Doug McConnell’s OpenRoad.TV Tips

10/07/08

Point Reyes National Seashore never disappoints

It's a cool grey morning as I write this and warm up with a rich latte.

In a few minutes, I'll leave my favorite place for coffee in Marin, Emporio Rulli in Larkspur, and drive westward over the hills to Point Reyes National Seashore. I'm filming a story about the restoration of an important wetland on Tomales Bay. The restoration will expand California's coastal wetlands by 12%.  It's a big, important and positive environmental tale....and a nice one to tell today while gloomy economic news rides with me on the radio.

My time is short, so this blog will be, too.  Point Reyes always brightens my spirits, so if you need a little cheering up, take the short trip west to soak up the Park's beauty.  Visit the historic lighthouse perched high above the...

Posted at 05:31 PM in Doug McConnell’s OpenRoad.TV Travel Tips | Permalink | Comments

09/18/08

Fall is in the Air

I'm off tomorrow, winging eastward, to meet join a group of Bay Area people for a biking trip around Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket in Massachusetts.   We'll be cared for and guided by Backroads, the superb travel and active adventure company headquartered in the East Bay. Those coming on the trip purchased the journey at a fundraiser for the Taylor Family Foundation at its annual "Day in Park" extravaganza.  The money is used to support the Foundation's important and extraordinary work to give children in need the chance to enjoy themselves for a little while at the magical Camp Arroyo near Livermore.

We'll be...

Posted at 02:04 PM in Doug McConnell’s OpenRoad.TV Travel Tips | Permalink | Comments

09/04/08

Remembering the Bridge to Nowhere

I promise to stay out of politics with this little blog of mine. I have my own views, of course, but travel is non-partisan, so I'll keep it that way. But the advent of Sarah Palin has me thinking a lot about Alaska, for many years my stomping grounds.

With the exception of some extended stays in Washington, D.C., I lived in Alaska from 1973 until 1982. Most of the time, my home base was Anchorage, but my first two years were spent in Ketchikan, the southernmost town on the panhandle of Alaska, then and now a popular stop for ships cruising the Inside Passage.

Back then, Ketchikan was home to the largest pulp mill in the world. It was a logging and fishing community with a fair amount of tourism in the summer. The year-round population of Ketchikan was about...

Posted at 05:25 PM in Doug McConnell’s OpenRoad.TV Travel Tips | Permalink | Comments

08/21/08

Last Day on Bay Area Backroads

It's odd this morning.   I'm leaving in a few minutes to go to one of my favorite spots in the Bay Area, the Marin Headlands, to say goodbye to an old friend. 

First, the place. The Headlands is part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA,) the greatest and most-visited urban national park in the world.  From Tomales Bay in the north to the hills near Woodside on the Peninsula, the GGNRA includes 80,000 acres and natural and historic gems such as Muir Woods, Alcatraz, the Presidio, Sweeney Ridge and, of course, the Headlands.  

A little more than a generation ago,  the Headlands was bristling with military batteries and nuclear-tipped Nike missiles.  As the Army began to leave, developers started to move...

Posted at 12:21 PM in Doug McConnell’s OpenRoad.TV Travel Tips | Permalink | Comments

06/28/08

Lassen Volcanic National Park

California is a lovely and serene piece of paradise between cataclysmic natural disasters.  Right now, fires are burning all over the northern and central parts of our state. Smoke chokes the air as I write this. Hundreds of fires, most caused by dry lightning strikes, burn through our overly dry landscape.  And it's only June!  Welcome to the world of global warming. It's real. It's with us. Now, we must act to minimize its impact for generations to come. But that's another story.

I'm actually filing this post to urge you to spend some gas dollars if you can to visit one of California's most beautiful but volatile natural treasures, Lassen Volcanic National Park.  Lassen is only about five hours northeast of San Francisco, but it's typically...

Posted at 06:20 PM in Doug McConnell’s OpenRoad.TV Travel Tips | Permalink | Comments

06/12/08

San Francisco By The Sea

It's getting awfully hot inland.  Time to head for the ocean. Along the coast of central and northern California the choices of where to go are almost endless and they're all terrific.  Sometimes, however, amidst them all we tend to forget about San Francisco. 

I love hiking around Land's End as it straddles the Golden Gate with fabulous views of the Marin Headlands, and then turns to face the open Pacific and views of the Farallones,  Seal Rock and the Cliff House.  This whole area is being substantially spruced-up these days thanks to the exceptional work of the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy in association with the National Park Service.  Take a walk, breath the fresh and cooler air and then grab a bite to eat at Louie's or the Cliff...

Posted at 06:46 PM in Doug McConnell’s OpenRoad.TV Travel Tips | Permalink | Comments

05/30/08

North to Oregon

One of my favorite drive trips anywhere leads north from San Francisco along wild stretches of coastline, beneath towering groves of old growth redwoods, past dozens of state and national parks and protected open spaces, across serpentine-colored rivers and through the domain of elegant Roosevelt Elk liberated from the threat of extinction all the way to our state's border with Oregon. It's a trip most of us, unfortunately, never take. If you want to escape the madding crowd, I urge you to follow Highways 1 and 101 north to Oregon, and discover your own private California.

The drive north is worth as much time as you have to give. If you rush, you can reach the Oregon frontier in about 8 hours. But why rush? Just take a look at a map and you'll find more fabulous stops...

Posted at 12:16 PM in Doug McConnell’s OpenRoad.TV Travel Tips | Permalink | Comments

05/19/08

Ferries Ahoy!

I recently reminded myself of how lucky we are to live near and around a beautiful bay plied by ferry boats traveling to and from some terrific communities.

My friends and I started a lovely day together at the historic and food-friendly Ferry Building in San Francisco. The sun was bright as we pulled away from from the pier on our way to Vallejo. The City's impressive skyline slowly disappeared in our wake as we cruised past Angel Island, under the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge and almost within touch of the East Brother Light Station and its romantic bed and
breakfast. We were traveling in non-commute hours and had the boat almost entirely to ourselves. We sunned ourselves on the back deck as we slowly motored past Mare Island before making landfall and having lunch in...

Posted at 09:16 PM in Doug McConnell’s OpenRoad.TV Travel Tips | Permalink | Comments

04/25/08

Whale Tales

I picked up the newspaper this morning to see a photo of a whale in the bay near San Francisco's Crissy Field with the Golden Gate Bridge in the background. People tell tales of seeing whales in the Bay, and they are often true, of course, but I've never been lucky enough to see one. I came close, though, one day. Very close.

It was a few years back, and I was shooting a story for Bay Area Backroads and OpenRoad.TV on and around Angel Island. By the way, if you haven't been to Angel Island, put this down and go right now! It's a one square mile State Park packed with layers of human history, fascinating and diverse natural environments and drop-dead gorgeous views of land and water in all directions. I urge you to ride the Tiburon...

Posted at 05:16 PM in Doug McConnell’s OpenRoad.TV Travel Tips | Permalink | Comments

04/11/08

Ferries and Food

I was just by the Ferry Building in San Francisco the other day, and was reminded of what a terrific culinary destination its become. The historic building itself has been beautifully restored and it's filled with all kinds of delightful tastes.....from cheese to chocolate....and caviar to coffee. The Ferry Building was once THE transportation hub of the Bay Area. For decades before the bridges were built, tens of thousands of people passed through every day as they shuttled by ferry between work and home. Fortunately, ferryboats still come and go, but many people stick around the Ferry Building these days instead of racing in and out. They're compelled to eat and to shop for fabulous food, and they're not disappointed.

Posted at 05:35 PM in Doug McConnell’s OpenRoad.TV Travel Tips | Permalink | Comments