iVoy a Puerto Rico!

Welcome to my blog! Wow it's been a while since I've updated! I've decided to revive my blog to chronicle my adventure to Puerto Rico with the Spanish Class at Buckingham. We are leaving tomorrow earrrlllllllllllly and will be there for 8 days traveling around the island and seeing the sights. On tap for us is Old San Juan, El Yunque (the only rainforest in the U.S. Forest System), bio luminescent bay, the City of Ponce, and more things that I can't think of right now. I'll be blogging each night after the day's events are done about our experiences. One thing's for sure, its gonna be a ride we'll never forget. Stay tuned!

Gone hiking...

This weekend definitely went to hiking. Combined yesterday and today, I hiked 15 miles. While this may not seem like much, my body feels like it was a lot more! Yesterday's hike at Redwood Regional Park in Oakland was a very tough, up and down 10 miles. But this post is mostly about today's hikes, which were both up in Lake County. ROAD TRIP! The drive up was rather uneventful, but went on CA-29 through the very scenic Napa Valley. After passing through Calistoga, the northernmost town in Napa County, I began the climb over Mt. St. Helena. This has got to be one of the windiest roads maintained by the state of California that I have ever been on. Hairpin turns and narrow pavement wind up the mountain and eventually over into Lake County. I can only imagine what it was like for my dad when I first went on this road, he drove it in the pounding January rain! After entering Lake County, it was only about 5 miles to Middletown, where I picked up lunch at a deli that I have been to previously and liked. 15 more miles past the town of Lower Lake brought me to Anderson Marsh SHP, where I would do my first hike. It was mostly flat, through a large grass field. Truthfully, it didn't look like much of a marsh. There were lots of butterflies though, most of the monarch variety. The hike was only about 1.5 miles, and I finished it in about 45 minutes. Next stop would be Clear Lake State Park, the site of my second hike. After eating my lunch my the boat launch, I headed up towards the trailhead. The first mile or so was a huge hill that I huff and puffed my way up to the top. Luckily, this would be my only uphill. The rest of the way winded around the top of the hill, then down it towards the end. I was rewarded several times with spectacular views of Clear Lake, one of which is shown at top. For those who don't know, Clear Lake is the largest natural freshwater lake wholly contained within California (Lake Tahoe is larger, but it is partially in Nevada). I completed the 3 mile hike in about an hour and a half. Maybe less I can't really remember :P. On the way home I decided to take the scenic way home, avoiding the climb over Mt. St. Helena. After heading a little west into Lakeport, I hooked up with CA-20 towards Williams. This I followed along the north shore of Clear Lake, passing many small towns along the way. One of them was called Nice. Although it is pronounced NEESE, like the city in France, I thought the name was kind of funny. Contuning east into Colusa County, I turned south onto CA-16. 16 winds through a valley along the Cache Creek, a very scenic drive. It passes through a few small towns and of course, Cache Creek Casino, probably the most desolate Indian casino in California. Really isn't close to anything! After leaving 16, it was just a short drive down I-505 and back roads to home. This was a fun day, but boy am I sore! I've got to do this more often... :)

SCHOOL'S OUT!

Finally, the long wait of the past two weeks is over. School has finally let out for the summer! It's a weird feeling however, since this is the first school year that I've been going to school full time (homeschooled the last few years) since the 6th grade. Now we all know those elementary school kids, they can barely stand to wait for school to let out. When the last bell rings, they run out of that classroom as if their pants were on fire. Nothing can bring their mood down for the next few days. I was expecting that same joy to return once again this school year, but it was not so. What I felt instead, was a great feeling of bittersweetness. It was great to be able to take it easy for the next two months, but it also meant parting with all the amazing people I've met over the last year. This was definitely NOT something I felt back in elementary school! Some people might be thinking just the opposite, that high school sucks and it is not the best years of your life. Not for me. I love high school. Being at Buckingham has made me realize this. I thought I had it good being homeschooled, not having to go anywhere and doing relatively little work. Boy was I missing out. I was missing out on making friends, and more importantly, making memories. Memories of all the crazy things we did in high school. Now at the half way point of high school, I look back and say, goodbye to my shy, awkward underclassman self, and look towards improving myself as a UPPERCLASSMAN! :D

Sierra County of bust!

Happy Memorial Day to all! On this holiday, we take time to remember all of those who have died in the armed forces to protect our freedom. Parades, barbecues, and summer spirit abounds, for many of us it is the sure sign that summer is right around the corner. Since it is a federal holiday, most people have it off, including all schools. So what do us in NorCal do? We head to the mountains! Enter the Sierra Nevada Mountains, a large mountain range that runs along the eastern half of California, serving as a natural barrier between us and Nevada. Some would call it NorCal's outdoor playground, and why not? The Sierra Nevadas (or as the locals say, the Sierras) boast over a dozen ski resorts, pristine alpine forest, and of course, Lake Tahoe. The big kahuna. Tahoe has it all, for all seasons. I would start naming off what it has but I think I would run out of room. But the Sierras aren't just for us in Sacramento and the Bay Area, we share it with those who live there. Once you get away from the hustle and bustle of Lake Tahoe, you can find some very sleepy little towns that are quite interesting. Now enter Sierra County! This small mountain county holds less than 4,000 people, but if measured in scenery, would outpopulate Los Angeles! Now you might be wondering when I'm actually going to get to my adventure. Wait no longer my friend, here it is! Yesterday was all about Highway 49! I'll skip the boring parts, and get right to entering up into the mountains. I've been driving for about 1 hour and 45 minutes when I make a quick stop in Grass Valley. After that I continue up Highway 49 towards Downieville. Folks, this road 'aint for the easily carsick. After winding my way up into the mountains, passing through only two towns (North San Juan in Nevada County, and Camptonville in Yuba County), I reached the town of Downieville. This town certainly has a colorful history. It was founded in 1849 and by 1851 had swelled to a population of over 5,000! It even got more votes than Sacramento in its bid to be the state capital! Today, the Sierra County seat only holds about 300 people, but don't be fooled, this town is anything but boring! It maintains its small town charm and has many cute shops along Main Street. The town also sits right on the Downie River, which at this time of year is rushing with snow melt. The water provides a nice, peaceful backdrop. Moving on up Highway 49 brings you to the town of Sierra City, a town of similar size to Downieville. It too, has a nice main street with shops, but lacks the tourist clout of its neighbor to the west. Heading still more east will bring you up, and up, and up, until you finally reach Yuba Pass, elevation 6,620 feet. About two miles past the pass, a scenic overlook sits to the side of the road. There, I saw one of the most spectacular views I've ever seen. I could see the entire Sierra Valley, including the town of Sierraville, plus snowcapped mountains in the distance. Spectacular! The eastern portion of Sierra County is quite different from the west. The east is fairly flat, due to the Sierra Valley, while the west is rugged and mountainous. About 5 miles after reaching the valley floor, the town of Sierraville appears. Really there is little more than a couple of houses, restaurants, and the junction of State Highways 49 and 89. 49 continues north to Loyalton, while 89 heads south to Truckee and Interstate 80. Now on to the lone city in Sierra County, Loyalton. This is Sierra County's largest population center, and it is about 800. Unfortunately, it lacks the charm of their county seat to the west, and is much like most small towns in the west. They have a grocery store, post office, some businesses, and houses. That's about it. Really your run of the mill small town. Heading north out of town brought me to the end of my stay in Sierra County. The rest of the way would take me town to Reno, Nevada to connect with I-80, then a few more hours to home. One thing is for sure, it won't be my last stay in Sierra County. But of course, all weekends must come to an end. School tomorrow! :(

Welcome to my blog! I am new to this process, but I will try to update my blog when I can. As you might have guessed by my title, I travel often. Mainly I started this blog to write about my travels, but maybe I'll include different posts once in a while. Okay, now a little about me. My name is Cory (last name withheld), and I live in Suisun City, California. If you have no idea where that is, that's okay. Most people don't. It is located in the Bay Area, about halfway between San Francisco and Sacramento, next to Fairfield (Solano County). If you still don't know where I'm talking about, well go Mapquest it then. I am a sophomore in high school at Buckingham Charter Magnet High School, located in Vacaville, about 10 miles north of Suisun City. It really is a jewel in this area, characterized by schools of 2,000 kids and graduating classes of over 500. BCMHS maintains a student population of 425 maximum. Personally, I think I would get lost at a larger school, I seriously love Buckingham. Wouldn't trade going to another high school for anything. Don't worry, we are still a public school, and not immune to the budget mess going on up in Sacramento. Sigh. Anyway, my hobbies include collecting library cards and www.wheresgeorge.com, a currency tracking site. You will find that many of my travels are because of this website. But that is to be explained another day. Other than my weird hobbies, I am just your average teenage boy. Love to play and watch sports, especially baseball! Es mi favorito! Computers, of course, is another one of my interests, and READING! I love to read! My favorite way of getting books is going on over to the YA section at the Solano County Library and just picking out a book that looks good. Well anyway, that is all I can think of. Everyone enjoy their three day weekend! I know I will. :)