Tromp Blog

California State Parks Backpacking Adventures 2023!

Explore the mountains on great guided trips this summer! California State Parks photo.

This is a great opportunity for a guided outdoor experience.

Finding Pomponio's Cave

In Search of the Man Who Rebuked the Mission System

Del Puerto Canyon: From the Earth’s Mantle to Mars in the Devil’s Range

Long referred to as “The Door,” Del Puerto Canyon winds 22 miles through the Diablo Range, connecting the San Joaquin Valley to San Antonio Valley and, eventually, the greater San Francisco Bay area.

Empty Highway in the Land of Slides

I am walking down the center of Highway 1 south of Gorda, a two-lane road carved into 1,000-plus feet of precipitous marine terrace in Big Sur.

Finding Frank Norris in the Santa Cruz Mountains

A memorial to a pioneer of American literature sits unseen 10 miles west of Gilroy.

A gargantuan spiderweb hangs across the steep dirt road. It shimmers, translucent in the sunlight, slack lines nearly imperceptible. As I duck the web and trudge further up the road's corkscrew turn, the thick brush, thistle, weeds and poison oak part, revealing an ancient looking stone bench on the shoulder above the road.

Science Spotlight: Why Do Humpbacks Breach?

Scientists are unsure what drives humpback whales' exuberant displays.  NOAA photo.

More than 40 feet long and weighing up to 40 tons, adult humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) are formidable giants. But their immensity doesn’t hinder their athleticism.

Santa Cruz Shakespeare's New Home

Santa Cruz Shakespeare's new Audrey Stanley Grove Theater will be dedicated tonight. Mark Dammann photo.

A visit to the newly completed Grove at DeLaveaga Park promises a great first season for Santa Cruz Shakespeare.

Watershed Walk with Fred

One of the Valley's finest naturalists leads a May 28 walk at Henry Cowell. Make a reservation to go!

Top 5 Monterey Bay Discoveries

This view helps make Sunset SB a gem of the Monterey Bay, according to travel writer Stuart Thornton. Creative Commons photo.

Travel writer Stuart Thornton reveals his favorite Greater Monterey Bay discoveries while researching Moon Monterey and Carmel. He appears at Bookshop Santa Cruz on Thursday, Mar. 3 at 7pm.

5 Reasons You’re Glad Your Boo Isn’t an Alpha Male Elephant Seal

Romance time at Piedras Blancas. Photo credit to Mike Baird / Creative Commons

On elephant seal romance.

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