Enchanted, we stopped several times, agog at the sheer beauty of the forest. Fairies must live here!

I would love to go in and see what those bats are up to.

Hopping forward every few seconds, he jabbered with renewed emphasis.

Pearly-pink bindweed offered delicacies to a gnat.

Toward the top, glimpses of the Pacific ocean showed cool blue through lush green

To the left is undulating coastline: a strand of dry sand, wet sand, white surf and sparkling sea framed by black boulders jutting in golden ratio from the blue waters.

Mushrooms glistened like candied flesh.

I saw a foaming tree. Why is it foaming?

Desmond made a wish. He didn't tell me what it was, but it might have had something to do with restoring dinosaurs to the earth

California poppies soaked in sunshine.

A banana slug stretched long, feeding on pine needles and oak leaves along the forest floor.

I resisted gentle waves and soft sand and stayed on the trail.

It was like entering a foreign land filled with exotic inhabitants. This dazzling Blue Gentian caught my eye.

The ribs of an old ship wreck poked from the gloom, conjuring images of Sir Francis Drake and his band of explorers huddled around fires on the beach.

We spotted a Great Egret hunting in Limantour Estero; the scene worthy of a Japanese woodcut.

I nearly stepped on a handsome little garter snake sunning himself on the path.

Dropping onto the dirt trail, I discovered a field of bunnies.

It was hot enough to find lizards sunning on the asphalt.

Cows eyed us incredulously, stood ankle-deep in the irrigation pond and nestled down in circular beds of purple Douglas Iris.

The soft pink and yellow blossoms of ice plant spread out around our feet. We rested on a giant drift log, marveling at what we discovered.