I don’t care what the clerks at Whole Foods say, fresh-baked bread is a blessing of civilization. Here’s why buying fresh bread is awesome: You get to watch the bread being made It’s still warm when you get your hands on it It smells amazing It can be a morning ritual, just like coffee or tea, …
Question: Is there wildlife in Orange County if we’re not talking about what comes out at night and hits the bars in Newport Beach? Most of us would be hard pressed to name more than sea gulls and squirrels. Local trees? The palm trees and eucalyptus are imports. Even the wild mustard that turns the …
The Real Natives of Orange County: The Definitive Nature Center Guide (South County) Read More »
Editor’s Note: We don’t usually get this personal on OCExplore, so if you just come here for fun, adventurous guides to getting the most out of Orange County, feel free to skip this post and check back tomorrow for our regularly scheduled content! For those who are curious, I’m sharing a little bit of my …
Why OCExplore Is About Living Your Life As If It Really Matters Read More »
Spring is the real New Year. Everything is blooming. Colors are vivid. The air smells better. And around Orange County, you’ve probably seen unexpected pops of color on hillsides and stretches of land that are normally in an earth tones palette more suited to a reality TV celebrity dining room. We haven’t had the deluges …
Everything’s Coming Up Wildflowers: Your Complete Guide to Orange County’s Wild Blooms Read More »
You’ve heard about the rat race: it entails daily commutes in traffic to get to work and then turning around and sitting in traffic to get home. If the last thing you want to do on the weekend is to sit in traffic again, you can test-drive a Metrolink Weekend Pass that gives you all-day access on Saturday …
Have a Car Free (and Cheap) Weekend in Orange County Read More »
You will love again the stranger who was your self. Give wine. Give bread. Give back your heart to itself, to the stranger who has loved you all your life, whom you ignored for another, who knows you by heart. -Derek Walcott We rarely experience total silence or darkness in our environments. Wakefulness is Distractedness Even …
We Floated in an Isolation Tank and You Should Too Read More »
With so many newer tract houses, malls, and freeways, Orange County doesn’t appear at first glance to be a very historical place. But everywhere in the county there are places with stories to tell that most locals don’t even know. The history of interesting people and events in Orange County actually goes all the way …
Hike and a brunch? You know you love it. Hiking in California is a universal activity. Rappers do it. Kim Kardashian does it. And I know you love brunch. Oh, how you love brunch. So everyone loves a hike-n-brunch on a sunny weekend morning, and with the weather seemingly turning a corner from its oh-so-brief winter spell, …
10 Beloved Orange County Hikes and Brunch Spots for the Perfect Weekend Combo Read More »
Orange County and beaches have a somewhat harmonious relationship. Huntington Beach. Laguna Beach. Newport Beach. If we’re being totally honest, the original plan for OCExplore was mostly an excuse to go out and take lots of pictures at the beach and/or of delicious food. If you follow us on Instagram (which, by the way, you …
When overuse of the 5 and 405 freeways give you cause to scratch your head and wonder why on earth you moved to Orange County and bought a 6-speed manual transmission convertible, it may be time to inspire yourself with the possibility of some new, scenic drives. After all, L.A. has the sit-in-traffic base covered. …
The Ultimate Drives in the OC: Where and When to Take the Top Down & Cruise Read More »