VINTAGE AT VETERANS MONUMENT

Today is the 50th day we have walked, each day wearing a different Seiko watch from my collection. I had no idea of the real number of our Seikos; as I sorted through my watch cabinet, repair bench, storage bins, etc they kept turning up. I have been busy ordering parts, changing batteries, fitting straps and so forth. I'm now wearing a 6602 manual wind wristwatch that has been in apart for at least 10 years. It's the same movement that appeared yesterday in my pocket watch. I assembled this last night, put a suitable strap on and it ran beautifully all night. So it's on my wrist today!

A glimpse of the watch



Having enjoyed the comments about Mount Helix yesterday, today we went to Mount Soledad, the other high peak in San Diego, at its northwest corner. The sky was clear and the views spectacular. Here we are looking south. 



A couple minutes later, you can see how the light is changing.



Downtown, San Diego bay, the Coronado Bridge -- all places that we have walked in the past 7 weeks. I can't believe how sharp this image is -- the clarity of the original is fantastic! Those lights on the hillside in Tijuana, MX are at least 20-25 miles away.



Views to the north



Here's the cross itself. This sits atop a piece of land now owned by a non-profit organization (to eliminate church/state conflicts). My friend Martin is one of the directors and keeps us informed about developments here, but we only come up about a couple times a year. The light is really nice right now.


From any angle.



Since we have about 10 minutes, we get onto a trail and walk out away from the monument.



Oops, mistake. But nice enough to save. Remember it's winter here (in a day or two).



It looks like a wildfire is just starting on a hillside in Mexico. Too bad.



An early flight out -- people traveling?



I have to comment on this photo - the island you see is in Mexico, more than 30 miles from where I am taking this picture. The Ocean Beach pier in the foreground is about 10 miles from this vantage point.



Almost time for the sunrise.



And there it is!



A wider shot.



Mrs. C cleverly got a photo of me taking a photo of the sunrise, including the watch. Bonus points for that! (those things above my cap are antenna; not attached to my head)



Walking back up the hill, holding hands.



Or not.


The Pacific Ocean. You can't see it in this photo, but we could see the outline of San Clemente Island, which is 65 miles to the northwest!



The bird close-ups have been popular, so I tried hard to get a couple. It wasn't easy today.



We did see three rabbits but they were too fast for me, or I was moving too fast and the photos were blurry in the low light.



I love backlit plant photos.



I'll need to change this crystal when I get a chance, but the watch pleases me just as it is.



Thanks for reading along. I will publish a directory of these walks soon.

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