Mountains and Beach

I grew up in cities, with exhibitions of art and world renowned museums. That was my summer playground, along with the local community pool, with it’s high dives and afternoon thunderstorms. The beach was only a vacation spot for me and my family—not something we had daily. And the mountains did not yet exist in my life, except for short ski trips. I didn’t know they could be hiked. While living in Woodstock, NY I got introduced to hiking and to mountains, to jumping in swimming holes and the feeling of rock beneath my feet. I remember thinking “how can this all be here and it is free!” Here in Santa Barbara we have both the mountains and the beach. We have the trails and we have the waves. The ability to hike up high, get clear and have some perspective. And to get low, be engulfed and to swim deep into the water. Both ground me. And as summer hits with higher temps, we need the cooling of both—the cooler air and temperament of the mountains and the refreshing feel of the ocean. Here in the store we listen like kids at a campfire to your stories of travel and vacations on delicious and foreign coastlines, to trips of adventure in rocky mountains and high peaks, and to the unspoiled beaches and islands that you visit. The store is full of the gear and the wear for all these moments and to place us imaginatively in them, here are some of my picks of what’s new and how to wear them in whatever cooling area you are choosing. 

Stay cool and adventurous and let us be grateful we can do both in our own backyard.  

xo,
Jen