Photos are shown in reverse (from the end of my hike to the beginning).

Cross at Mount Rubidoux Memorial Park.

Mountain Elevation‎: ‎1,331 ft

Fun  Fact: Mt. Rubidoux is the site of the oldest outdoor non-denominational Easter Sunrise service in the United States.

The World Peace Bridge at Mount Rubidoux.

The views at Mount Rubidoux Park in Riverside, CA are breathtaking.

Mount Rubidoux is located just west of downtown Riverside.

Happy Monday Everyone!

Here’s another nature loving post featuring Mount Rubidoux Memorial Park in Southern California.

2019 was one of the busiest years of my life, but whenever I found free time, I would try to get outside and take in some nature.  While it was exhausting (at times) traveling back and forth weekly from Vancouver, WA to Riverside, CA for my graduate program at La Sierra University, I always felt blessed to be in the California sunshine.

Although Mount Rubidoux is a major nature attraction in Riverside, I postponed going for about a year.

Traffic is generally awful in southern California, and even though it was only 12 miles from my university, it was about a 35-40 minute drive. Once I made the decision to go, it was totally worth it. I went during the week, and it was still pretty busy with people because it’s a very popular destination. The photos speak for themselves. They are so pretty, I had trouble selecting them; that’s why there are so many!

The views were absolutely gorgeous, and the workout was awesome.

You can walk the trail in either direction, and you can enter the park from multiple locations. The paved loop is 3.5 miles. There are places to sit along the way, and it is not uncommon to see bouldering (rock-climbing) classes going on.

I actually ended up getting lost at one point and wound up in a residential neighborhood.  The mountain is a lot bigger in circumference than you might think, so I do not recommend deviating off the path, haha!

I didn’t take any photos of myself this day, but I included some photos of myself from April 2019 below.

These pics were taken on La Sierra campus within a few days of this hike. If you can tell from the photos, the California weather and sun makes me very happy. Having grown up in the cold midwest (right outside of Chicago), I never take warm weather for granted!

As of yesterday, I finished working on a project that has taken up the majority of my time for the past few months. 🙂

I am enjoying the feeling of relief that comes after finishing a difficult task. I don’t want to share it yet, but hopefully I will have some good news to share with you all by April. It feels so good to complete a challenging goal! Have you set any goals for yourself for the first quarter of 2020?

XO,

HLJ

A day 2 or 3 twist-out.

A braid and twist on blow dried hair.

I had my hair dyed red for a while before going gray!