Hiked down to the Dominator shipwreck in Palos Verdes after driving around the whole area searching for horse stables. I came here last year in the spring with my old film camera, but this time could take as many pictures as I wanted.

A good winter swell was fading away but made this look like a rideable wave - it’s not.

January 24 & 25 was our second weekend in a row to be stuck home on the boat. It's been awhile between travelling and seeing family/friends that we have found ourselves with the opportunity to.... um, well... we didn't know what to do. I always have boat work but the weather was heating up and I didn't want my maintenance list to get in Mia's way (this time). I woke up and made coffee, "What do you want to do?" "I don't know, that thing that you wanted to do." sarcastically reply. A few minutes go by. "What should we do?"

This questioning bounces around between us for a couple hours until I'm restless and make us get up. We get coffee out, I check surf because last weekend (pre-back-injury) I bought a new longboard fin to try and it's been taunting me all week, Mia's equestrian side has been resurfacing and she's been looking at sensible places to board a horse. Palos Verdes has a few places so we decide to go up there, I know there's good views and trails so I bring my camera... the afternoon is finally planned. After some successful and unsuccessful visits to the horse stables, we hiked down to the shipwreck in PV.

Sunday was even warmer, mid-80's and dead calm. Mia went to the store for beer and snacks and I went and prepared the dinghy for us to cruise around on. I rowed us around the harbor, we got the usual comments from people about chivalry not being dead and how classic the dinghy looks. The tide was so low that people were beaching their skiffs in the middle of the channel and having a big hang out on the shoal. Although the wind was supposed to be strong and it was a small craft advisory, it was basically the most unexciting and safe, warm boating weather we could get here.

I couldn’t stop talking about how clear it was, almost never can see these mountains and from the top of PV we could see past Catalina and even San Nicolas Island.

There was a rideable wave though and a handful of surfers gave it a go.

hard to believe the conditions were this good this close to LA.

the hike involves a steep and slippery dirt switchback down a cliff and then a few hundred yards of boulder-to-boulder stepping.

Tried my hand at some long exposure night photography right up from the boat. Turned out pretty cool and I’m now trying to get creative for better shots.

Chapters

Excuses to take pictures