Cheshire Cat Photo Blog Top Ten in 2009 (Full Year)
Back in July, I provided a list of your most-requested blog entries from Cheshire Cat Photo during the first half of 2009, through June 30, as I previously had for ALL of 2008 and for the first half of 2008!
Here are your “Top 10” most-requested blog entries during ALL of 2009, in reverse order, with my comments. Of course, older blog entries have been around longer and have had a greater opportunity to get hits (at the same time, some of these might [gasp!] have been “forgotten”)! 
Additionally, some of these entries may have been bookmarked by visitors; they are that popular.
10. Manresa State Beach • Tuesday, March 25th, 2008 Manresa State Beach, on Highway 1 near Watsonville has great views of Monterey Bay, of the hills of the Monterey Peninsula, and of the Santa Cruz Mountains. There is also an abundance of wildlife, and there are great camping opportunities. The beach ALSO has dangerous rip currents and deep offshore holes that make surfing and swimming hazardous for “any but the most experienced surfers,” according to the park brochure.
09. The California Aqueduct • Saturday, November 28th, 2009 The Governor Edmund G. Brown California Aqueduct is a system of pipelines, canals, and tunnels that carry precious water from the Sierra Nevada and valleys of Northern and Central California to nourish the state.
08. Sitting on top of the world… • Wednesday, May 14th, 2008 One of my images of a surfer at Steamer Lane in Santa Cruz, and the lyrics of the song “Catch a Wave” by the musical genius, Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, filled my head while I edited photos taken from the top of Mount Diablo.
07. The Merced River • Wednesday, June 25th, 2008 This photoblog entry contains a number of links to photos of the beautiful Merced River, which has its headwaters in the southern half of Yosemite National Park, taken at several times of the year. The entry also contains information about the history of, and natural features along, the National Wild and Scenic River, as well as suggestions for travel to Yosemite.
06. The Tall Ships in San Francisco • Tuesday, July 1st, 2008 Among many other things, San Francisco is a seaport, and the port occasionally receives visits from “tall-masted” sailing vessels! This blog entry has a photo of the Russian training vessel, the Pallada, and a bit of detail about the ship that we learned during our visit aboard.
05. ShotSpotter • Monday, November 9th, 2009 This relatively recent blog entry about the gunshot-detection technology of the Shotspotter company in Mountain View received an unexpectedly HUGE amount of interest, worldwide! The exact location of a gunshot, even a mile away from microphones, is triangulated and reported wirelessly to local authorities. The technology has been deployed in 45 cities and counties, the residents of which may be totally unaware that the technology even exists!
04. Sequoia National Forest marijuana farms • Saturday, August 9th, 2008 Mexican drug cartels have established vast marijuana farms in some of the National Forests in California, originally in remote areas (as in this blog entry), but more recently, as close as 1/2 mile from popular tourist locations!
03. Mission San Francisco de Asís (Dolores) and Basilica • Tuesday, January 8th, 2008 This photoblog entry contains links to many photos of Mission San Francisco de Asís (Mission Dolores), the oldest surviving structure in San Francisco, as well as details of the history of the Mission. The blog entry contains links to numerous photos of the Basilica next door, as well as to some of the historic Mission cemetery.
02. Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa • Monday, January 21st, 2008 This perennially popular blog entry details the history of the Mission and has numerous links to photos of the Mission and grounds. My collection of low-resolution images of California Missions can be accessed from the “California Missions” section of the Portfolio, as an aid to California schoolchildren, for their nonprofit use in education.
01. More goofy California legislation! • Thursday, June 25th, 2009 California is famous (infamous?) NATIONALLY, and perhaps internationally, for its GOOFY laws! This blog entry describes two bills that were passed by the California Legislature, but unfortunately only one of the two was vetoed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. The other bill, signed into law, further erodes the Second Amendment rights of Californians (and includes the thumbprinting of purchasers of handgun ammunition), starting in 2011. The law also burdens owners of some sporting goods stores with expensive record keeping. I believe that legal challenges have already been launched.
Happy New Year, and may 2010 be better than 2009 for all of us!
-Bill at
Cheshire Cat Photo™ – “Your Guide to California’s Wonderland™”
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