Soaring~

On By cindy knokeIn EXTERIOR & INTERIOR DESIGN, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, Tech Marvels

The architecturally interesting Salk Institute in La Jolla, California, sits on a stunning property with views over the ocean cliffs.

(Note: Salk is buttoned up these days due to their COVID- 19 research. They are working on vaccine development, viral imaging and immunity studies. Guards are patrolling and visitors are not allowed. Thank you Salk for what you do).

Next to Salk is the Torrey Pines Glider Port.

A couple steps and you are off the cliff,

soaring,

with the birds,

helicopters and planes,

over the ocean,

far below.

Sailing off into the sky,

seems so freeing, except for the cliffs and rocks below!

Cheers to you from my life on the ground~

203 thoughts on “Soaring~”

  1. What a wonderful way to look down on the earth below, soaring and dipping with the air currents.

    I envy their courage in jumping off a cliff or mountain with nothing but a piece of cloth keeping them safe.

    Hope you are well and keeping safe 🙂

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    1. It is pretty amazing to watch them. They run, skip a few steps, and pop off the cliff with a two foot jump. I remember watching them during senior seminar decades ago out of the windows of a conference room with a birds eye view at UCSD. They were a lot more interesting than the seminar, whose topic I can’t even remember. But I do remember the parasailers! 😉

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  3. Thank you for saying you were on the ground!
    I thought you might have been flying in the air – yes, thanks to the Salk Institute for their work!
    And you please stay on the ground, my friend!

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  6. Once upon a time, I wanted to go parachuting but I’m too chicken in my old age. Still, I fly a lot in my dreams and I love that sensation. I’ve always said that if I get to come back in a next life, I’d want to be an osprey: be a great flyer and eat fish all the time! 😀

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  9. One of the many things you’ll NEVER catch me doing, haha! 😀
    How many accidentally end up in the water, I wonder?
    I love the shot with the ravens – flying with the birds would be fun however. 🙂

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    1. I met a guy who flies his trained falcons with his parasail here. I think he wishes he was a bird! There are accidents here. The day I took these photographs, several fire engines and multiple paramedic vans roared in with sirens clanging. I didn’t hang around to see why. დ

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  12. I love the glider port! We haven’t been recently (since February and, of course, Covid) so I’m glad to know that they are up (and UP) and running. We’ll often get a sandwich at that cafe and spend the afternoon just watching the ballet in the sky (do you know if the cafe is open?). I love the picture with the pilot and the birds!

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    1. Yes, the cafe is open, and it is crowded on the weekend. Weekdays are better in terms of crowds. So you and I are locals! Very cool. I am surprised by the number of bloggers who know the place დ

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    1. How cool is that and what a small world!! I was born and grew up in La Jolla. It’s my hometown. My mother and brother’s family still live there. Next time you visit, you need to give me a holler! 😉

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    1. It is where I was born and grew up. It’s changed quite a bit, is crowded and over developed. Not the sleepy seaside village I so loved. Solid ground is good, even though in California, it is apt to shift rather dramatically under your feet 😉

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  26. Thank you, Cindy. What a wonderful post. I could feel myself soaring along with them… were you among them? After reading the news, you raised my spirits. Thanks again. xxx

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  27. Oh Cindy – this reminds me of Leonardo da Vinci’s thought on flight. “Once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been, and there you will always long to return.”

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      1. You are having an October heat wave? Well I guess it makes out door life a bit easier in a pandemic! Sunshine is always welcome but I am not so keen on cloudless skies. I like the variety of clouds to look at and paint.

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  31. Looks beautiful – sailing through the air!
    I’m not able to “like” anything right now, due to technical difficulties – also not able to reblog anything. It may be a while. I think I need a new theme.
    But I always enjoy your posts – all very beautiful and interesting too.

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  41. Mercy, not even a king’s fortune could pay me to soar off a cliff with the ocean below!! Just the though gives me the heebie-jeebies! Is this anywhere near Torrey Pines Golf Course?

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  45. Oh my! I saw some sailing between the mountains in Bavaria. I think over the ocean would be less scary, if no sharks showed up. As a teenager trying to water ski, I finally managed to stay up when I looked down and saw I was surrounded by cabbage head jelly fish!

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  47. I’ve done my share of HALO (high-altitude, low opening) jumps, but never was intrigued by the attraction of paragliding. If you want real thrill, that’s fast roping from a MH-53D Super Stallion with the rotor wash. 🙂

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        1. That makes sense. I basically worked as a civilian attached to the Navy as a psychotherapist for almost 20 years. I grew up near Seal Team 7, in the ocean all my young life, which is why halo jumpers impress the hell out of me. It’s not so much the jumping out of the planes at super high altitude that is the biggest deal, it is doing that, and then being able to swim, and do stuff, on purpose, in such hostile ocean conditions.
          Stunning.
          Due to my work, I got to know one of the founders of the early UDT pretty well. He explained the whole concept to me, how it developed, was employed to save all of us. So many amazing memories of such incredible people.

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          1. The training missions are always harder than the operational missions. It’s about being physically ready for what may be encountered during an operational mission. The hardest part about parachuting into water is removing the parachute rigging without becoming ensnared by the chute and harness. With HALO, it is also getting rid of the breathing apparatus. The other consideration about jumping into the ocean are conditions. Obviously, you don’t want to jump into rough seas, but if it’s part of the mission profile, it is part of the profile. Like in the Grenada operation, it was decided to go ahead with dropping a small unit SEAL team into rough seas – wave height 5-6 ft, winds at 25 knots, and an ocean swim of five miles. Even in combat, there are safety limits. Those limits were waived, the airdrop went ahead. Five of six drowned, the sixth was picked up. A lot of risk, but manageable.

            I am impressed you were also a psychotherapist with the Navy for 20 years. I looked through my stuff to see if I had anything with your name. We collect a lot of business cards along the way; still have more to look through. Anyway, I’m one of those who doesn’t carry emotional and stress baggage, much like my dad. My first team leader said if you need to throw when you see ugly the first time, throw up. That’s what I said when I became a small unit team leader … just make sure we’re not in a shoot out.

            I can tell you more, ideally in an email. It seems our paths could’ve crossed. Stay well. 🙂

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            1. I went by my maiden name all my working life, so the last name is different. I was a civilian who worked with, and often for, the Navy or DOD. I am still trying to get my head around 5 out of 6 drowned….. I am not succeeding. I was trying to remember the name of one of the UDT founders guy. I think he was the UDT CO during The War. He seemed quite old at the time to me… laughing now, but so physically fit and disciplined, and such a quietly impressive person. He talked about how and why the team was formed, the missions they did during the War, and about the rebreathers. I don’t remember all of it… but the history is incredible.

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  63. Thank you for sharing the information about what they are doing at Salk for our health. A wonderful building too. Thel paragliding images are fantastic.Maybe sometimes i will try to do, by myself. Best wishes, and stay save,Cindy! Michael

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  66. As a huge fan of modern architecture, which also makes great subjects for photography, I was very interested in that photo.
    Is that you in the photos soaring though the skies with wild abandon?! Beautiful and inspiring photos 😃

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  70. The architecture is interesting indeed. It’s a great idea for a condo, protruding balconies to give more units a better view, just like the Salk Institute has with the ocean cliffs. Thanks for the photos Cindy which are stunning, as usual! 🙂

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