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Ben LertsakdadetExplorer

Currently a graduate student at University of California, Irvine, who enjoys exploring and photographing the great outdoors in my spare time.

Explorer

05/12/18

This was the perfect spot to photograph the sunrise if you want to include the entire GGB and see downtown in the back (posted my photo for reference). There are a few turnouts so you can park and take photos on the way up to the top of the hill. I highly recommend getting their early and going closer to the top. Hopefully, mother nature plays nicely and you'll get just the right amount of clouds for unreal sunrise colors.

Just hiked Escondido Falls this past weekend (March 11, 2017), and the water was flowing from the Upper to Lower Falls and down the creek that follows the trail. It definitely starts off a bit unconventional walking up a paved road, but then you find yourself walking into an open meadow into a tree covered trail. The trail was easy to follow leading to Lower Falls, but if you plan to make the extra trek up to Upper Falls, I would suggest wearing hiking shoes. The path up to the Upper Falls is less obvious as there are multiple paths you can take. Getting up wasn't difficult, but coming down requires a bit more time due to the loose dirt and gravel making things slippery. Overall, it was great hike and very family friendly up until the Lower Falls. With the recent rain we've been having, I don't think there is a better time to try this hike.

The views that you get from the top of Moro Rock are unmatched in Sequoia National Park. With pretty much a 360 degree view of the valley and other peaks, it was easily the most rewarding hike for the least amount of effort. I will say that that once you get closer to the top, the trail can get a little tight for crowded days with little room to pass other parties going in the opposite direction. Overall, I highly recommend this hike, and I will be back to photograph the sunset.

A friend of mine went on this hike back in May, and they had a rough time finding the trail with the poor cell reception along Cascade Locks. I decided to screenshot the adventure write up for this hike from The Outbound app, and it helped tremendously. This hike was pretty strenuous carrying all of my camera gear up the mountain. There are a good of amount of sections on this hike that require both hands to climb up rocks to continue along the trail. I have yet to find a hike in Southern California that offers the views and feeling of being immersed in the wilderness like this one. No waterfall on this hike, but it makes up for it with a unique trail along the top of the mountain that is only about a yard wide. I wouldn't recommend this one for kids as it is pretty dangerous at the top. I'll have to return to explore more of the mountain, but the small amount that I have experienced already made the hike worth it.

I'd highly recommend this small beach for catching the sunset. Parking may be difficult as it is street parking in a residential area, but otherwise, it's a great place to relax, walk around, and enjoy the weather on a beautiful day.

Coming from SoCal, this hike was a treat. Walking along the edge of the cliffs surrounded by evergreens and being able to see the river throughout most of the hike was such an amazing experience. The mistake we made was not going far enough. When we got to the very end at the bottom of the trail called "Lower Punchbowl", we wrongfully assumed that the falls at the bottom where there are steps was the Punchbowl. We didn't know you have to go out past the steps and around the mountain to actually see the Punchbowl. Even then, we still thought this was a great hike!

I really enjoy coming to this location to get close to the ocean waters and capture the sunset. The sea caves is a good walk from the end of the descending trail on rocky terrain to get around the cove. It's a great place for photos and I would highly recommend this adventure!

La Tour is a great place for sunset photography on the beach, and it provides the unique tower you won't find anywhere nearby. My only complaint is that there were photo shoots taking place right next to the castle, so be prepared to work around that if you happen to visit this spot.

I love coming to Abalone Cove Shoreline Park if I'm looking for something relaxing to do during my weekend. It has picnic tables in a wide open grass area, and it's a short hike down to the beach. The cove is great for viewing tide pools, and I always see kids having a good time looking at sea stars, sea urchins, crabs, and all the little fishes. The cove is also a great location to view/photograph the sunset. My only complaint would have to be that during summer when sunset is later in the evening, the entrance to the parking lot (pay-to-park) usually closes a few hours before sunset, so make sure you check the parking times. You can stay as long as you like since they leave the exit open. Overall, I'd highly recommend this adventure!

I wasn't prepared for this adventure and was roaming around in flip flops, which made skipping from rock to rock a bit more difficult. However, once we finally got setup and the sun began to set, I immediately knew that this was one of the best locations to photograph a sunset in the Newport/Laguna Beach area. I'd highly recommend this adventure to everyone, but know that it can get pretty crowded with other photographers as well.