sistinas

Just over the border from South Lake Tahoe. It’s not a bad place to go blow some money gambling if you’re inclined to do such things. The poker room at Harvey’s is pretty friendly. Note to self: when you make a cash-out rule, you need to follow it.

Fantastic views from most parts of the mountain. Crossing from California to Nevada and vice-versa can be a little annoying if you’re on a snowboard – there are definitely some uphill sections you’ll have to hike up. The area is huge though and it’ll take a few days before you run out of runs to do. Definitely will head back at some point.

I haven’t been to the western section of the park yet (the Tucson Mountain District), but the eastern section (the Rincon Mountain District) has a fantastic 8-mile one-way paved loop that’s great for bicycle riding. There’s very little traffic, some good climbs and whoop-de-dos, and the scenery is great.

They only have one thing on the menu, and that’s steak. It’s a damn good steak, and it costs around $10, depending on how big of a steak you want. Perfect after climbing up Elbert or Massive or a day of mountain biking or hiking.

Beautiful town in beautiful surroundings with some of the fittest people you’ll ever see wandering around. The food at Lucile’s is really good, and Neptune Mountaineering is the best gear shop I’ve seen anywhere. Wish I could have spent more time there… but then again I’m thinking of moving there anyway!

This was our basecamp town for two and a half weeks of trekking (the Cojup Valley, Laguna Churup) and climbing (Ishinca) in the Cordillera Blanca. The town itself isn’t exactly architecturally stunning, having been demolished in an earthquake around 25 years ago, but the restaurants and bars and people make up for that. We had a great time and would love to go back.

Went here for brunch the other day, and the shrimp and grits I had immediately became my best meal of 2007 so far. It’s up there as probably the best brunch meal I’ve ever had. The setting is amazing – all the greenery makes you forget about the smog and grossness outside, and the service was friendly and prompt. Tasty bloody mary as well!

Nice short-ish drive from the hellhole that is Phoenix in the summertime (or year-round…). There’s about a ten degree temperature drop as you get up in elevation. We wandered around town for a bit with our dogs (downtown is just a few blocks around the main courthouse square), had some tasty Mexican food at Hugo’s, and then went out to Lynx Lake for a short hike. Definitely a great daytrip/camping option.

Check out Russian River’s taproom here – some of the best beers in the country. I also had some great coffee here a while back but I can’t remember the name of the shop. Cute little town, about an hour out from San Francisco.

Great beer selection – with lots of brews on tap and in bottles (esp. Belgian), as well as a few on cask. It’s pretty loud and I’m not sure I want to know what the bathroom looks/smells like, but there’s some good drinking to be had for sure.