The 5 mile loop

I am an avid walker-hiker and my wife loves to ride horses.  She has had them ever since she was a teenager.  My favorite trail has always been the Mount Whitney trail, tucked into the Sierra Nevada Mountains.  The trailhead elevation is 8000'.  The summit is 14,000'.  The distance is 11 miles up and, 11 miles back down.  Most people spend the night at one of several base camps.  I hiked this trail on a day hike when I was in my forties.  I departed at 5 in the morning, reached the summit at 2 in the afternoon and returned to the trailhead at 9 that night.  It is a grueling day hike.  I'm thinking about doing it again now that I am in my sixties.

Well anyway, it turns out that we have some of the best hiking and riding trails right here in San Nicolas.  There are probably 10 different trails that start outside our front door!  The one we have been doing lately is what we call the 5 mile loop.  We do this 3 times a week.  Debbi rides, I walk.  I will have future discussions about the other scenic trails that are close to our home.

Starting of the 5 mile loop.  It's just an old dirt road that few people use.  

The San Nicololas lagoon with the town of Chapala in the background.        

This is as peaceful as it gets around here.  

One of Diablo's favorite walks, also.  Too far for Peso.    

The rainy season turns this into a gorgeous canopy.  

Santa Cruz  

Every community has a soccer field.  This is Santa Cruz's. 

Solitude is bliss.  

Huge Green Houses that grow tomatoes. 

Corn feed for the cows and horses harvested in farms along  the trail.