16 Days in California Photo Gallery by Rick Kobylinski at pbase.com

16 Days in California

This gallery contains pictures of our 16 day trip to California in July of 2006. The driving trip started and ended in San Francisco and included stops in Napa Valley, Lake Tahoe, Yosemite Nat'l Park, King's Canyon Nat'l Park, San Luis Obispo, Pismo Beach, the Hearst Castle, Big Sur, Carmel, Monterey, Pebble Beach, Sausalito, Muir Woods, Point Reyes and hundreds of places in between them all. The original reason for the trip to San Francisco was a family wedding but the 3,000 mile flight dictated a longer stay for sightseeing, wine tasting and too much good food. Thanks to everyone who made our trip so enjoyable.

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Day 1 Golden Gate fog	Day 2 Mr and Mrs	Day 3 Winchester Mystery House	Day 4 wine train
Day 5 hot air ballooning	Day 6 wine tastings	Day 7 Lake Tahoe friends	Day 8 Tioga Road Yosemite
Day 9 Yosemite valley	Day 10 Pismo Beach Pelican Point	Day 11 Hearst Castle indoor pool	Day 12 Pebble Beach 18th green
day 13 Monterey Fishermans Wharf	Day 14 Alcatraz night tour ghost	Day 15 San Fran from the Coit tower	Day 16 final mileage
Family 2	Joan Sharon Nicki	Nicki and Ron	Chenery House wedding venue
Wedding guests	Getting ready	Chenery House grounds	More Chenery House grounds
Chenery lawn	Here's lookin at you kid	Mayors only	Fog, always fog
Bay Bridge from the Chenery House roof	Penthouse Brunch	Penthouse terrace view	Winchester Mystery House
Winchester Mystery House window view	WMH arch detail	WMH ceiling moulding detail	WMH stained glass panel
WMH stair detail	WMH wall border detail	Newel post	Perpetual renovation
Stair details	Gotta love the inlaid wood	Embassy Suites Napa	Napa Embassy Suites courtyard
Napa Embassy Suites pond	Embassy Suites courtyard view	Napa Embassy Suites goose	Sharon on the Wine Train
Eileen and Marc on the Wine Train	Harold and Joan on the Napa Wine Train	Joan, Sharon, Marc & Eileen take a taste	Mondavi vineyards
Eileen, Sharon & Joan at Mondavi	Mondavi weathervane	Window at Rubicon Estates Winery	Staircase at Coppolla
What's the Polish word for ants in the pants	Oak barrels	Marc at the Rubicon display case	Bram Stokers Dracula costumes
More Dracula costumes at Rubicon	Coppola trophy case	Godfather awards	Shady retreat
Help yourself	Mark the balloon pilot	Early morning inflation	Polish Posse aloft
Hang on Joan	Napa Valley balloons	Don't drop the camera	Yippee
From the bottom	Over Napa Valley vineyards	View from 1000 feet	Descending
Landing site in view	Grapes to be squished?	Perfect landing	Steve with the bubbly
A drink for everyone	Napa grapevines	New growth	Vines galore
Whoops landing	Napa windmill	Driveway to Sterling Vineyards	Fountain view from the gondola at Sterling
Harold on the tour at Sterling Vineyards	In reserve	Mumm winery tour	Sparkling wine tastings
Pollock Pines	Lake Tahoe sign	Emerald Bay in the evening	Tahoe sailboat
Fannette Island Tea House	Harold's picture of Tahoe sunset	First light	Lake Tahoe sunrise
Tahoe sunrise	Tahoe sunrise 2	Tree silhouette	Lake Tahoe waterfall
Lake Tahoe resident	South Lake Tahoe	Lake Tahoe bear	Still snow in July
Sierra Nevadas	Nasty bear in Lee Vining	Tioga Road Yosemite	Ellery Lake
Tioga Road hitchhikers	Yosemite Valley from overlook	Glacier Point at Yosemite	Half Dome at sunrise
Tree line at Glacier Point	Naked branches	Campground way below	Yosemite Falls
Yosemite guide	Valley view	El Capitan	El Capitan climbers
View from the Yosemite Post Office	A peek at the falls	Yosemite View Lodge	Merced River
Easy to climb	Sequoias along Generals Highway	Pismo Beach pier	Pismo Beach Surf Shop
Early morning at Pismo Beach	Pelican in flight 1	Pelican in flight 2	Pelican in flight 3
7 AM surfers	Mission San Luis Obispo side entrance	Mission San Luis Obispo altar	Mission SLO front doors
Mission SLO wall decorations	Mission gift shop items	More gift shop items	Mission gardens
Bubble Gum Alley SLO 3	Bubble Gum Alley SLO 2	Bubble Gum Alley SLO 1	Bubble Gum Alley car
Hearst outdoor pool	Hearst Castle main entrance	Hearst Castle tour bus	Hearst Castle tour guide
Hearst Castle tapestry	Hearst Castle pool	Jump right in	Hearst Castle terrace
Hearst Castle lily pond	Hearst lily pond and terrace	Hearst Castle indoor pool floor tile	Pool tile
Hearst Castle from the road	Monterey Aquarium kelp forest	Rosa the sea otter	Reef tank
Clean up in aisle 1	Glassware	Monterey Aquarium stingray	Monterey jellyfish
School's out	Old Monterey Marina	Sharon gets her boat ride	Monterey marina
Old Monterey Fishermans Wharf	Lone cypress in fog	Monterey Posse	Pebble Beach 18th hole
Shops at Pebble Beach	Putting out	Caddie at Pebble Beach	Harold at Pebble Beach
Lone cypress	Sea lions on 17 Mile Drive	Seaside surfer	Entrance to the Tea Garden
Japanese Tea Garden	Tea Garden walkway	Point Reyes Lighthouse	Point Reyes Lighthouse 2
Overlook at Point Reyes	Boat in the surf	Looking north	Point Reyes deer
Point Reyes deer 2	Muir Woods entrance	Muir Woods path	Early morn at Muir Woods
Redwood bark	Redwoods at Muir Woods	Pack it in	Wharf sign
Fisherman's Wharf marina	Ready for the pot	Bridge to nowhere	typical fog
Bridge tower doorway	Fog again	Golden Gate cable	Suspension cables
Now you see it and now you don't	Bridge suspenders	Walking to Sausalito	Cruise ship
Painted Ladies at Alamo Square	Hills and more hills	Sightseeing boat	Sausalito marina
Sausalito homes in the fog	Bay traffic	Catamaran in the Bay	Pier 39 sea lion
Pier 39 before the crowds	Presidio pet cemetery	Fort Point	Low Tide
Fort Point fishing pier	Early morning catch	Rusty chain	Get a grip at Fort Point
Baker Beach	Marina view	Coit Tower	Coit Tower parking circle
Lombard Street	Coit tower plaza	Let's race	Bay view from Coit Tower
TransAmerica building	Fog City Diner	Joan & Harold	Fishermans Wharf
View from Alcatraz	View from Alcatraz ferry	Ferry ride to the Alcatraz night tour	Approaching Alcatraz
Alcatraz burnt out building	Driveway to the top	Alcatraz sign	Alcatraz sunset
Alcatraz cell block	Mr. Capone, you have a visitor	Alcatraz guard tower	A tree grows in Alcatraz
Coyote crossing

comment |

Guest		12-Mar-2009 16:16
Wow, you did see a lot while you were here! So many memorable and gorgeous shots of my beautiful state! Nicely done.

Guest		01-Aug-2007 21:27
Rick, Can't believe it's been a year since we share this great adventure. Harold and I had succh a wonderful time viewing and reliving each picture in this gallery. Let's do it again! Joan & Harold

Richard Calmes		17-Apr-2007 19:29
I enjoyed my vacation! Didn't cost a cent! You have many great shots here and memories for a lifetime! V

Robert Ballard		24-Mar-2007 16:41
I enjoyed seeing your vacation. It looks like you had a great time.

Rob Legeland		10-Mar-2007 20:56
Awsome collection of holiday pictures! Varied and creative. You dit a good job! Voted.

Jarek M		28-Nov-2006 12:06
Rick, I like the concept of the visual diary. Well done.

Guest		11-Nov-2006 17:08
Very nice images of your trip. Thanks for your comments on mine. I enjoyed the clear skies in the bay, but kinda hoped to experience the fog at least one day that seems so famous!

Terri Steele		11-Nov-2006 15:42
What an adventure! Great shots.

Guest		23-Aug-2006 00:44
Great pictures Rick especially Pebble Beach. Reminds me of my exorbitant score there!!!!

Salah El-Sadek		09-Aug-2006 12:20
Excellent gallery, you brought abck many nice memories with your brilliant captures.. Thanks

Rick Kobylinski		08-Aug-2006 23:13
Eileen & Marc, Thanks to both of you for being such gracious hosts. The wedding was wonderful........ just look at all of the smiling faces in the pictures. Nicki & Michael looked like they had the time of their lives at the wedding. Glad you like the pictures. Rick

Guest		06-Aug-2006 22:43
Rick - we had a great time in Napa and your pics are great. Eileen and Marc

Rick Kobylinski		06-Aug-2006 20:59
Elaine, I'm glad that you like the California pictures. The pelicans at Pismo Beach were amazing as they rode the air currents and swooped around Pelican Point. The deer at Point Reyes Lighthouse were shocked to see a perspiring tourist carrying his cameras and tripod up the Lighthouse path so early in the morning (7 AM). The perspiring tourist (me) did not know that the gate allowing access to the 300 or so steps down to the Lighthouse were locked until 10 AM. That is why all of my Point Reyes Lighthouse pictures were taken from the top of the steps and over the barrier fence. When we get together, Sharon and I will fill you in on some of the wacky stories from the trip. Rick.

Jean Ray		06-Aug-2006 16:59
It looks like you had a wonderful time in California and captured some very nice images. I really enjoyed your gallery.

Elaine Lydon		06-Aug-2006 16:48
Rick- Wonderful pictures. Looks like the deer & pelican were posing for you too. Maybe you should think about a career change - Tour Guide!! Thanks for sending us the pictures. Tom & Elaine

Rick Kobylinski		05-Aug-2006 14:41
To Diane and Marian, the lovely ladies we met at the Emerald Bay scenic overlook in Lake Tahoe. Diane, have you purchased a new digital camera yet? Don't be intimidated by all the button and screens. It was nice chatting with you ladies that late afternnon at Tahoe. I hope that the rest of your trip went well. Our trip just ended last Saturday when we flew back to Philadelphia and reality set in. I've been downloading and editing the 2,200 + pictures that I took during the trip and each picture brings back a memory. Good stuff. Hopefully you saved the web address for this site and have accessed the pictures. Send me a comment if you have. Rick Kobylinski

Rick Kobylinski		05-Aug-2006 14:31
Dottie, I will gladly take wedding shots of the girls if you can talk them into getting married in California. I'll check to see if the Hearst Castle rents out for wedding receptions. Rick

Rick Kobylinski		05-Aug-2006 14:25
Jill & Kevin, You can join the Polish Posse only if Kevin agrees to change his name to Morrowski. Glad you liked the pictures. Rick

Rick Kobylinski		05-Aug-2006 14:21
SC, The Alcatraz ghost shot required a dark room, a tripod and a willing subject. Fortunately I had all three. Put the camera on the tripod and compose your subject in the frame. Set the camera shutter speed for a 10 second exposure and use either the self timer on the camera or a cable release to open the shutter. The subject sits perfectly still for six or seven seconds to partially expose his image and then stands and walks out of the picture. The image shown here took four exposures to get the timing right. Plus I had a good subject, Harold, who really wanted to help me scare the bejesus out of his wife, Joan. The sea otter in the Monterey Aquarium tank played and groomed herself in front of the crowd for quite a while and I was fortunate to take enough shots (at full 300 mm full zoom above the heads in the crowd) to get one that I really liked. California was heaven for an amateur photographer like me. I found that the carry-on 49 pound camera bag was a little overkill for the trip. I wound up mostly using just my Canon Digital Rebel with a Tamron 28 - 300 lens, a Canon 100 mm macro lens and a light travel tripod...........and also 8 GB of CF cards......and 4 back-up batteries for the camera. Rick

Guest		04-Aug-2006 23:41
Rick- Great pictures. We're so jealous. Wish we were there. How do we become part of the Polish Posse? We'll buy the red shirts. Jill and Kevin

Dottie Cutter		04-Aug-2006 14:21
Your pictures are beautiful, as usual. Can I hire you to do the girls' wedding shots? Dottie

Guest		04-Aug-2006 12:42
Rick - great shots. Brings back the memories of my trip 3 years ago. Makes me want ot go back and re-visit all that I saw before and see the things that I didn't see. Nice double-exposure on the Alcatraz shot. How'd you get that Otter to pose for you? - SC

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