
The Escalante River Canyon, in Southern Utah. I went backpacking with my sister and her husband for a week in October 1996 (they were out for a month). Here's another view deep inside the canyon:

Santa Cruz is close to many prime hiking destinations, including the Sierras. This view is on the way to Mt. Conness, near Tioga Pass just outside Yosemite National Park:

And just over the pass is bizarre and lovely Mono Lake, which includes other-wordly Tufa formations at the south end:
South of Santa Cruz is the rugged Big Sur coastline, where the Ventana Wilderness encompasses a variety of chaparral, oak, and mixed conifer forest:
Before I left the East Coast for California, I went hiking in Maine, where I came upon this lovely stream near the New Hampshire border: