Central Valley - Study #1

With a 7:30am departure, my travel from Madera, CA in the north central Valley to home in San Luis Obispo on Saturday, 24Nov was decidedly back roads. As a result, I arrived home after dark. The colors in these photos are, I believe, the result of rainfall in the area. Fall in California unfolds at a glorious pace given the mountain-to valley-to mountain-to-sea terrain. My timing on Thanksgiving Weekend was perfect. The ramble included a stop for Fruta Fresca (pineapple slices, a touch of chili powder, fresh squeezed lime juice). A visit to an all-but-abandoned Fresno County Park was odd and brought thoughts of Detroit streets. I set up my tripod multiple times, which is the mark of good day trip.

Trip Route - Broad stroke indicators from Madera area to San Luis. Route 198 is another tracking tool. A stop in Hanford took me to a perfectly appointed coffee shop in downtown. On the terrain map, note the brown earth cut running from 11am to 5pm in the center of the picture; that is a good representation of the San Andreas Fault. Coallinga is known as earthquake central along with Parkfield, some 30 miles to the South.