A Wooded Path

If you like hiking, or simply taking a walk on a nature trail, the state parks and national forests in north Georgia are some of the best places to enjoy this activity.  The state of Georgia does a fine job, with dwindling resources I am quick to add, with the access to natural resources it provides through the state park system.  The trails vary in length and difficulty levels to accommodate almost any age and degree of fitness.  Most parks have trails that are wheelchair accessible.  The diversity of flora and fauna in the southern Appalachia is unmatched anywhere in the U.S.  There are very few weeks out of the year where the weather makes outdoor exploration uncomfortable here.  I have spent many hours wandering mountain paths through densely wooded countryside and have always come away restored.

Visit Georgia State Parks website

View from Black Rock Mountain State Park visitor center
View from Black Rock Mountain State Park visitor center

The West Coast from Highway 1

The ribbon of highway that traces the rugged coastline south from San Francisco toward Monterey, California offers the traveler some of the most beautiful scenery in North America.  You can close your eyes, put your hands behind your back, hold the camera and snap, and you will still get a photo worthy of any landscape picture calendar.  The Pacific is breathtakingly blue, punctuated by white foam around the rocks that break its surface near the coast.  The contrast of the pastoral countryside and soaring ridges against the seemingly endless watery horizon is dramatic.  If you need to be reminded how small you are, this is a good place to start.  This is one of those places that, for lack of better expression, speaks to my soul — moves me.  I can’t imagine ever getting tired of seeing it.

Hurricane Point on Highway 1 in California
Hurricane Point on Highway 1 in California