A Canyon of Restoration

July 8, 2026 – San Diego, California

I am sitting in the shade of a broad-spreading pine tree at a small hacienda in San Diego. The sky above is, well, sky blue. There has been a nice, consistent breeze all day. Now it is quite comfortable in the mid-afternoon Southern California climate.  I am on an annual rest stop with a friend that I have known since third grade back in the hometown of Verona, New York. Rest, as in restoration. Restoring the soul, body, and spirit.

Yesterday’s travel extravaganza was mostly sitting, punctuated by the short walks around the ABCs of airport gates that I visited. Today, I chose to be a pedestrian and user of the local transportation system for a trip to Mission Beach for a little West Coast salt, surf, and sun like back in my early CA days fifty-some years ago.

Due to detours from construction and not having fully researched the method, I chose to deviate from the original plan and stopped at the Bird Rock Coffee Roaster I passed on the way to the train stop. Choosing a medium Optimist blend with a 10-ounce bag of ground to go, I enjoyed that breeze on the outdoor seating along the sidewalk in the shade. Discovering the homegrown coffee roaster in town, with a laboratory across the road, sparked nostalgia for Green Mountain Coffee Roasters’ Coffee College back in Waterbury, Vermont, a neighboring town to where I live.

Then, I decided to go with another plan: walk the Tocolote Canyon.

Circling back to the hacienda, I switched my footwear from the urban flops to the Merrill Mocs and Darn Tough Socks for the assault of the canyon trail. My airport shoes, as needed, the Mocs got the canyon dusting they solely needed. The out-and-back mission took me through a mostly complete construction zone for a new water line and along a twisty, turny, narrow trail, barely wide enough for two abreast in some places. Other places showed signs of human intervention in a more ecological restorative way.

Restoring habitat is not new to me, as I’m from the Mad River Valley, Vermont, where we wage war on Knotweed, Honeysuckle, Chervil, and other non-native invasive species. Beautiful flowering plants were prioritized in areas cleared of overabundant vegetation, giving me a vision of what this area, clearly impacted by the City’s water infrastructure project, will look like in 10, 20, 50, or 100 years. Conservation is imperative for so many reasons. Extensive work is being done to remove invasive plants and restore native vegetation by Friends of Tocolote Canyon in cooperation with the City of San Diego.

Hiking at a pace along this trek provided changing views, an occasional gecko, and a slowly passing mountain biker, who rang his chime that registered as a text chime to this otherwise audio-challenged walker. Thanking him for his patience, I became more aware of the multi-use trail.

Then, I turned off my music piped into my hearing aids.

This is also a day of reunion with friends that I have made here. My amigos come to visit me in the fall to run in a footrace in Stowe, Vermont, the Heady Trotter sponsored by the Alchemist Brewery, makers of the world-famous Heady Topper double IPA. I packed a case of cans in my large checked bag for them to enjoy. I will haul home some Pliny the Elder from California’s Russian River Brewing. We will be heading out for burgers and beer at famous Rocky’s Crown Pub.

July 9, 2026

My bags are packed, and I’m ready to go. Last night, with a little help from my friends, my plans began to solidify. This morning, I am renting a car to drive to Santa Clarita instead of taking the train. This will give me plenty of flexibility to attend rehearsals and other interesting places over the next three days while I tour DCI and the Mid-Cal area. My first stop will be Cougar Stadium, the site of tonight’s show, to check out the venue and see if there is a corps rehearsing on campus. I might also search for a playable piano to work on my new ballad.

I will update here as the day progresses. Peace out for now.