Getting Beneath the Surface: Labuan Bajo
After the 57 hour odyssey, we finally arrived Labuan Bajo, the gateway to Komodo National Park and western Flores. We lined up diving for the next morning right away, and dragged our weary selves down the dusty main street to find a room. We checked a couple out, but passed on dirty sheets, stinky bathrooms […]
Doing Lines and Flying High in Laos
Contrary to what we’d heard, crossing the border from (Chiang Khong) Thailand to (Huay Xai) Laos was a breeze. We arrived late in the afternoon and were the only ones at immigration. Thailand stamped us out with a smile, and we got in a longtail boat with two Thai ladies to cross the Mekong River. […]
Tagong: Motorcycle Monks and the Yak-men
Intro to Tagong In this high-altitude land of snow-capped mountains and grassy plateaus, priorities revolve around what helps you to get by. Here, two of those things are spiritual beliefs and yaks. We spent most of our time in Tagong wandering. Our hikes took us most of the day, each day, and were worth every […]
Seoraksan National Park
The mountains had been calling, and it was time for a hike. Designated a Biosphere Protection site by Unesco, the area of Seoraksan National Park is only about 20 minutes away from Sokcho by bus. It is filled with trails leading through forests, past waterfalls, jagged peaks, massive boulders, temples, a fortress, and all kinds […]
Blooms and Volcanoes
Arriving in Kagoshima in the late afternoon, we checked in and relaxed for a bit before heading back out for dinner. It was great to see Miwa, who was in town for the weekend as well! She had been an exchange student to Cape Cod around the same time I was in Japan, and it […]
Destination USA: Anacortes, Washington
Since our last update, we visited family on Cape Cod for our second week off during our year-long mobile marketing tour. As expected, it seemed to fly by, and before we knew it we were back in the Zero vehicles going down the road (and up the road, and around back to the same road). […]
Ansel Adams Wilderness and Devils Postpile
Devil’s Postpile National Monument lies within the Ansel Adams Wilderness, near the Mammoth Recreation area south of Yosemite and north of the John Muir Wilderness area. A seasonal, mandatory shuttle brings visitors into the area of the monument, keeping traffic to a minimum and protecting this fragile area. There are countless hiking trails to explore […]
Yosemite via Tioga Pass
The Highlands Entrance to Yosemite Just south of the Mono Lake, there is an approach into Yosemite National Park‘s highlands from the Eastern Sierras via Tioga Road (originally used by Native Americans for travel and trade, and later as a wagon trail and mining road). This route is the highest route across the Sierras in […]
Vasquez Rocks!
Vasquez Rocks History As you drive the Antelope Valley Freeway from Santa Clarita Valley, north of LA the other-worldly Vasquez Rocks loom suddenly out of the landscape. The angles at which these mammoth rocks were forced up and out of the earth show the power that lies beneath the San Andreas Fault. You can see […]
Inspiration in Sedona
But the love of wilderness is more than a hunger for what is always beyond reach; it is also an expression of loyalty to the earth, the earth which bore us and sustains us, the only home we shall ever know, the only paradise we ever need–if only we had the eyes to see. –Edward […]