152/365: Poppies

152/365: Poppies, a photo by doglington on Flickr.

On the hottest day of the year so far, my hiking group decided on a force march up Windy Hill in Portola Valley. This is a crazy scramble with 1500 feet of elevation change in less than two miles on a 10% grade (which is steeper than it sounds.) Did I mention the hill is completely exposed to the South side? Needless to say, it was brutal, but the view was fairly good once you took into account the smog and haze. But I think I'll table this particular hike until the cool weather returns.