E Walker Images
Endeavor to persevere
Hiking the Southern Los Padres (Old Old Old)
These are old hiking/backpacking photos from the Southern Los Padres National Forest. I usually carried a camera (Rollei 35T or Nikon FM) in the 1980s. I did not (for the most part) take pictures in the late 1960s or 1970s. In general, the rougher the routes and the more difficult the route finding, the fewer shots I took (a huge mistake, in retrospect). These are scans of Kodachrome and Ektachrome slides and a few Kodacolor prints. I estimate that I have less than 20% of the photos I might have had if I had not lent slides and neglected to retrieve them and if I had been more diligent archiving my photographs. If I find more interesting material I will post it. I find I am more bothered by the loss of some of this record (Lower Sespe, Big Narrows, Madulce Cabin [Madulce has been found], for instance) than the loss of my vinyl LP collection (Beatles, Stones, Hendrix, Creedence, to name a few). Ultimately, I am simply a homesick Los Padres expatriate; in fact, there is an amazing generation of adventure and trail scholarship in process in the Southern Los Padres. I refer the reader to these sites: craigrcarey.net, Ventura County Canyoneering, Jack Elliot's Santa Barbara Adventure and the David Stillman blog. Also peruse the outstanding continuing work to establish the Condor Trail through the Los Padres.
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Alexander Saddle, 12/1984. That is my old Alpenlite pack that I used for day hikes from 1984 until 1992 when my dog killed it. The company behind Alpenlite (and Kangaroo bags, if you remember that) began in Claremont, California and later moved to Ventura. I knew the owner, Don Douglass, a bit; he was one of the early "Ultra Light" advocates and innovaters. This pack was part of the Alpenlite Ultra LIght series and was very well designed and constructed.
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