Murrieta Photography

Tenaja Falls

2011-05-04T15:12:00.000-07:00

(14 Pictures)

These pictures were taken 4-23-11 at Tenaja Falls. These trails can be found in the La Cresta Area, west of Murrieta. There are lots of trails to choose from and this particular one took a good 20 minutes to get to. Had to travel across some narrow mountain roads but still easily accessible.

Here's a glance of what you can see nearing the end of the trail we took, it was really quite the site.

At the end of our trail hike we came across the Tenaja Waterfalls, nothing huge but still a site to see. And a nice place to set up for a quick snack before heading back.

There is a lot of wild flowers up on the trail, this particular one is a Wild Hyacinth, they were quite common.

This was a picture of the hills and canyons you can see on your way to Tenaja falls, sometimes it got really steep and its easy to get dizzy.

The creek that you more or less fallow along your trail to get to the waterfalls. This was in the beginning of our hike.

More towards the middle of our hike, the same creek.

A closer view of the creek we were following.

A small toad that was sitting perfectly still on a rock, almost missed it because it blended it no well.

A very common site on the trail and Murrieta in general, this little insect is called an Ironclad Beetle and is extremely hard. When disturbed it goes motionless.

A rare site we had here! A female hummingbird in her nest not too far off the trail we were following. The nest was empty at first but as soon as we got near the Hummingbird came to guard it.

Not really a common site in Murrieta but it was on the trail. These red flowers are what I believe to be Narrow Leaved Fuchsia.

These are purple nightshades and were found here and there on our hike.

Another shot of the waterfall at the end of our hike.

A last shot of the falls at the trail.

Seaworld: Third Visit

2011-05-04T15:01:00.000-07:00

(6 Pictures)

Third (and probably not last) set of pictures I took on our latest trip to seaworld...there will probably be more coming as we get into seaworld for free

One of two polar bears we saw at the exhibit, he plopped down after a while and I decided it made an nice shot.

One of the orcas at Shamu's Believe show.

The second polar bear at the arctic exhibit, this guy decided to retire to his cave after a bit.

Another shot taken at the Believe show.

And a last picture from the Believe show.

SeaWorld: Second Visit

2011-04-27T14:16:00.000-07:00

(11 Pictures)

Seaworld is definitely an awesome place to visit if you live in the SanDiego/Riverside area! Only about 45-60 minutes away from Murrieta it doesn't make for a bad drive either. This posts has a few pictures gathered on our second visit to Seaworld.

Sea turtle sun bathing over by the rapids ride.

One of the dolphins coming close to the people watching them poolside.

Seagull cozying up from the cold, this guy was by the penguin interaction exhibit and close enough to take a good snapshot.

One of the many penguins at the exhibit.

One of two main preforming seals at the Sea lion Live show.

A trainer and his dolphin poolside in what I believe was the Blue Horizons show.

One of many flamingos at the exhibit.

At the oceanic exhibit, this stone fish is one of the first in the aquarium. Very still, excellent for taking pics.

I was surprised to see that the oceanic exhibit had Nautilus in them, they were pretty neat to see!

Back at the flamingo exhibit there was this (very still) snowy egret.

Also at the flamingo, usually the star center of picture takers, was this black swan.

Oceanside Beach

2010-08-21T17:32:00.000-07:00

(16 Pictures)

Oceanside beach is only 30-40 minutes away from Murrieta, and while a bit cold, still holds many nice sights to see, including a Pier with a Mimi's Cafe on it, hotels, events and lots more!

At the end of the day, there was a beautiful sunset towards the pier.

Off the parking lot this is the first thing you see.

Nothing like Beach Volley Ball!

Another beach volley ball shot.

Another sunset shot looking at the pier.

Macro of a piece of seashell on the shore.

Photo of the pier and the restaurant towards the end.

Looking up at the sky from under the palm trees.

Some shots of the waves when we got to the beach.

A statue situated in from of the hotel thats only a few feet away from the beach.

A wider view of the sunset that evening.

Macro picture of a small piece of seaweed at the shore...definitely something not lacking at oceanside beach.

A shot of the night sky over the ocean, taken on the pier. Very low quality because my camera isn't made for night shots.

A building right outside a restaurant in Carlsbad.

Flames from our beach bon fire.

Another look at the beach sky, even got the moon in there!

Sea World

2010-08-21T17:27:00.000-07:00

(15 Pictures)

About an hours drive south down to San Diego, you'll reach Sea world. An amusement park full of fun shows, exhibits and rides. Here are a few picture from the last time I went.

This was part of the Believe show, close to the end.

Sun bathing turtle in the exhibit near the rapids ride.

A couple sea urchins in the star fix exhibit.

A snowy egret at the sealion exhibit, these weren't very shy and allowed people to get real close.

Another shot of a snowy egret.

These plants were made to resemble an undersea scene.

Shot of one of the orcas spinning on its side on the raised platform.

Lazy polar bear at the arctic exhibit, didn't really do much else...

An interesting shot at the sealion exhibit.

A beautiful swan statue near the enterance of the park.

This baracuda swam still in front of the shark exhibit, allowing for a nice shot.

Small Commerson Dolphin which where in the exhibit next to the Atlantis ride.

A nice picture at the Flamingo exhibit, the little bright red bird, I believe, is a Red Ibis.

Beautiful gardens located near the entrance of the park.

Once again at the shark exhibit, one of the first ones you see are these little guys.

Flower Close-ups

2010-08-21T17:10:00.000-07:00

(8 Pictures)

A few macro flower pictures.

Pink Lily with a fine mist of water.

Close up of a red hot poker.

Sweet Pea Flowers I found in Temecula.

Close up of a Clover flower in Los Alamos Park.

Looking up some red hot pokers.

Off centered Gazania.

Real close up of a Gazania.

Red Geranium with water droplets.

Flowering Spring and Summer

2010-08-20T15:35:00.001-07:00

(8 Pictures)

Various flowers you can find in Murrieta during the spring and summer months.

A gazania growing through a hole in the fence.

A field full of clover flowers in Los Alamos Park.

Red Hot Pokers grow all around in Murrieta.

Common small purple flowers, these I found in Los Alamos Park too.

Some type of ice plant. This shot was taken from my neighbors yard which was covered in these brightly colored flowers.

Some golden poppies growing alongside some Wild Blue Lupine on Adams road.

A White Pear Tree flowering in spring. Very common in the area.

Another shot of some clover flowers.

Legoland

2010-08-20T15:21:00.000-07:00

(7 Pictures)

An average of 45 mintures from Murrieta, south on the 15, in Carlsbad will take you to Legoland. An amusement park with a Lego theme and some interesting rides. Here are a few things you can see there.

A scene of the Opera House in Sydney Australia! You can see this almost immediately after entering the park.

A dinosaur of sorts just left of the Opera House scene.

A miniturized verson of the Californian City of San Francisco.

A miniture scene of Newyork which includes many skycrapers, a bridge, boats, and of course the Statue of Liberty.

Back to the miniture Sydney Opera House, to the right are some gardens adjecent to the pond.

One of the many themes in Legoland is the Medievil area. Which includes castles, knights a small rollercoaster, princeses and this dragon.

Another dinosaur made of out legos. You can see this one to the left after entering the park.

Scenic Pictures

2010-08-20T15:06:00.000-07:00

(8 Pictures)

A few scenic pictures, mostly taken here in Murrieta at various times and since spring.

This shot was taken during a sunset that happened more or less after a summer thunderstorm.

A picture taken at dusk looking West from madison road, in Murrieta.

Quick picture of a morning in Murrieta, its not uncommon to see blankets of fogs like this every now and then.

Random moon picture. Taken a few minutes after the second picture in this post.

Front view of the Murrieta Library, looking East.

Some burnt logs on a backroad near Madison Road. This is what left over from a fire that occured here. The new coverage signals spring.

A 10 Minute trip north on the 215 will take you to Menifee. These hot air balloons were seen off the Menifee Mt. San Jacinto campus.

Still in Menifee, a morning shot of the fields just south of the college campus.

Random Pix

2010-08-20T14:49:00.000-07:00

(3 Pictures)

A few random pictures I took, no specific place and for no specific reason.

On my way to Legoland, I decided that the hat my friend left on the front of the dashboard would make for a nice shot.

A fountain I saw on the way to the beach in Carlsbad.

Grass at Los Alamos Park

Random Plants

2010-02-27T15:36:00.000-08:00

(4 Pictures)

These are just some pictures I've taken in the last few days of some neat flowers/plants you'll see in Murrieta.

This is an interesting one... Not a normal plant for sure, it seems to be some sort of illness or virus that has twisted these plant leaves into weird shapes, this one particularly caught my eye. Was taken in French Valley east of SR 79.

This is a common one you see, just not so big they are usually smaller and more lavender (the wild ones). Also taken east of SR 79.

Pink flower of a tree that is planted on Washington St. in Old Town Murrieta.

Zoomed out picture of the flowering tree in Old Town.

On the way to the library...

2010-02-27T15:12:00.000-08:00

(14 Pictures)

The day I went to the library was a particularly beautiful one and so I decide to go the long way to the library and take a few snaps here and there.

Shot of the creek that runs along Ivy Street in Old Town Murrieta.

Close up of a flower from a wild clover patch just outside our house.

Picture of the clear water from the Murrieta Creek.

Picture of a red tailed hawk that are common to this area. Picture not great quality because the hawk was far away.

Another hawk in the same tree.

Close up of another yellow flower from the clover patch.

What I believe to be Mallard ducks, they were in a pond/puddle just west of Jefferson.

Mountain range, didn't take it the same day but thought to through it in here.

The Mill which old town is known for. Very old and damaged on the base, fenced of to keep taggers from messing with it or IN it.

Pumice rock that are very common in the Murrieta Creek.

Another shot of the water running off the road from Murrieta Creek.

Upstream shot of the Murrieta Creek. Taken from the DIP in Ivy street.

Yellow clover flower.

A zoomed out view of the clover patch.

Fruits & Plants

2010-02-16T16:06:00.001-08:00

(8 Pictures)

Went to a friends house and thought that some of their plants and fruit trees might make good pictures. So here's what I got:

These trees with white flowers are very common around here, right now (mid Febuary) they are in full bloom.

Common fruit tree to grow around here, most common in orchards.

Another shot of the trees with white flowers.

And another shot of my friends orange trees from a different angle.

These grapefruits where amazingly big! They were easily twice the size of a volleyball!

Cactus, another very common plant around here in Murrieta, my friend had quite a variety.

Close up of some chilli peppers.

Some sort of succulent...not quite sure what it is?

Volcan Mountain

2010-02-12T12:55:00.000-08:00

(8 Pictures)

Only about 15 minutes on the freeway and about 40 mintures on the road you can reach Volcan Mountain from Murrieta. The ride there is just as scenic as the trails themselves.

Sign you see right before you reach the trails leading up the mountain.

Shot of the valley down below once you get to the top.

You have to be careful on the trail, you may run into poison oak like this.

Gateway leading into the trails.

Picture of a butterfly I couldn't identify on the trail.

Shot of a Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly that we saw while walking, there were quite a few of them.

Bear statue we saw before reaching the trail.

Shot of the trail we walked and a dead tree.

Murrieta Library

2010-02-12T12:31:00.001-08:00

(8 Pictures)

Picture of the Murrieta Library, looking west.

Roses next to the park.

Ducks swimming in the nearby puddles.

Spring is just around the corner! The trees in the parking lot tell you so!

Puddle of water from the hard rains we've had, just outside the library.

Picture of a random wall from the library.

Red ivy that grows on the walls in front of the library.

Clock tower of city hall.

Murrieta - Los Alamos Park

2010-02-10T16:21:00.000-08:00

(5 Pictures)

A shot of all Murrieta from on top of the hill just north of Los Alamos park.

A picture of the mountain range you can see to the east.

The San Jacinto Mountains off to the north, filled with snow because of the recent storms we had. You can see VMHS here too!

Trail that we took to get to the top of the hill, just be careful with rattle snakes!

And a picture of the actual park from ground level, this is the soccer feild located north of the whole park.