Oceanside getaway: Surf, seafood and the blare of train whistles

When I lived in the heart of Los Angeles, I liked to zip out to Malibu to escape the hustle and bustle. "Zip out," of course, is a...

Pac-10 football visitor's guide: Football isn't the only game in town

Fall is in the air, and that means Pac-10 football. The powder blue- and tarnished cardinal-clad lads soon will embark to stadia across...

Port Chicago, site of a World War II home front tragedy, is a classroom today

The bombs erupted along Pier No. 1, thousands of them, about 30 miles northeast of San Francisco. And 66 years later, you can still spot a...

National monuments? Maybe they will be

It's tough to visit California's Bodie Hills. Although many travelers turn off U.S. Highway 395 in the Eastern Sierra to see the well-...

Favorite public golf courses in California

Forget the Scots. Golf was invented in America. There's a petroglyph at Chaco Canyon in New Mexico showing Kokopelli, a mystical Anasazi...

Beyond the beach: Try Maui's tropic scape or Point Reyes' dunes

When it comes to long walks on warm, sandy beaches, Southern Californians are spoiled by our many choices. But how about strolling miles...

Oil runs deep in L.A. history

As those doomed fiberglass mammoths in the bubbling ooze at La Brea Tar Pits attest, oil in Los Angeles is an old story. But how much of...

Gilroy: A fascinating history with more than a hint of garlic

Lori Guerriero was on her knees cooing at and cajoling 14-month-old Alexis Garcia, the son of a friend, to smile at her while she tried to...

Summer camps aren't just kids' stuff

In my youth, nothing spelled summer more than my box of stationery, stashed in a trunk next to my insect repellent, shorts, towels and...

Highway 1 with kids: 10 fabulous pit stops between Los Angeles and San Francisco

I often lament having left Los Angeles, my hometown, to live in San Francisco, especially now that I have a son. After Kai was born, we...

Major excitement at Southern California's minor league parks

With school out (or about to be) and long, sunny days in, the charms of baseball beckon. But if big league prices put a dent in your budget,...

San Diego Zoo's Wild Animal Park enjoys baby boom

I admit it: I fall in love easily. First, it was with a 268-pound guy. Despite his youth, he was gray and wrinkled. But there were others as...

San Francisco: The transit museum known as the F line

The green-and-gold tram trundled down the road, a small Australian flag hanging out the driver's window. I stared in amazement,...

Three older women tackle Mt. Whitney

She was sprawled in the mud, her whimper more from exhaustion than pain.

At Pinnacles, looking in on a condor nursery

I'd never accuse the good rangers at Pinnacles National Monument of pulling a bait-and-switch, but they did have to recently perform some...

Fresno County Fruit Trail offers a fresh bounty of sweetness

The last of the fragrant fruit blossoms is gone, their pink-and-white petals scattered across the orchards that nestle among the verdant...

Foodie paradise in Berkeley

Even if I don't eat Velveeta, you couldn't call me a dedicated foodie; I just like eating good food. So, every so often, I treat myself...

San Francisco vs. San Diego: Which is the better getaway?

Every year, millions of people find themselves craving a vacation from greater Los Angeles. Many of these people don't want to cross state...

Inner Julia Child, please come out now

Until recently, the closest thing I'd come to a cooking class was watching the demo station at Trader Joe's. After seeing "Julie & Julia," I...