Category Archives: At Home in California

Thoughts from the good ole place I was born and raised.

Travel Impressions, Distinctly Modern

Posted on July 14, 2013 by mlgray

Though I’ve now done this drive across California to Colorado more than a dozen times, nothing beats the thunderstorms that roar over the San Rafael Swell in the middle of nowhere, Utah. Each adventure across the 1000 miles that wander … Continue reading →

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Running to Metamorphose

Posted on February 24, 2013 by mlgray

I’d like to spend this week promoting another project I’m working on and sharing some background as to why I’ve taken up long-distance endurance running.  The following post was originally posted at the home site for the Lymphedema Awareness Team, … Continue reading →

Posted in At Home in California, At Home in Denver & the Rockies, Community, Running, Travel | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Summiting Seven Peaks of the San Jacinto Mountains

Posted on August 26, 2012 by mlgray

Different Modes of Exploration #12: Cross-country Hiking Photos Courtesy of Daniel Gray, © All Rights Reserved The guidebook warned of timber rattlesnakes lingering throughout the cienega (a hanging marsh high in the mountains). So as we step off the trail … Continue reading →

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Born to Run?

Posted on July 29, 2012 by mlgray

Different Modes of Exploration #11: Trail Running I wake up with the question, “am I born to run?” turning in my mind.  Christopher McDougall’s book doesn’t pose the phrase as a question but as a statement.  At the 5 am … Continue reading →

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Hiking Untrailed Territory

Posted on June 10, 2012 by mlgray

Something from the Vault: Volume #3 “Screw the trail.  I’m tired of the trail!”  Michael yells over the gusting wind at the top of 13,054 foot Mt. Dana in Yosemite National Park. “It’s the best way to the car,” I … Continue reading →

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A Sense of Place (called Idyllwild)

Posted on January 15, 2012 by mlgray

Different Modes of Exploration – Experience # 3 I love to write rambling passages about being in motion: the things that pass through Italian train windows  like moving photo albums, the bumpy raucous nature of all-night bus rides through Vietnam, … Continue reading →

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Different Modes of Exploration: Experience 2 – The Climber’s Edge

Posted on January 12, 2012 by mlgray

My brother spends hours alone on the rock, climbing massive, grand stretches of granite and sandstone, belaying himself, cleaning his own gear, climbing back up.  The last time he returned from a 1200 foot solo climb in Zion, there was … Continue reading →

Posted in At Home in California, Different Modes of Exploration, Travel | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Different Modes of Exploration: Experience 1 – A Lion’s Trail

Posted on January 7, 2012 by mlgray

While spending a raucous two weeks in the California sunshine with family and friends for the holidays, I fell into a lovely rhythm of getting outdoors far more regularly than I’m able to during a typical Denver work week.  The … Continue reading →

Posted in At Home in California, Different Modes of Exploration, Travel | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment