Tony's finals are winding down, as is his two year MBA career at Andersen. It feels like college again, and I can tell he's feeling quite nostalgic when he's not overwhelmed with finals/projects/papers/interviews/(insert more busy activities here). In an effort to give him a break, we decided to do... a four mile, 3.5 hour hike with almost 1500 feet in elevation gain. Probably not your average relaxation technique, but that's Tony. :) In a desperate attempt to go back to our previously healthier ways, we've been trying to hike around the area more. We ended up choosing Hondo Canyon Trail in Topanga, which is a pleasant change from the sight (and smell) of cardio machines and weights. It's a lovely little sylvan canyon that feels a world away from the blare of Los Angeles. Finding the trailhead is somewhat difficult (you drive up and down the street looking for a tiny sign that says "backbone trail"), but the drive itself is full of interesting knick knacks like abandoned boats and antiques (I'd love to take pictures there and yes, I have photography on the brain). Here are a few pictures of the hike:

 

The gorgeous valley and the interesting rock formations
 
One of the few times that Tony managed to wrest the camera away from me. We ate lunch at the top (I use that term loosely, we made it to the top of that trail, and walked partway up another trail). On the way up I ran a few short parts of the trail, which was awesome because it's such a great workout. But on our way down, I was essentially full/lazy/careless. I ended up rolling my ankle on a fat, clearly visible rock on a flat, easy stretch of dirt. D'oh.
 
So I consoled myself by taking more pictures.
 
I have no clue what this thing is. At first I thought it was a rather oddly colored snake, but then I noticed upon uploading the pic that it had legs.
 
Moss graffiti
 
You can sort of see the ocean from our vantage point.
 

A grasshopper masquerading as a stick, and doing a pretty good job of it, too!
 

I like all the colors. It's definitely not as lush as other, wetter seasons, but still so lovely.