OUTDOOR KITCHEN Most of us encounter food at the very end of its journey. Itās stacked neatly in grocery stores, polished and predictable, with a price tag. A red pepper, for instance, may look perfect, but you donāt know who grew it or what the land it came from looked like. A nagging curiosity about […]
Get Outside
California Sauna Club brings a heated trailer and cold plunging to San Luis Obispo and Morro Bay
FEATURE I despise cold, overcast days, but peeping out at gray San Luis Obispo farmland through the half-moon window of California Sauna Clubās heated barrel trailer softened the gloom. The experience, tucked behind Froom Ranch Way marketplace, is from the minds and hands of couple Darren and Arielle Leva. The former Bay Area residents opened […]
Federal agencies manage wild horses on public land across the West, including in SLO County
FEATURE For four years, Colette Kaluzaās driven across California, Nevada, Utah, Wyoming, and other states, traversing paved highways and barreling down dirt roads, picking her way across rugged terrain to find hard-to-reach places with the help of her trusty GPS app. After damaging a vehicle along the way, she purchased a Jeep Grand Cherokee with […]
Local nonprofit boosts environmental education for underserved high school students
FEATURE Folks at the Morro Coast Audubon Society like to say that protecting birds means protecting the entire ecosystem. Torrey Gage-Tomlinson, the organizationās program director, believes it wholeheartedly. The concept was a continuation of his early memories traveling across Latin America to go bird watching with his parents. āIt was a really unique childhood, and […]
Scouting America remains a great way to connect youth with the outdoors
FEATURE While attending Teach Elementary in San Luis Obispo, David Forrest remembers being recruited into Scouting. The local scoutmaster came to the school and āpulled all the boys out of both fifth or sixth grade classes, and said, āYou guys want to go camping?ā And, we were like, āYeah.āā Soon young Forrest was walking into […]
These products can take the stress away from bathroom breaks in the wild
GEAR HUB Answering natureās call is a little more complicated when you have a uterus. Popping a squat in the woods isnāt for everybody, so here are some products that could be a lifesaver when youāre out on the trails. Kula Cloth Leave behind the excessive toilet paper rolls when you go camping and grab […]
Whatās the right backpack for a long walk?
GEAR HUB Iām getting ready to take a very long walk. In October, I fly to Madrid. From Madrid, I will board a train. That train will unceremoniously take me to Astorga, where I will carry my life on my back for 250 or so miles through the Spanish countryside, through towns, and finally sink […]
Feature: A Central Coast transplant tries surfing for the first time
Go for a lesson Sandbar Surf School teaches private group lessons for $85 hour and open group lessons for $60 hour. Find Sandbar Surf School at sandbarsurf.com or call (805) 835-7873 for more information. I can officially say I have been humbled by the ocean, and nearly every part of my body can vouch for […]
Gear Hub: SLO and Santa Barbara counties spear fishers talk spearguns and offer tips for the sport
Dive right in Need spearguns, pole spears, snorkels, or wetsuits? Check out Riffe International’s spearfishing gear collection suited for newbies to pros at speargun.com. When Mossimo Jar was spearfishing in Cambria with some friends this spring, he said he heard them suddenly flounder to their kayaks and hold four fingers up, thumbs to their foreheads. […]
Gear Hub: Is an inexpensive survival kit worth the money?
You’re driving in the country after a daylong fishing trip when the unthinkable happens: Your car sputters out, you have no cell service, and it’s getting dark. It’s at least a two-day walk to civilization, and you haven’t seen another car or person all day. The fish weren’t biting, and you ate your lunch hours […]
Feature: Cal Poly’s partnership with Zero Foodprint could help SLO County’s farmers and regenerative agriculture practices
Cal Poly’s Initiative for Climate Leadership and Resilience is on a mission to bring a program that supports regenerative agriculture to San Luis Obispo County. Called Zero Foodprint, the California-based nonprofit aims to help restaurants reduce their climate impacts by focusing on the root source—changing the way food itself is grown. Erin Pearse, the Cal […]
Feature: Addison Jerlow sets the record for completing the 400-mile-long Condor Trail
A little more than 400 miles; 69,000 feet vertical gain. Rain, snow, ticks, and poison oak. Addison Jerlow conquered all these things in 21 days this spring on the Condor Trail. “I was going to do a thru-hike of the Pacific Crest Trail and was doing a train hike with my uncle. This was in […]

