Tromp Blog

Five Fall Hikes Near Silicon Valley

Wild turkeys on a fall day at Rancho San Antonio Preserve. Photo by Karl Gohl

Enjoy the changing colors of the leaves and the serenity to be found hiking in the hills around Silicon Valley (Santa Clara Valley). Oh, and a chai recipe to warm you up!

Outdoor Fun and Cool Rewards: Two Bay Area Trail Challenges

Take a Hike Challenge participants at Wunderlich. Photo courtesy San Mateo County Parks

San Mateo County’s Take a Hike Challenge and Bay Area-wide Ridge Trail Challenge offer locals a taste of what their nearby parks have to offer–and prizes!

New Trails to Explore in Santa Cruz at San Vicente Redwoods

Vista Point at San Vicente Redwoods, photo copyright Mike Kahn.

Discover new hiking, mountain biking, and horseback riding trails on the coastal side of the Santa Cruz Mountains at the new San Vicente Redwoods.

Day Trips and Sips: Wine Tasting, Hiking and Food in Portola Valley

Sunrise from Windy Hill overlooking San Francisco Bay, copyright Eleanor Raab.

Enjoy a great Portola Valley day trip adventure drinking coffee at Konditorei Cafe, hiking or mountain biking at Windy Hill Open Space Preserve, wine tasting at Neely Winery, and grabbing a bite or a beer at Alpine Inn. Ooh, game on!

Finding Pomponio's Cave

In Search of the Man Who Rebuked the Mission System

Del Puerto Canyon: From the Earth’s Mantle to Mars in the Devil’s Range

Long referred to as “The Door,” Del Puerto Canyon winds 22 miles through the Diablo Range, connecting the San Joaquin Valley to San Antonio Valley and, eventually, the greater San Francisco Bay area.

Good Hooky: SUP at Vasona

Yup, this SUP cost only $15 an hour. Hilltromper photo.

We all know work is overrated. But this deal isn't.

Empty Highway in the Land of Slides

I am walking down the center of Highway 1 south of Gorda, a two-lane road carved into 1,000-plus feet of precipitous marine terrace in Big Sur.

Finding Frank Norris in the Santa Cruz Mountains

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A memorial to a pioneer of American literature sits unseen 10 miles west of Gilroy.

A gargantuan spiderweb hangs across the steep dirt road. It shimmers, translucent in the sunlight, slack lines nearly imperceptible. As I duck the web and trudge further up the road's corkscrew turn, the thick brush, thistle, weeds and poison oak part, revealing an ancient looking stone bench on the shoulder above the road.

Science Spotlight: Why Do Humpbacks Breach?

Scientists are unsure what drives humpback whales' exuberant displays. NOAA photo.

More than 40 feet long and weighing up to 40 tons, adult humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) are formidable giants. But their immensity doesn’t hinder their athleticism.

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