From the ocean to the mountains

The weather was warm enough to check out a recommended beach.

   When we got to LaJolla Beach, all I wanted to do was to sit in a beach chair and relax.  That isn't Terry's style, however. Once he had seen the Pacific ocean, and watched the surfers for a few minutes, he was ready to go.

I persuaded him to walk along the beach.
"Maybe you'll see some new birds," I said.  Actually, after walking down the beach, we did find many new shore birds to add to our list. Since Terry had his book with him, he was able to take the time to sort out the different kinds of gulls and shore birds.  Besides, they're pretty co-operative in congregating in one spot and not moving anywhere too fast.

Marbled Godwit

Willet

Whimbrel

 They all kind of look the same , until you look at them closely.

   By the time we'd returned to our parking spot, it was time for an early lunch.  I got to sit in my beach chair after all, and enjoy the picnic.  It was just cool enough to be able to sit right in the sun.

Sorry, Terry, I caught you in the middle of a bite.  This is the only time, by the way, that Terry's agreed to wear a hat. He selected this one out of our collection.

We looked over a cliff at another spot, still carrying our binoculars.  That's when we discovered this secluded location was the "nude beach"!
The next day we drove to an old mining town called Julian, high in the hills. After a twisty, turning road, we were in a town established in 1870 during the gold mining boom.  The historic buildings along main street were all turned into little businesses and boutiques.  We had the feeling of being in New Denver, B.C., although it wasn't as small.

high enough to have snow on the way

Main Street, Julian

 One of the tourist attractions in Julian was its apple pies.  Of course we had to sample them.  Terry had a delicious apple dumpling, and I was happy to find apple pie, sweetened only with apple cider, not with artificial sweeteners.  A week later, when the weather changed, the town was gearing up for the expected snowfall.  Extra pies were being baked!  Apparently Julian was a favourite location for Californians to experience snow, and the business people were ecstatic at the anticipated surge of tourists.  We were glad, however, that we'd been there when it was sunny.