This is Part 3 in a series outlining my family's exploration of Iceland during the summer of 2019, pre-COVID. It was a mostly outdoor experience, exploring the wild and natural sights of a beautiful country during the height of summer. For the full journey, and notes on places to go and things to see, check…Read more Iceland 2019 – Part 3, Golden Circle
New Neighbors
Cutting to the chase - we have coyotes in the neighborhood. Truth be told, these days there are coyotes in most neighborhoods, but this is a new thing for me. I remember as a kid, maybe 15 years old, we heard one deep in the mountains of western Virginia on a backpacking trip - and…Read more New Neighbors
Blackwater Falls, Davis, WV
Blackwater Falls always runs dark. The tannins from decaying leaves and evergreen needles in the water stain it the color of tea. Contrast that with a fresh snowfall, a hard freeze and enormous icicles, and you have a pretty sight, indeed! (Note the figure on the balcony at left, for scale)
Iceland, 2019 – Part 2, Snæfellsnes Peninsula
This is part two in a series outlining my family's exploration of Iceland during the summer of 2019, pre-COVID. It was a mostly outdoor experience, exploring the wild and natural sights of a beautiful country during the height of summer. For the full journey, and notes on places to go and things to see, check…Read more Iceland, 2019 – Part 2, Snæfellsnes Peninsula
Cold, Heartless Beauty
I have to take a break from reminiscing about Iceland to share what's going on right now. We've been accumulating freezing rain and drizzle for the past few days. This morning the sun is out, and turning every ice-coated branch into a crystal chandelier. It's beautiful - but these trees are carrying a lot of…Read more Cold, Heartless Beauty
Iceland 2019 – Part 1, Grundarfjörður
This is Part 1 in a series outlining my family's exploration of Iceland during the summer of 2019, pre-COVID. It was a mostly outdoor experience, exploring the wild and natural sights of a beautiful country during the height of summer. For the full journey, and notes on places to go and things to see, check…Read more Iceland 2019 – Part 1, Grundarfjörður
Seven Minutes of Terror
With any luck, it all happens tomorrow!! Perseverance and its little stowaway helicopter, Ingenuity, land at Jezero Crater, on the surface of Mars! I know a lot of people are discussing this right now, but after my post a week or so ago discussing the orbital mechanics of a Mars mission, and why launch windows…Read more Seven Minutes of Terror
Iceland 2019 – Prologue
This is the first in a series outlining my family's exploration of Iceland during the summer of 2019, pre-COVID. It was a mostly outdoor experience, exploring the wild and natural sights of a beautiful country during the height of summer. For the full journey, and notes on places to go and things to see, check…Read more Iceland 2019 – Prologue
Slateford Creek Falls, PA
I was recently going through some of the archived trip movies I've stored up over the past year of... well, I think everybody understands what's been going on this year. Anyway, last year this time, we had seen zero snow at home. (Fortunately this year has been a bit whiter!) We finally got desperate enough…Read more Slateford Creek Falls, PA
Puffins!
As I'm reminiscing on last summer's trip to Iceland (and working up videos, etc), I'm uncovering some photos that just make me smile. On the cliffs above Reynisfjara, a black sand beach with impressive caves and balsatic columns outside Vik, on Iceland's southern shore, dozens of puffins were nesting. These pudgy little birds were impressively…Read more Puffins!
Maui’s “Flame of the Forest” is an Out-of-Control Wildfire
During our 2018 trip to Hawai'i (see other posts for touristy and mostly outdoor adventures on the islands), we wound up taking a drive along the famous Road to Hana, on Maui. If you're unfamiliar, this route is a narrow (often single-lane) route that winds in and out of the canyons on the north shore…Read more Maui’s “Flame of the Forest” is an Out-of-Control Wildfire
Nokulele Blowhole (Hawai’i, Day 5, Part 2)
https://youtu.be/yEemSKPWbUg After our early, early morning biking down Halekala, we had been up and adventuring for 12 hours and it was still only lunch time. Creative measures were needed to get back to a normal sleep cycle, so we fought the urge to sleep the afternoon away. Instead, we had lunch and explored the town…Read more Nokulele Blowhole (Hawai’i, Day 5, Part 2)
Waikiki Sunset
I do love the snow, but memories of the tropics are great too! I liked the way the setting sun shone through the spray off the waves at Waikiki Beach.
First Snow of 2021
Fresh snow has a way of wiping the slate clean. Of covering up the blemishes, creating a blank canvas. It reminds me that the world carries on, marching to its own rhythm ignorant of my personal troubles, and that a fresh start is always possible. https://youtu.be/SXRPUUau_ts
Interplanetary Superhighway (Math, Geometry, and Mars Missions)
Let's say you've got nothing else going on, and you decide to launch a mission to Mars, as you do. Technically, assuming you had the rocket and the launch pad and the range clearance, the time and money, etc, you could do that tomorrow some time. BUT, this is a little like Steven Wright's assertion…Read more Interplanetary Superhighway (Math, Geometry, and Mars Missions)
Flying Squirrel Outdoors 