Across California: Cuesta Ridge

Now on the Cuesta Ridge, west of San Luis Obispo, my home town. I see the house where I grew up and many other landmarks of my life.

In a few hours we'll reach Cuesta Pass, where Letty will meet us, then out along West Cuesta Ridge for the night. We'll reach Morro Bay tomorrow afternoon if all goes well. I still have some drops of Colorado River water sequestered in my pack for delivery to the Pacific.

The last two days have taken us through the Garcia and the Santa Lucia Wildernesses with their remarkably lush riparian habitats -- what a contrast to Soda Lake in the Mojave!

-- Cal French

Cal, 74, a member of the Sierra Club for 42 years, is trekking 530 miles from the Colorado River to the Pacific Ocean to highlight the threatened natural corridors of Southern California. Cal sits on the Sierra Club Santa Lucia Chapter Board. He is blogging from a BlackBerry.