I replaced my Mavic Pro with the Mavic Air because I thought it’d be the best travel drone and work great for hiking & backpacking. But how well did it stack up to my expectations after a few months? Here’s a practical review.

One of the big reasons why Fujifilm camera owners are so loyal – other than the great cameras – is Fujifilm’s philosophy of “kaizen”. Firmware updates aren’t just released to address bugs, but they also give you an almost new camera. The X-T2 Firmware Upgrade 4.00 includes some substantial improvements.

I packed up camp and hiked back up to the trailhead, dropped my pack off at the car, and started hiking the neighboring Tall Trees Grove trail. Isolated and beautiful, but why didn’t I see the whole thing? Cause I had my next move on my mind too much.

What a day loaded up with beautiful scenery. I packed up my campsite at Gold Bluffs Beach and made the short walk to Fern Canyon. I spent quite a while photographing Fern Canyon before hiking up the James Irvine Trail. Then I hiked down to Redwood Creek and found a great campsite for tonight.

Today started by waking up in a remote rest stop and ended in a tent on a beautiful beach at Redwood National Park. The in-between was spent driving through the Avenue of the Giants and backpacking the Miner’s Ridge Trail through massive, ancient redwood trees. Photography tips included!

It took five days but I think the right side of my brain is finally starting to warm up nicely.  I’m finally starting to see …

Some major landslides have forced rather long detours along the Pacific Coast Highway, but they provide for a nice change of scenery. Camping at Limekiln State Park provides both some great opportunities for beach time and hiking through redwoods to a waterfall and historic lime kilns.

Still warming up the creative side of my brain and getting reacquainted with my camera. I spent the day driving up and down the coast checking out the diverse nature along the bluffs and beaches near San Simeon.

Seeing the most of Pinnacles National Park by hiking a loop combining Old Pinnacles Trail and High Peaks Trail. Some cave exploration opportunities, awesome views, and watching the rare California Condor.

Plan B after an abandoned sailing trip was a road trip around northern California – my route first took me through nearby California Gold Country, which I haven’t spent nearly enough time in. Hiking to Natural Bridge was a good warmup with the camera I haven’t really used much recently.