Wisetrips Travel Blog

With the promise of continued beautiful weather (70 degrees Fahrenheit) in Santa Cruz, I planned a Saturday morning cycling trip around Happy Valley (using Komoot as my guide). When Alex arrived at 09:00, we loaded his bike into my Toyota Sienna and headed to Gateway Plaza in downtown Santa Cruz, where we'd start our ride. On arrival there, we unloaded the bikes and started the ride. At first, we encountered a few homeless…

On Thursday, June 19th (a U.S. Holiday), Inna, Alex, and I decided to hike around Felton. Inna found a highly rated trail on AllTrails.com, called Fall Creek Trail , and we decided to hike it.  We parked our car here  (see Google Maps link). There was a small parking lot (but it was full), so we parked on the side of the road. Our hike lasted 96 minutes, covering 3.62 miles and gaining 832 feet in elevation. It w…

On Sunday, April 25, we decided to head to Capitola to surf "La Bomba" at The Hook. Even though the forecast predicted rain, Alex was not deterred. When we arrived at the parking lot, there were lots of spaces available (which is usually a bad sign for waves). However, when we walked to look at the waves in The Hook, we saw beautiful, clean rollers!  Alex was excited, suited up in his Ripcurl wetsuit, and waxed his best …

After surfing for many days in the Laguna Beach area (at Rockpile Beach, Trestles, San Clemente Pier), it was time to return to surfing near my home. Since Surfline.com predicted 4-5 foot swells on Tuesday, November 3, and I had a company day off, I decided to try surfing in the early morning when the wind and wave forecast was most favorable. The drive to Capitola was uneventful, and there was plenty of parking in the usu…

We returned to our usual routine after returning from our long staycation at Laguna Beach .  When I heard (from Trey) that Alex's Firewire Tuomo v4 surfboard repairs were complete, I drove to Santa Cruz's Midtown Surf Shop  to pick it up. I made it a fun day by walking with Inna on West Cliff Drive, from the Lighthouse to Natural Bridges. …