I often title my photos based on feelings or emotions evoked while I was there. Not this one. In fact, I don't believe I even took this photo in summer. Furthermore, I didn't even post-process and publish this photo until about ten years after I took it. Nothing about it really struck me at the time. But now, almost a decade later, it strikes me deeply. I think the title "Summertime Sadness" fits from an aesthetic standpoint... the bright sun and clear sky, the lens flares, the overall sepia hue. But for the, the title fits even better from an emotional standpoint. To me, this photo perfectly embodies an afternoon in the Santa Cruz Mountains. A place where I spent many hours of my time (Windy Hill and Russian Ridge in particular). Rediscovering this photo after so many years have passed, and having since moved away from California, it is soaked with nostalgia and, in a way, sadness. Not a deep lingering sadness. That phase of life had run its course and is full of happy memories, not regrets. Rather just a fleeting sadness of good times gone past.

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The way fog comes into the Santa Cruz Mountains is like the way water laps at rocks on a beach. The height of the fog (which depends on the temperature of the ocean and the air, and many other things) determines which mountains it will crest over. This then determines which valleys it will flow down on the other side. Because of this, anyone who is not an expert meteorologist as well as an expert on Bay Area geography will never quite know where the fog will always be. This was the case for me on this morning. It was my first time hiking the Black Mountain Trail, in Rancho San Antonio Open Space. Around every bend was a surprise, but around this specific bend was quite the surprise. It did not seem like a foggy day at all, up until this point. But upon rounding this bend, I was confronted with a dense wall of mist. The unexpectedness of it, and the way the trees filtered the soft morning sun, made for quite an experience.

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There's only two or three photographs that when I see them, my first thought is "wow, I remember how cold I was." Obviously, the California winter storm pictured here is nothing like the blizzards in other parts of the country. Heck, it's nothing like the blizzards in other parts of the state. These Santa Cruz Mountains are remarkably mild. But that means you're typically not dressed like you would be for a nor'easter. And here at Russian Ridge, the winds coming off the Pacific can rip over these mountains at surprising speeds. Couple that with the fog and 100% humidity, and near freezing temperatures, and it can feel like the coldest shower you've ever taken.

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I took this photograph along Ancient Oaks Trail, in Russian Ridge Open Space, California. I must have passed this tree close to a hundred times. It's located on one of my favorite hikes in one of my favorite places. But for some reason, despite its imposing size, it never seemed to catch my attention too much. But on this morning, while covered in dew, the rising sun back-lit the tree in such a way that it seemed to come to life, almost as if possessed by some sort of divinity. The tree seemed like an guardian angel, watching over the acres of California chaparral.

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I have a few other photographs of Black Rock Falls on my website, which honestly I prefer to this one. That's because to me, what makes this waterfall special is the amazing environment that surrounds it. Things like lush ferns, moss dripping with moisture, and giant roots intertwining with the rock faces. In fact, those attributes are not only what make this waterfall special, but what make all of Uvas Canyon special. This photograph doesn't feature those attributes as much, but rather focuses on just the general shape and flow of the waterfall. While it has less visual intrigue, photographs like this do serve a purpose, for those seeking to simply learn more about this location.

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This photo has quite the story to go along with it. It had been raining in the area a lot for the past few days. During a brief break in the rains, I thought I'd try to go capture some lush hillsides. At first I thought I'd go to Coyote Hills, but as I approached them, it was clear they were still brown. However, I could see some beautiful emerald hillsides rising in the distance (what I now know to be the Garin/Dry Creek/Pioneer parks). I had never explored these hills yet, so I whipped out my phone to see if there were any public, explorable parks in the hills ahead. And then, I got pulled over and given a ticket for using my phone. Oh well, I can't say I didn't deserve it. But undeterred, I still explored the hills. It was a lovely setting, as the approaching storms coated the hills in dappled, evanescent sunlight. Overall, I think it was worth the ticket.

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When I was still new to California, and searching for new places to explore, Uvas Canyon was quite the discovery. Well, I was actually always searching for new places to explore. But towards the beginning, I think I was subconsciously searching for places that felt like the mountains of North Carolina. In North Carolina, the mountains are always wet and green, with waterfalls everywhere. California's Santa Cruz Mountains really aren't the same, but early on I was trying to force them to be. Uvas Canyon is really the only place I found that truly felt like the Appalachians back east. Long after other streams have dried up, Uvas Canyon is still happily flowing. I'm sure this patch of lush jungle is anything but ancient -- earthquakes are constantly shifting where perennial streams flow here -- but nevertheless, the giant roots, moss, and ferns gave it an ancient feel to me.

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On this hike through Russian Ridge Open Space, I saw a phenomenon that was completely knew to me. As the fog broke up, the sun began to peek through the cracks. I'm sure this must happen often, and I come here often, so I don't know why it is so rare for me to see. Perhaps this usually happens when the sun is lower in the sky, thus it's angle means it can't shine through. Or perhaps there's usually a lot more void than cloud. That would mean the projection is mostly sunshine, with just a few cloud shadows. Just based on memory, I think such a sight is far more common. But this sight, though it sounds similar, felt completely different. Instead of an archipelago of shadows, it's an archipelago of sunlight. Rather than contiguous paths of sunlight, which would happen if the fog was "breaking up," it's the shadows that are contiguous. So instead, we're witnessing holes being burned through the fog.

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This view has been featured in many of my photographs. It's from the western sides of the mountains in Russian Ridge Open Space, one of my favorite places to hike. These Santa Cruz Mountains, while not the most dramatic coastal features California has to offer, have a beauty all their own. I don't think this is my best photograph from this vantage. But I think it might have been the most beautiful evening I spent there. As the sun set, the fog began to break up. This was hidden, because from the height of the trail, you were looking at the clouds almost head-on. But the broken nature of the clouds was projected onto the Pacific Ocean below, creating an ambiance I hadn't experienced before or since.

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Montara Beach is a beautiful state beach near Pacifica, California. We chose this beach as the location for a friend's birthday picnic. Unfortunately, the weather wasn't very picnic friendly. It was foggy and cold all day... and very windy! This wasn't all that unexpected, since such conditions are pretty common along Central/Northern California's Pacific coast. The location was chosen more in hopes of ending the picnic with a beautiful sunset. The fog seemed really socked-in all day, so we were pretty sure that those hopes were dashed, too. But right as the day was ending, the fog broke up just enough to give us a stellar sunset, with the perfect amount of clouds (which is pretty rare for California).

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