people this is an easy loop. Across from Hosp Grove is the Batiquitos Lagoon which is currently closed for restoration. When the beach is foggy this small trail is a great exercise alternative.

October - must be time for the fog to come in and linger all day along the coast.  Even the birds and surfers are obscured. Can't wait for the sun!

The crows came when the tangerine tree was full. Swooping down from the sky, cries of “caw! caw!” alerted us to the attack. Faster than we could run, the crow was back up in the air, orange sphere in its beak, a ridiculous Halloween sight reminiscent of pumpkins and black cats.  This was always followed by the inevitable shudder from my father as another prize was lost to nature. No other tree was like it in our yard, which was full of orange, lemon, fig, plum, apple, and other varieties of fruit that sustained us for decades. The yard was modest, not a farm but a ¾ acre property where the scale balanced more to garden and less to house. We all had our favorites but mine was the tangerine tree. Full of fruit when citrus season occurred, it was impossible to imagine a shortage of food. The tree produced hundreds of the sweetest, juiciest tangerines I have ever eaten. My mother’s kitchen was filled with rows of citrus, Easter baskets doubled as fruit baskets. In this...

This sign wasn't here a few months ago!s I guess the bears are wandering down for good eating before winter hibernation. Note to self...don't become dinner.  The creek trail is as inviting as ever and fun to see the change from the summer.