Clicking on any image ought to take you to the relevant collection of images.  If that does not work, please let me know.  

Kenya. October 2022.

We never thought we would go to Africa, but frequent Africa travelers Erin and Charlie were already organizing a trip and urged us to join. Since they know the area and Erin was doing the logistics, we could tag along with minimal effort or risk. A great resource was their friend Adrian Hughes, owner of Speke’s Camp on the edge of the Maasai Mara, west of Nairobi. Amazing experience!

 

 

USA Yellowstone. March 2020.

North Branch Nature Center in Montpelier, Vermont, is a vibrant organization with many experiential learning programs and terrific staff. Yellowstone has many memories for me, but Martha had never been. Sean Beckett put together an excellent trip, based on his years of experience in the park. We barely sneaked in ahead of the Pandemic: flew home on the Friday before Saturday’s airline shutdown.

 

 

USA Southwest. December 2019

We had often talked about visiting former medical students in Gallup, NM. Since “later” never comes, we decided to set a date. A convenient anchor for this was the annual show, sale, demo and party put on by Cindell and Roger Dale in their Ignacio, CO, studio. That’s a convenient jumping off point for a drive to Gallup. A third couple joined us there for a few days of visiting, and a day trip to Canyon de Chelly.

 

 

Italy, Amalfi Coast. October 2019

We wanted some scenic walking,  but were uneasy about having to make mileage on schedule. I had had knee problems the previous year of the Wainwright Trek across northern England; and Martha had undergone both knee replacement and ankle surgery in previous years. We chose the Amalfi Coast for providing the option of walking or not on any given day. As it turned out, we walked for hours every day, loving it, without pain.

 

 

England, Wainwright Trek. September 2018

I tre capelli bianci enjoyed the Dolomites trek together, and resolved to do another bucket list trip. The pace turned out to be a problem for my left knee, as at the end of the Dolomite walk, but overall it was still a great experience.

 

 

 

 

 

 

USA Death Valley, California. March, 2018

Martha and I have enjoyed traveling in the Southwest. I have always wanted to visit Death Valley, and to try a small campervan. A New Zealand company has refitted a bunch of old Dodge vans. Ours had 300,000+ miles on the odometer, but worked fine. This little rig was perfect for the purpose.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Italy, The Dolomites. Alta Via Uno, September 2017

Two wives talking about their husbands’ interests decided to set us up to meet. We did, and discovered we were both serious about wanting to walk in the Dolomites. A third friend accepted our invitation, so we three young men (75, 74, and 73, I think) bought tickets to Venice, whence we shuttled to Cortina. Wow.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

USA Grand Canyon. April 2016

Grandson #3, Gavin, has embarked upon teendom. His dad and I thought a trip through the Grand would commemorate this appropriately. Son and grandson thought they could not spare the time for the full trip, and neither could I, but I had too clear a sense of what would be missed. So I started at Lees Ferry, and they joined me at Phantom Ranch.

This was my fifth OARS trip, my testimonial to the company that George Wendt nurtured and grew. Having a loyal following of employees and guests is not an accident. He did it right.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

France, Hautes-Midi and the South. July 2015

A family reunion, collected from Silicon Valley, Russia, Connecticut, Vermont, Paris and Saverdun. Five of us walked in the Hautes-Midi for 5 days according to an itinerary provided by Headwater Holidays (a very satisfactory encounter), and then met the rest in Saverdun. Side trips were made to Montsegur and to Carcassonne. Wonderful scenery, weather and company.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

USA Dinosaur National Monument.  June 2015.

George Wendt, owner and founder of O.A.R.S., was so taken with Jim Block’s images from Jim’s and my Grand Canyon trip that he asked Jim to photograph a trip down the Yampa on the 50th anniversary of the debris flow that formed Warm Springs rapid (and nearly killed George and his friend Bruce). One thing led to another, so Jim and I and Jill (a friend from our 2013 GC trip), and Jennifer and Heather (Jim’s two daughters) organized to go on successive launches down the Green and then the Yampa. Another wonderful adventure. My photographic record is sporadic, because I spent as much time as I could in a duckie (inflatable kayak), not a camera-friendly environment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bhutan.  November 2014.

Bhutan! I have vaguely wanted to visit for years. My friend Erin insisted that I need not look farther than Noble Traveler, the company founded and run by Dhamey Norgay (yes, that Norgay) and his wife Sonam. After a few email exchanges with Dhamey, I agreed with her, and Dhamey made arrangements for me and my friend Jim Block. Dhamey and Sonam were outstanding in their attentiveness and hospitality, as were the the cultural guide Lakey Wangchuk and driver Kencho Thinley, and trekking guide Phub Tshering and his crew. Jim’s images are at http://www.jimblockphoto.com/portfolio/bhutan/. Check his blog, too.

 

USA Idaho. August 2014.

To celebrate my second grandson’s entry to teendom, my son and I made it a three-generation expedition down the Middle Fork of the Salmon River with OARS, my second trip with them. The trip was everything I hoped it might be.

 

USA Kauai. June 2013

A long-planned family trip. Easy for the West Coast gang; quite a bit longer from Vermont. A wonderful time. Da Boyz hiked and camped in Weimeia Canyon and along the Na Pali trail for a few days before the rest joined.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Iceland. May 2013.

This was an impromptu visit to a place I have long wanted to visit. There was no time to do any significant research between when we decided to go and when we went, so we simply took what we got and wandered not quite aimlessly, but certainly unregimented. It is a beautiful, friendly, easy to travel in country. Went back to see the aurora in January, and saw – nothing.

 

USA Bryce Canyon. November 2013.

When the government shutdown ended just in time for our trip in the Grand, we had prepared for going to Escalante instead. There wasn’t really nearly enough time, but we could not resist a quick excursion after hearing and reading what John Douglas and Joan Waltermire shared with us. We visited Bryce en passant: could not drive past the entrance to the park a second time without going in. So here is the Bryce bit.

 

USA Grand Canyon. October 2013.

Interviewing a member of the Dale clan the previous February, I learned of his passion for the Colorado River trips, and of his enthusiasm for the company, OARS. Given that about a dozen Dales guide for the company, some for decades, this is no mystery. He stimulated a long-held intention of mine. A few UTube views of Lava Falls misadventures persuaded Martha that she had no interest. Jim? Sure! Exploring Escalante was Plan B, given the stupid government shutdown, and we became quite enthusiastic about it. But then came word that the OARS trip was on. We do not regret that, for sure, but now a taste of Escalante creates appetite for another trip.

 

New Zealand. November/December 2011.

I had long dreamt of visiting New Zealand, but never organized to do so. Although I generally prefer arriving and discovering through some combination of planning and happenstance, I did not want to spend time on site wondering what to do or where to go or how to find a place to sleep. I stumbled across First Light Travel on the web, and then was contacted by Kelly Keenan. With some trepidation and after a couple of calls and lots of eMails and some web snooping (sorry, Kelly), and thinking about the great experiences I have had in Nepal with Chhongba Sherpa, I decided to pass the planning responsibility to Kelly. A great decision. She had us doing stuff I would never have chosen, going to places I would not have known about, and enjoying it all thoroughly.

 

Nepal, Annapurna region. March 2011.

Back to Nepal, once again traveling with the incomparable Chhongba Sherpa. This time, no Nepali Belly; in fact, no illnesses at all. Tired and breathless at times, however. It was great to be with my son for nearly a month. Nice guy, good person. What father could ask for more?

 

 

 

 

 

USA Moss Beach, California. November 2010.

Fitzgerald Marine Reserve, in Moss Beach, California, is a wonderful protected beach and group of tidal pools. The amazing variety of colors, shapes, textures and critters fascinated me.

 

 

France, Saverdun. August 2010.

After a great walk in the Valais, we spent a few days with distant relatives about an hour from Toulouse. What’s the proper term for “sister’s daughter’s husband’s parents”? Anyway, we stayed at their place.

 

Swiss Alps. July 2010.

Martha and I joined four friends for a walk from Chamonix, France, to Zermatt, Switzerland, about 110 miles of beautiful and occasionally challenging countryside.

 

Nepal, Everest region. November, 2009.

Jim Block and a local one-person NGO, Leeli Bonney, invited me to join them for a trek along the route to Mount Everest. Our goal was Kala Pattar, 18,000 feet, overlooking the Everest Base Camp. We got up to 15,000 feet on the ridge between Dingboche and Pheriche, but gastroenteritis weakened some of our party enough to make us declare victory and retreat.  It was a glorious trip, regardless.