Images of My Last Trip to California -- but Not the Tour of California Route

For television viewers, long cycling races are a telecast travelogue that happens to follow the route pedaled by some of the best bike racers on the planet. The Tour de France is a favorite, and the Tour of California, which is now referred to as the Amgen Tour of California every single time  it is mentioned, is coming in a close second. Today, the penultimate day, was a time trial on the streets of Los Angeles. When I was in California last month, I visited several wonderful places in and around San Francisco that I had intended to post here. I'm finally doing it and posting a few of my favorite scenes from my brief time there. Living in Colorado, I'm not deprived of mountain scenery, so I especially treasure ocean views.

Below is just one of panoramas from the Fairmont San Francisco's tower with 360-degree views .

The fabled Golden Gate Bridge connects San Francisco on the south with Marin County on the north. This is a view from the north.

San Francisco's cable cars remain popular with visitors to the city, both to photograph and to ride.

The Marin Headlands, thankfully government land and therefore protected from California's penchant for development and sprawl, are across from San Francisco and offer beaches, cliffs, hills and valleys where wildlife habitat still exists.

More Marin Headlands views of waves rollling in toward bays notched into rugged coastal cliffs.

 

Pacifica Pier, south of San Francisco, on a gloriously sunny day -- not a given on this part of the Peninsula.

Pillar Point Harbor, where fishing boats still dock -- but so do pleasure craft.

Classic Gloucester Schooner at Home in West Coast Harbor

Down to the seas in a self-made ship: Leland Parsons's magnificent accomplishment

I spent a couple of days last week with my friends John and Marcia Sullivan, also East Coast transplants now living in Marin County, north of San Francisco. One sunny day last week, we drove over the Golden Gate Bridge, through the city after the rush hour and continued southward on the coastal road. We stopped at Pillar Point Harbor, a few miles north of Half Moon Bay to look at boats, breathe salt air and enjoy warmth and sunshine.

Tied up on a dock paralleling the quay was a vision from the 18th century -- a schooner with wooden masts, canvas sails gently luffing in the breeze, varnished wood, gleaming brightwork and orderly lines hanging from wooden pins. What an unexpected vision in a watery neighborhood or working fishing boats and more prosaic pleasure craft.

We stopped to chat with the trim, gray-bearded man tidying the tidy boat. I asked him how old the boat was, and he replied, "The simple answer is 40 years old but in the water since 2005." He told us that his name is Leland Parsons and shared snippets of the story of this marine dream come true -- that of building a traditional boat from the keel up, a labor of love he and his family had shared over many years.  

The beautiful boat built in the style of a Gloucester fishing schooner is called the "Frank Edmund." It is late 18th century in appearance but features such 21st century safety and comfort accouterments as navigation and communication instruments, modern marine "plumbing," safety features and even a washer/dryer.

Reporter Gary Warth of the North Bay Times, who had known Parsons and his family in San Diego, wrote "Former Poway boat-builder still living his dream aboard schooner Frank Edmund." Parsons, originally from Gloucester, Massachusetts, is an expat New Englander, like the Sullivans and I. He, his wife Cecily and their sons built the boat for the possibility of sailing around the world, but the "Edmund's" home port this sheltered marina with shorter charters up and down the California coast on the ship's log.

Parsons invited us to come aboard and look around below, which is as beautiful as topside -- plus the addition of Oriental-style carpets.

The "Frank Edmund" is the Parsons' dream fulfilled. When we were aboard, for that short time, we briefly and vicariously shared such a dream.

Free Zip Line in San Francisco

My ailing, ancient laptop and I are in the Bay Area right now, so my posts are sparse and image-free. Yesterday, I enjoyed a single-line ZipLine ride over Justin Herman Square on the Embarcadero, courtesy of Tourism British Columbia, which brought the setup that you might have seen during the Olympics from Vancouver to San Francisco. If you are around here, it's in place until April 18, so head on down and take a free ride. My laptop's pathetic situation makes a click-on-a-word link a challenge, so if you want to see a photo and read more, go to http://www.urbandaddy.com/sfo/leisure/9450/Urban_Zipline_Zip_Lining_Along_the_Embarcadero_San_Francisco_SFO_Event

Great Barrier Reef Ship Grounding, Update

Efforts underway to contain reef damage

Travel Babel seems to have been the first travel blog to report on the Chinese-flagged coal carrier "Shen Neng 1" that went 9 miles off-course and plowed into the coral reefs of Keppler Island, part of the Great Barrier Reef. The resultant oil spill continues to threaten marine life in a maritime protection area that also happens to be one of the world's great scuba diving destinations. Since then, the disaster has caught some world attention, with television news and wire service reports updating the situation and the Australian government response. The photo at right was released by Australian Maritime Safety Authority, and you can see a SkyNews report on YouTube.

The threat to the reef remains worrisome. According to an Associated Press report released on Tuesday evening, local time, "A stranded Chinese coal ship leaking oil onto Australia's Great Barrier Reef is an environmental time bomb with the potential to devastate large protected areas of the reef, activists said on Monday." Reuters quoted Llewellyn, director of conservation for the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) in Australia, who called the "was a "ticking environmental time bomb."
The reef, a UNESCO World Natural Heritage Site, the ship carried some 300,000 gallons of heavy fuel to run its engines. Shipping companies like this (relatively) cheap, low-grade fuel, which is very viscous, and and must be heated before injected into engines. When it ends up in the ocean, this gooey, sludge-like oil coats birds, wildlife, corals, rocks and sandy beaches and is extremely difficult to clean up.

An Environmental Crisis Waiting to Happen -- and It Did

"We've always said the vessel is up in an area it shouldn't be in the first place," Marine Safety Queensland general manager Patrick Quirk  told the media. "How it got to that to that position will be the subject of a detailed investigation by the Australian Transport Safety Board." He added ships sometimes used a shortcut through the reef, a practice that will be reviewed by the federal government.  Six thousand ships a year travel the marine lanes between the east coast of Australia and the Great Barrier Reef. Numerous conservation groups have for years been concerned that bulk carriers are permitted to travel through the reef without a specialized marine pilot. The government has thus far said pilots are not necessary when ships pass protected areas because they are banned there -- until they stray off-course, nine miles off-course, in the case of the "Shen Neng 1." The government might now change its tune.

At last report, two powerful tugs were on the scene, attempting to stabilize the ship while salvage crews assessed the situation. A boom is in place around the stranded ship to contain the oil spill. Australian  officials say the "Shen Neng I" is owned by belongs to the Shenzhen Energy Group, a subsidiary of China's state-owned China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company (acronym, COSCO) -- the country's largest shipping company. COSCO could be fined up to 1 million Australian dollars (US$920,000) -- a pittance in view of the damage.

COSCO's History of Oil Spills

This Australian incident is COSCO's third major foul-up in less than three years. In November 2007, the "Cosco Busan" hit one of San Francisco Bay Bridge supports and spilled 53,000 gallons of oil into San Francisco Bay, contaminating beaches, killing wildlife and floating into the Pacific Ocean. Skipper John Cota received a 10-month jail sentence for negligence. I don't know whether COSCO was also fined, but cleanup reported cost $100 million.

On July 31, 2009,, "Full City," a Panamanian-flagged ship owned by COSCO, suffered engine failure, ran aground during a storm and spilled some 200 tons of oil that eventually spread 100 miles in an area of wildlife sanctuaries and popular beaches. Pollution effects could linger for a decade. According to a British report on the fiasco, "In the days following the disaster, one of Norway's worst, thousands of birds said to be part of the Lille Sastein bird sanctuary and which were covered in oil, were considered beyond saving and had to be shot. Hundreds more are being cleaned up by volunteers along the coastline." The captain, whose name and ultimate fate I don't know, was arrested for a failure to alert authorities that his ship was in trouble, but he was released without bail.

COSCO has been notably silent about this latest disaster, but on April 1, it issued the following press release, which seems to indicate that money and ROI and not responsbility are all that matter to this state-owned compay:

"COSCO Sustainable Development Report 2008, among the 44 sustainable reports, was praised as 'Notable' report, which was conveyed in the letter to Capt. Wei Jiafu, President and CEO of COSCO Group from Mr. Georg Kell, Executive Director of UN Global Compact Office on March 3rd, 2010. COSCO Group is the only selected Chinese company this year and only Asian company whose sustainability report is deemed 'Notable' for four years in a roll [stet]. The report analysis was conducted by a coalition of global investors from 13 countries managing over US$ 2.1 trillion of assets, and they are all signatories to the UN-backed Principles for Responsible Investment Initiative to help companies that under United Nations Global Compact better corporate reporting on environmental, social and corporate governance activities."

The Joy of Kirkwood

Lake Tahoe ski area's dynamite terrain and distinctive flavor

Kirkwood, the southernmost ski area in the Lake Tahoe orbit, is neither the largest nor the most famous  resort in the region. Then again, it is not the smallest or most obscure either. Like Baby Bear's Porridge, it is just right. While it participates in the Ski Lake Tahoe interchangeable lift pass that includes free daily bus from South Lake Tahoe, it feels like a separate world apart. With the lakeshore more than 30 miles away,it feels Sierra Nevada summits and valleys. It is also a self-contained ski resort with lodging stretching between to base areas and a small mall that is designated as Kirkwood's village. Every ski resort now has to have a village, doesn't it?

The ski terrain is stunning and so are the views. Four skiable/snowboardable peaks. A wonderful set-apart beginner area with the children's ski school at the base. For intermediate, advanced and expert snowriders, trails, slopes and bowls facing in virtually every compass direction so it is possible to ski or ride in the sun. Abundant wide cruising runs. Plenty of places to go off-piste. Snowcat skiing beyond the lift-served boundaries. Natural half-pipes. Hike-to terrain for those willing to earn their turns. A fine cross-country and snowshoe center for guests who prefer gentler winter pleasures.

With a higher base elevation (7,800 feet) than other Tahoe-area resorts, it tends to to capture lighter, fluffier snow, and with more conventional-speed lifts than high-speed uphill people overs and traverses from one sector to another, powder at Kirkwood tends to linger longer than at other Tahoe resorts. I skied there recently several midweek days after a storm, and while I didn't find any untracked powder, a lot of off-piste acreage remained unpacked.

Like much larger and more elaborate Squaw Valley on Lake Tahoe's North Shore, Kirkwood is crowned by chutes, cliffs and cornices to lure thrill-seeking experts.  

Kirkwood, 1501 Kirkwood Meadows Drive, Kirkwood, California 95646; 209-258-6000 (main number) 877-KIRKWOOD (snow conditions).

Lake Tahoe: Ski Areas by the Dozen (Plus)

Magnificent alpine lake with concentration of ski areas unsurpassed in North America

Here's the census of ski areas in an arc on the north end of Lake Tahoe and also along Interstate 70: Alpine Meadows, Boreal, Diamond Peak, Donner Ski Ranch, Granlibakken, Homewood, Mt. Rose (within sight of Reno), Northstar-at-Tahoe, Royal Gorge (cross-country), Sugar Bowl and Squaw Valley (host of the 1960 Olympic Winter Games). At and near the south end of the lake: Heavenly, Kirkwood and Sierra-at-Tahoe. Seven of the largest ski/snowboard areas (Alpine, Heavenly, Kirkwood, Mt. Rose, Northstar, Sierra-at-Tahoe and Squaw) market themselves as Ski Lake Tahoe and offer an interchangeable multi-day lift ticket.

In addition to 14 (or more if I'm missing something) places to ski, the Tahoe Basin is scenically stunning and incredibly conplex (two states, five counties with five county seats outside of the basin, one incorporated city and numerous smaller communities and a hefty local, state and federal jurisdictions).

I've just returned from a Society of American Travel Writers confab at Lake Tahoe, and with a full schedule and travel time too, I managed to ski just three days of sliding on snow -- one each at Northstar (on a Saturday following the first heavy snowstorm in weeks -- not recommended, one at Heavenly and one at Kirkwood. Reports to follow.