Paul Schmitendorf

Colorado & Return to the Midwest 6/1/10

2010-06-03T14:19:00.000-07:00

On friday, May 21st I drove from Moab to Ft. Collins, CO. The drive itself was one the more memorable ones I've taken as I went up and over the Rocky Mountains along I-70. There was lots of snow to be seen and 30 degree cooler temperatures than when I left Moab. The purpose of going to Ft. Collins was to visit my friend Felix. Felix was the friend/couchsurfing contact I stayed with back on the first day of my trip which began July 5th, 2009. It was great to see Felix again and of course a visit is not complete without a couple of challenging bike rides with steep climbs and mile high elevation.

The weekend of my visit just happened to coincide with the showing of Ride the Divide at the Boulder theater. Ride the Divide is a documentary about a 2,700 mile self sustained mountain bike race through the Rocky Mtns. from Canada to Mexico. Felix completed this ride which includes around 200,000 ft. of climbing in just under 30 days. A group of us went to see the film and listen to a Q & A afterwards with Felix and a few of the other riders.

After a stop in Boulder to spend a few eventful and hilarious days with the Schacht family I headed east through Kansas and Missouri. I camped a couple of nights and checked out Kansas City. The final stop before returning to Chicago was to see my cousin Chris on the Shinkle family farm in Carthage, IL. "The Farm" is a place I visited many time growing up but hadn't been back to visit since the early 90's. It was good to get reacquainted with Chris and spend a few relaxing carefree days out in the country.

Finally, on June 1st, after almost 11 months being away, I returned to Chicago, Evanston, and Glenview. I was excited to return knowing I'd be getting to see family & friends over the next couple of months that I'd missed while travelling.

Utah

2010-05-23T16:10:00.000-07:00

On friday May 14th I left Arizona and headed north to Utah. The plan for the weekend was to meet my dad and stepmom in Springdale, UT and visit Zion & Bryce National Parks. We spent a day and a half discovering the beauty of Zion Canyon. I have to credit my parents for hiking up hills, through rocks, and adjusting nicely to the higher elevation.

The highlight hike for me at this park was Angel's Landing. At times I have a fear of heights so the steep final 1/2 mile of this hike was particularly challenging. My focus was sharp as I avoided looking down at the 1,500 ft. drop to the canyon floor as much as possible. Pictured below are the final ascent to the top of Angel's Landing and the riveting look down to the canyon floor.

We made a day trip sunday to Bryce National Park. I'd seen pictures of Bryce Canyon but was amazed to walk up and see the hoodoos in person. A hoodoo is a tall, thin spire of rock that protrudes from the bottom of an arid drainage basin. Bryce Canyon is filled with these. After viewing the canyon from the rim we hiked down about to the Queen's Garden area giving us an up close and personal view of the unique rock formations.

It was great to have my dad and step mom join me for a few days. Hopefully my insistence they hike a little more and a little further won't deter them from a similar adventure in the future. We parted ways and I drove 5 1/2 hours east to Moab, UT. Moab is home to two more national parks and is well known as a top mountain biking destination. I camped for 4 nights at the quiet tent only Up The Creek campground just a few blocks from the main strip in Moab. The first day I dodged some rare afternoon thunderstorms to do some hiking in Arches National Park. To say this park is filled with amazing rock formations is an understatement. The highlight the first day was hiking up to Delicate Arch at sunset. There were 50 or 60 people up there taking photos and enjoying the setting sun sparkle on Delicate Arch.

The second day I hiked the Devil's Garden trail which took me past 8 different arches as well as several other interesting formations.

The last arch of the day was maybe the signature arch of the park, Landscape Arch. Landscape is the longest natural bridge or arch in the world and often seen on the weather channel.

I set aside thursday to rent a mountain bike and try riding the Slickrock Trail. This is one of two famous trails in Moab not suited for amateurs. I decided to try it anyway. The ride was completely different than anything I'd ever ridden before. The hard surface of the petrified sand dunes made for a strong grip but the uphills climbs were extremely difficult. The views of the snow capped mountains, Arches National Park, and Colorado River added great scenery to the ride. I was able to finish the loop but not without walking my bike up about 15 steep hills.

On the way out of town friday morning I stopped at Canyonlands National Park for a few hours. I would like to have devoted more time to this park but Arches and Slick Rock took precedence. I was able to squeeze in a few short hikes around the Island in the Sky section of the park which offered great views of the Colorado and Green rivers. All in all, Utah and the 4 national parks I visited were beautiful and awe-inspiring.

Flagstaff/Sedona, AZ

2010-05-16T22:28:00.001-07:00

After completing the Grand Canyon hike I returned to Grand Canyon International Hostel in Flagstaff. This terrific hostel would be my home base for the week. After a good nights rest I ventured down highway 89A to beautiful Sedona. This scenic route gave me my first views of the incredible red rock formations that make Sedona famous. After picking up a an excellent hiking map at the visitors center I checked out a couple of trails the best of which was the rocky climb up to Cathedral Rock. Cathedral Rock is an impressive rock structure that affords great views of the surrounding rock formations and happens to be one of five vortex spots in the area.

I also hiked Airport Loop, Huckaby, and Boynton Canyon Vista. Part of the Huckaby trail ran right along the Oak Creek, a lush area with a variety of trees that doesn't feel at all like Arizona. There are so many good hiking trails in Sedona you really can't go wrong.

While I didn't have time to delve into the spiritual aspects of Sedona it's worth mentioning this town is the epicenter for all things "new age". I did make make time to spend an afternoon mountain biking some of the red rock trails around town. Many of the hiking trails in the area double as great rides for mountain bikers. The Bike'N'Bean set me up with a great bike and easy to read trail maps that had me enjoying riding on big rocks, little rocks, flat rocks, bumpy rocks, and everything inbetween.

The Grand Canyon

2010-05-09T20:40:00.000-07:00

When I purchased my National Parks Pass last July I knew I'd be visiting Grand Canyon National Park approximately 10 months later. This weekend that 10 months later became now. The enjoyment of the trip to the Grand Canyon exceeded all other National Park visits I've made in the last year. It's difficult to put into words the awe and beauty experienced while hiking into the canyon.

I had a bit of good fortune planning my Grand Canyon visit when I lucked into a slot at Phantom Rance thanks to another persons cancellation and some persistent phone calls. Phantom Ranch is q backpackers resort at the bottom of the Grand Canyon. With my reservation in place I was able to hike 9.5 miles from the South Rim (7,000 ft.) down the Bright Angel trail to Phantom Ranch at 2,550 ft.

The hike started out relatively easy but by the half way point the temperature had reached the upper 80's and my legs were starting to get a little tired. I drank lots of water and and took a nice long break at Indian Garden, a midway oasis with lots of shade and water.

A couple more miles with more amazing views of the canyon and I reached the Colorado River. I hiked along the river for a couple of miles and then crossed a suspension bridge into the Phantom Ranch grounds. The hike down took about 6 hours and was well worth every step. I took it easy the rest of the day and got a good night sleep in one of the dorm houses. I took off back up the canyon at about 7 am. The first half of the hike up was pretty easy with cool morning temperatures and lots of shade. The 2nd half got a lot tougher as I moved into the higher elevations and the midday sun became more direct. I finally reached the top about 1 pm, making the trip up about the same as the trip down. I was tired, sore, and hungry but thankful for the work my legs did for me. I know I will sleep well tonight as I dream of my next trip to the Grand Canyon.

Springtime in California

2010-05-06T22:39:00.000-07:00

The last 4 weeks have been spent visiting family and friends around California. I was able to spend time with my Mom, Stepdad, Aunt Sue, Nate, The Gilligan Family, Dad, Stepmom, Beni, Spence & Rita, Cousin Lisa, Jim, and Haley. One of the highlights was the opportunity to prepare and feed 1-year old Haley her breakfast. Collaborating with Lisa to make a mashed mixture of bananas, oats, and cinnamon was a lot easier than getting her to actually eat it.

Springtime in California means wildflowers and they could be seen in a variety of vibrant colors all over the state. None were more prominent than the wild mustard plant. In some places this wildflower is so thick it will make an entire hillside look yellow from a distance.

Much of my free time was spent biking and hiking as usual. I also took the time to photograph some San Francisco wall art as well as a beautiful duck.

Another highlight was hiking up Mt. Wilson with Jim and Sergio. This 14-mile hike took us up 5,700 ft. and left me with sore legs for two days. The best part occured about 3/4 of the way up when we broke through the cloud cover and could see above the clouds.

I'm grateful for all the time spent with family and friends but now it's time to hit the road for some more adventures. I'll leave friday, May 7th for Arizona, Utah, and Colorado before returning to Chicago around June 1st.

Kaua'i Part II

2010-04-11T14:43:00.000-07:00

The second half of the time spent on Kaua'i was filled with more exploration of the island. Several of us hiked from Ke'e Beach to Hanakapi'ai Beach along the Na Pali Coast. This was a scenic 4-mile round trip much of which was done barefoot along muddy trails. It was well worth the effort for the views and seeing the turbulent surf at the remote beach.

A second trip to Waimea Canyon gave me a chance to hike the "Canyon Trail". This trail wound through some serene woods before funneling us out to some breathtaking views of the canyon as well as Waipo'o Falls. I ate my picnic lunch on a rock 5 ft. from the top of the falls.

The last couple weeks a group of five of us staying at Ahupuaa Village in Kapa'a bonded together very nicely. Griffin, Leif, Malia, Kiki, and I did several excursions together, shopped the Kapa'a Farmers Market, and cooked delicious meals in the community kitchen. This group also got me to step out of my comfort zone by taking me to a costume ecstatic dance party. Ecstatic dance can be defined as sacred dance encompassing all movement that expresses or enhances spiritual experiences. I ended up dancing for 2 hours straight and had a great time.

The five of us also made a trip to Polihale State Park for a night of camping on the beach. This park has a beach that goes for miles, great sand dunes, and a beautiful mountain background. I saw a great sunset over the ocean in the evening and then the sunrise over the mountains in the morning. With few people around I also enjoyed an early morning ocean swim... in my birthday suit.

On my last day Griffin and I did a kayak and hiking adventure on the Wailua River. We paddled about 45 minutes up the river to a shallow docking area. From there we hiked through and open meadow, across a rushing river, and then up a different branch of the river to Secret Falls.

It's hard to believe 3 months have passed and it's time to return to the mainland. I've enjoyed a lot of warm weather, seen many beautiful places, and made lots of new friends. The spiritual energy of the islands has brought so many good people and horizon broadening experiences into my path and for that I say Mahalo!

Kaua'i

2010-03-28T01:22:00.001-07:00

Kaua'i is the oldest and northern most Hawaiian Island. I landed here a little over a week ago with a renewed feeling of excitement for exploring a new place. This island can be summed up in one word, magical. My accomodations the first few nights were at the Kauai Beach Hostel. This hostel is centrally located in the town of Kapa'a and just 75 yards from the ocean. My desire though was to find a community to stay in for my 3 weeks on Kaua'i. I found Ahupuaa Village and moved into a cabin also bringing new friend Arnold who I met at the hostel and old friend Leif who traveled with me from the Big Island. This community is much different than Kipuka Temple in that the majority of people here are doing their own thing as opposed to getting involved in a lot of group activities.

Arnold, Leif, and I along with another hostel traveller, Safira, traveled all over the island. The typical day trip would include sightseeing and hiking followed by swimming at a beautiful beach. The size of Kaua'i makes it easy to go anywhere on the island, spend the day, and be home by early evening.

Our first excursion was to the south side of the island to the towns of Poʻipū and Kōloa as well as Spouting Horn, Maha'ulepu Beach, and Kawelikoa Point. We hiked through some sand dunes to reach Maha'ulepu Beach and then continued along the coast checking out various cliffs, pools, hidden beaches, and caves.

The next day we headed to the "north shore" side of the island which is centered around the town of Hanalei. We first stopped at Queen's Bath which is a unique and sometimes dangerous tide pool. We did an afternoon hike on the Okolehao Trail which gave us great view of Hanalei Bay and the surrounding area. Finally, after searching several side roads we found Secrets Beach which was as beautiful beach as I've ever seen.

If these excurions weren't enough we followed these up by going to Waimea Canyon State Park. This was mostly a driving and sightseeing trip taking in different views of the incredible Waimea Canyon. I plan on returning here to do several hikes. This picture is a good representation of the vast beauty this canyon offers. If you find any of the pictures on this blog too small remember to click the picture to see a bigger version.

I've covered the highlights from the first week but also have to mention a few other amazing places I"ve been fortunate to visit. This list includes Kapa'a Beach, Donkey Beach, Larsen's Beach, Ke'e Beach, Tunnels Beach, Salt Pond Beach Park, Waikapale'e Wet Cave, Waikanaloa Wet Cave, and Maniniholo Dry Cave.

Big Island Goodbye

2010-03-20T23:03:00.000-07:00

I was fortunate to have my friend Tom visit the Big Island coming all the way out from Chicago. He spent the first week touring the island and enjoying resort life with his girlfriend Dena. The three of us had a chance to spend a day and a half together. We swam, layed in the sun, and hiked to a petroglyph site. The visit gave me a chance to camp at nearby Spencer Beach Park as well.

After Dena left, Tom and I had about 5 days to relax and hang out together. We visited Volcano N.P., checked out some waterfalls and historical sites, took several yoga classes, swam, and most definitely ate well. It was a great visit and lots of fun catching up with a good friend I hadn't seen in 8 months.

After the visit with Tom I was down to my last 6 days at Kipuka Temple. It was hard to believe two and a half months of community living was coming to an end. There were several highlights over my last few days at Kipuka. One of them was a trip to the summit of Mauna Kea with four of my community friends. Mauna Kea is an inactive volcano that is nearly 14,000 ft. above sea level. We drove up and over the clouds to reach the peak about an hour before sunset. The temperature was about 40 degrees so we bundled up and drank hot cocoa while enjoying the sites.

The top of Mauna Kea features 13 different telescopes which are huge and privately owned by various countries around the world.

Here's the Mauna Kea gang, Malia, Leif, myself, Mikal, and Maria in front. I enjoyed several opportunities to sing, dance, laugh, and bond with my friends the last few days. I really enjoyed my time spent living in community and will definitely seek opportunities to visit other communities in the future (www.ic.org). I'm grateful for all the friends I made during my 10 weeks who opened my mind to new areas of interest and possibility. I'm especially thankful for Robert Silber who welcomed me to the community back in early January. I learned a great deal from Robert from how to run a community with integrity to conscious communication. My final three weeks before returning to the mainland will be spent on the island of Kauai.

Waimanu Helicopter Evacuation

2010-03-04T14:21:00.000-08:00

On friday afternoon I travled back to Waipio Valley with 3 friends, Nate, Leif, and Maya. We set out to hike 8 miles along the Muliwai Trail from Waipio Valley to Waimanu Valley. Waimanu is a beautiful uninhabited valley only accessible by hiking or kayak. The hike took us up and over several scenic valleys before one final steep descent into Waimanu Valley. We swam in the ocean and as the sun began to fade we set up our campsite. We planned to camp friday and saturday evening and then hike back on sunday.

On saturday morning around 6 am we were awaken by police who were there to notify us a tsunami warning was in effect as a result of the earthquake in Chile. They were also there to evacuate us by helicopter. We quickly packed up our belongings and headed over to the first campsite where the helicopter was waiting. My friends took the waiting chopper back to Waipio Valley and I waited a few minutes to take the last ride with the emergency personnel people.

The helicopter ride was quite a thrill as we rode out over the water along the coast. I could see the cliffs and valleys we had hiked the previous day and then enjoyed a birds eye view of Waipio Valley as we returned to high ground. We now had about 4 hours to wait before the arrival of the tsunami so we went into town to eat breakfast and relax. We then returned to the Waipio Valley lookout to see the tsunami. We waited until 11 am and then waited longer but the tsunami never came. It was an anti-climactic conclusion but a definite relief to know the lives of many Hawaiians would not be turned upside down.

On monday we had a Goodbye Sushi party for Nate, Moze, Natasha, and Tookah. These are 4 people who have been at Kipuka since November. They've grown into good friends and for me the community won't be the same without them. Here's Nate and Moze doing the sushi preperation. Below I'm doing a little pre-party Xigong with Leif.

Volcano National Park

2010-02-24T22:31:00.000-08:00

The highlights from the last few weeks include several exciting excursions. Last week I went with four friends to Volcano National Park. At the National Park we hiked across Kilauea Iki, a crater with lava rock formations and steam vents. This crater was a lake of lava 50 years ago. We also walked through the Thurston Lava Tube. A lava tube is a natural conduit through which lava travels beneath the surface of a lava flow, expelled by a volcano during an eruption.

We could only view Kilauea Caldera from a distance. This is the most active area of the volcano currently oozing lava towards the ocean.

On a seperate hike I was able to see lava flow and burning trees from about 300 yards away. There was one section of land that still stands as an island among the fields of lava rock.

Last weekend I rented a pickup truck/camper from one of my friends and took off on a 24-hour excurion to the north side of the island. A scenic drive along the ocean and then up through the Kohola Mountains brought me to my destination, Pololu Valley Lookout. I hiked down to the ocean from the lookout and then continued on a hiking trail to the next valley over. I felt invigorated walking this trail as I enjoyed the pristine beauty and the quiet solitude. I didn't see any other hikers for the 3 hours on the out and back trip. One section of the trail was so steep that ropes had been put into place to help people scale down and then back up again. I also came across a really thick section of bamboo with a very thin trail through the middle of it.

After the hike which brought periods of rain showers on the return trip I drove over to the west coast for some sunnier and warmer weather. Another scenic drive took me from the tropical area where I hiked to a warm and dry region just down the road. I stopped at Hapuna Beach for a swim and to watch the sunset. Later I found a place about 50 ft. from the ocean to park and spend the night. In Hawaii there aren't a lot of regulations or fees with camping. You just find a spot that doesn't bother other people and you're all set. In the morning I had time to squeeze in a short hike to a waterfall at Akaka Falls State Park.

Back at Kipuka Temple friendships continued being built and plenty of activities were made available. Afternoon Qi Gong, frisbee on the lawn, a dream circle, men's discussion group, an erotic art show, and the conscious sensuality workshop have all been rewarding activities. I was also pleased that my first batch of sunflower spouts, pictured in the last entry, turned out great and were used in several meals.

Even the youngest member of our community, 16-month old Tookah has been enjoying my sprouts.

Waipio Valley

2010-02-02T23:45:00.000-08:00

Day to day life in Hawaii continues to be excellent. I'm very fortunate to be spending my winter in a tropical paradise. Aside from my regular activities I've gotten the chance to try a few new activities including Watsu, Qi Gong, Contact Improvisation, and Acro Yoga. There are classes offered at nearby Kalani Retreat as well as in our house with community members. In the picture below I am being flown in acro yoga.

Fruits like the ones pictured below are abundant to the point they can be found or harvested for free. One day while bicycling I picked up a beautiful ripe papaya and put it in my backpack. I also went on an avocado foraging trip and helped collect about 40 softball size avocados. We picked up some off the ground and plucked more using an avocado picker. The picture below includes a lilikoi top left, noni fruit bottom left, strawberry papaya, and a large avocado. They're all delicious except the noni fruit which smells like blue cheese gone bad.

I've started a sprout growing program for our community. I will grow some sprouts in jars and others in trays. Hopefully this will be something occupants of the house will continue once I return to the mainland. Here's a new tray of sunflower sprouts I recently started.

The highlight since the last blog entry was a daytrip I took with my friend, Kevin. We drove about an hour and 45 minutes, mostly along the Hamakua Coast to reach Waipio Valley. Kevin went to meet one of the locals he had met previously to disucss the possibility of a work/trade arrangement. I ventured to the ocean front to eat a picnic lunch on the beach, hike, and swim in the ocean.

Waipio Valley is one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen. The valley itself is lush and green with several farms scattered about. Add the 1,000 ft. valley walls with waterfalls and a beautiful beach and I was in awe. I also surprised to see a group of wild horses. After lunch, I hiked through a waist high stream and then along the beach to reach the hiking trail on the other side of the valley. I then headed up for a couple of miles stopping several times to enjoy the scenery. A return trip to Waipio Valley for a 3-day weekend of camping and backpacking to Waimanu Valley with people from the house is in the works.

Aloha!

2010-01-19T00:31:00.000-08:00

I arrived on the Big Island in Hawaii on January 9th. I flew into Kona, spent the night, and then took a free bus to Hilo on the other side of the island. The bus dropped me off at a huge public park right across the street from Hilo Bay. I had 4 hours to enjoy the sunshine, light ocean breeze, temps in the upper 70's, and a great farmers markets with tons of fresh fruit across the street. In order to reach my final destination, Kipuka Temple, I needed to take a bus ride to Puna District and then a 20-minute car ride. This mapquest link shows exactly where I am on the Big Island. I had reasearched Kipuka Temple shortly after leaving Costa Rica and was attracted to the location, near perfect weather, and idea of community living. Here's a shot of the main house which consists of a main floor with kitchen, living area, 3 bedrooms, and bathroom with shower. The upper level has another kitchen, large bedroom, sun deck, and community space used for yoga/eating/socializing.

The community consists of 14 adults and 3 kids between the ages of 2 and 5. Ages range from low 20's to upper 40's. In addition to the bedrooms in the house their are 10 huts scattered around the property. My hut is approximatley 16 X 16 and has a comfortable bed, shelves, and night table. My favorite aspect of the hut is the fact that it's open air. Screens go all the way around the hut providing wonderful fresh air and the serene sounds of the coqui frogs.

The people in the community are predominantly vegetarian or vegan as well as health conscious in other areas. Most of the people belong to the "food sharing group". Each person contributes $50 per week and then shares in the preparation and cleanup of meals. Much of the produce is grown on the property including citrus fruits, tomatoes, collards, argula, kale, basil, cilantro, beans, coconuts, and avocados. Additional food items are purchased from farmers markets and health food stores. My most inventive recipe so far is a simple breakfast dish of fresh papaya, avocado, and cilantro picked from the garden. My typical schedule during the week is to wake up around 5, work until lunchtime with a short break for a walk or watch the sunrise, and then go to the local black sand beach, hike, bike, run, or take a yoga class in the afternoon. The weekends present free time for mini roadtrips. On sunday I ventured with 4 of my housemates to the Green Sand Beach. A 2 hour card ride through lava fields followed by an hour hike along the ocean and we were body surfing at Green Sand Beach. Am I really in Hawaii?

Community living has been interesting and rewarding to say the least. I've been here about 10 days and feel I've made many connections with the other people here. For the most part the group is harmonious and easy to get along with. There's a weekly meeting to discuss all aspects of the community, strengthen communication, and build bonds between housemates. There's also the occasional birthday shindig as seen below.

Happy New Year 2010

2010-01-05T19:58:00.001-08:00

Happy New Year and best wishes to everyone for a healthy and prosperous 2010. The past few weeks have been spent selling lots of boardgames on amazon, enjoying Christmas and New Year's with family & friends, and planning the next travel destination. After carefully considering several options I've decided to go to the Big Island in Hawaii. Aside from the average daily temperature of 78 degrees during the winter the Big Island attracted me because of the wide range of climates found on the island. There are 15 different climate zones found on our planet and 11 of them appear somewhere on the Big Island. I'm leaving this friday and if I can keep close tabs on my duffle bag I'll stay until April 10th. I'll set up my home base in the Puna District which is located in the southeast corner of the island. A new camera was recently purchased so pictures and updates will be coming soon.

Shelton, CT

2009-12-17T23:51:00.000-08:00

The morning of friday, November 27th I visited the U.S. Embassy in Costa Rica in order to get a temporary passport. By friday night I was in Shelton, CT visiting my brother Tom, his wife Sue, my niece Ivy, and nephew Aidan. Saturday I picked out a new laptop and cellphone and by monday morning I was hard at work trying to get caught up on everything. An unexpected chance to visit with family despite the cold weather made the transition from life in a tropical jungle to late autumn on the east coast a little bit easier. We got lucky with a few warm days in the 50's so did some hiking and one scenic bike ride along the Housatonic River. There was lots of time for games, mad libs, reading books, picking out a tree at a Christmas tree farm, decorating the tree, enjoying a snow day, a holiday party with the Cubs Scouts, and a 6-hour boardgame marathon with a local boardgame meetup. I'll head back to California for Christmas and New Year's with an eye on traveling somewhere warm in early January.

This is Shelton, CT... not Costa Rica!

Uvita, Costa Rica

2009-11-29T05:51:00.000-08:00

Last sunday I travelled to Uvita to begin a 6+ week stay at Cascada Verde Eco Lodge. I had been looking forward to visiting this place since I read about it back in March. Unfortunately on the bus ride to Uvita I had my duffle bag stolen. My duffle contained my laptop, passport, credit cards, camera, and some cash. I broke a couple of standard bus travel rules that I had learned and adhered to on previous bus trips and paid for it dearly. This event along with 5 hours of bus riding and a 3 hour layover in Quepos made for one of the longest travel days of my life. Finally at about 9 pm arrived in Uvita. The bus let me off in the town center if you want to call it that. The town consists of a supermarket, bank, visitors office, and a few other small businesses. I now had a 1.8 km. uphill walk on a dirt/gravel road in a dark place I'd never been before. Fortunately there were 3 signs that were posted along the road that guided me to Cascada Verde. When I arrived I was met by some of the people staying at CV, Neela, Monica, Denny, and Houston. I told them about the events of my day and they couldn't have reacted with more kindness and compassion. They fed me and gave me a room to stay in with no payment required. My room was a simple, open-air loft space made of wood and bamboo. It included a comfortable bed with netting along with a chair and wood shelves. The open air feel in the heart of the jungle with sounds made by toads, monkeys, and various insects was simply amazing. Here's a look at building structure and surrounding vegetation.

Over the course of 4 nights and 3 days at Cascada Verde I got to hike barefoot up a river & help clean out the tanks for CV's water source, see a howler monkey swing from the treetops while practicing yoga, help plant new trees, taste several fruits I'd never seen or heard of before, hike down to and swim in the ocean, and participate in "Toss Your Salad Tuesday". Toss Your Salad Tuesday is not a contest to see who can drink the most Imperials, it is a night of great food and camaraderie including delicious salads made from various freshly picked greens from the garden.

More important than the beautiful jungle environment, open air sleeping, and amazing freshly picked foods I had a chance to get to know several people during my short stay. I got to plant trees with Evelina, hike the river barefoot with Houston, prepare dinner with Monica, hike to the beach and ocean with Denny, and carry on many interesting conversations with Neela who was particularly empathetic with my situation.

I had a great time at Cascada Verde but the stinger came with the realization that I would need to return to the U.S. to best handle business/work related issues stemming from the theft of my belongings. After getting a temporary passport at the U.S. Embassy in San Jose I flew to New York and am now visiting my brother and his family in Shelton, CT. I'll spend the holiday season with family but my long-term travel plans at this point are up in the air. Many options are up for consideration including a return to Costa Rica. I did receive some inspiring advice from my good friend Chris Gauer who said, "You must shed this minor disaster and use it as a springboard to begin the second half of your trip stronger."

Monteverde/La Fortuna/Jaco

2009-11-22T07:47:00.000-08:00

Last sunday I took a 6-hour shuttle/ferry/shuttle ride from Santa Teresa to Santa Elena. The plan for the week was to travel with my friend Kurt. Since Kurt had just 1 week to spend in Costa Rica he had us on the go with outdoor adventure activities everyday. We kicked off the week by taking a guided night hike in a tropical rain forest. The highlights included seeing a mother and baby sloth, a tarantula, a huge ant mound, a 100-year old fig tree, and a variety of nocturnal insects including two stick insects that were in the process of mating.

We were lucky to get a couple of mostly sunny days while in Monteverde. We hiked through the Monteverde Biological Reserve which is a cloud and rain forest with well maintained hiking trails. The reserve is filled with overwhelmingly dense tropical plant and tree growth.

The same day we did a short but challenging hike to the San Luis waterfall. Colorful butterflies and birds, more interesting plant life, a scenic river, and several makeshift bridges led us to an incredible waterfall and pool.

In the same area we also did an afternoon of mountain biking. On this excursion we were handed a map and directions from a friendly Italian hotel owner and set off on our ride. We covered a lot of ground going down a steep trail leading past several farms into a small village. At times the trail was so steep and rocky we had to walk our bikes. Along the way we got a got a great view of the surrounding valley, saw a rainbow, a sunset, and an above ground cemetery. The ride might have been a bit longer than we expected as we didn't finish until well after nightfall.

Mid-week we drove to La Fortuna, an area best known for the Arenal Volcano. The volcano has been active since 1968 but because of continual rain and clouds we were not able to see it. We did get in another rainy cloud forest hike and also visited the Tabacon hot springs. The hot springs feature thermo-mineral rivers, soothing pools, and waterfalls set amidst tropical gardens. We soaked in the mineral wates for a good 2+ hours.

After spending most of the week in cool and damp locations Kurt wanted to end his trip with some warmer weather. We drove to to a beach town called Jaco. It was good to feel the sun and higher temperatures again. We checked out the town, did another bike trek, and cooled off afterwards with a swim in the ocean. The bike ride took us out of town down a dirt/gravel road that climbed a little ways into the nearby mountains. We found a river and waterfall to cool off in and thoroughly enjoyed the downhill return trip. It was a memorable week traveling with Kurt. Now it's time to catch a bus to Uvita.

Nicoya Peninsula, Costa Rica

2009-11-15T04:53:00.000-08:00

Last sunday I arrived in San Jose, Costa Rica. The beginning of the trip was met with mostly feelings of excitement and a little bit of nervousness. I plan to spend 5 months in Central America and this will be by far the longest travel excursion of my life. My desire for the first week was to visit an ocean front area. I split the week between two beach front communities Montezuma and Santa Teresa. Both of these towns are remote, requiring about 5 hours of travel from San Jose. To get to Montezuma I took a bus, then a 1.5 hour ferry ride, and then another bus. The buses were air-conditioned, comfortable, and did not have any chickens on the roof. The ferry ride to the Nicoya Peninsula took place at sunset.

From the time I left the airport I started meeting other interesting travellers as well as several Americans and Canadians that have semi-permanently moved down here. My typical day the first week was to run, hike, or do a yoga class in the morning, work during the midday, go to the beach in the afternoon, and relax in the evening. In Montezuma I was fortunate to find Cafe Organico to eat and work. The typical Costa Rican meal which I've now had 3 or 4 times is called a cosada. A cosada consits of rice, beans, salad, and either vegetables or meat. It's usually a big plate of food often typically costing only $4 or $5. A Costa Rican cosada meal can typically be found at a roadside eatery known as a "soda".

In both Montezuma and Santa Teresa the roads are a mix if gravel and dirt with a lot of potholes. There are more ATV's and motorbikes used to navigate these roads than cars.

In Montezuma I stayed at a place called Hotel Lucy which had a back deck about 40 yards from the ocean. It was easy to sleep at night with the sounds of the waves hitting the shore in the background. In Santa Teresa I stayed at Casa Zen which was about a 200 yard walk to the ocean. The town of Santa Teresa revolves largely around surfing. There are several surf camps here for people with no experience surfing. I stuck to body surfing and boogie boarding which was plenty of fun.

Here's a picture taken for a yoga studio/cafe above the town of Santa Teresa. This place was partiucularly quiet and relaxing since it was away from the main road.

Lotus, CA Part II

2009-11-07T20:49:00.000-08:00

I spent the last 4 weeks at my Mom and Harry's in Lotus, CA. Most days were a typical routine of working and biking or running at nearby Greenwood Creek. There were a few noteworthy activities and events over the last month. The first weekend I returned to Lotus I volunteered for the El Dorado County AAUW Green Home Tour. AAUW is an organization my mom belongs to that raises money for scholarships for women. It was my job to shuttle people from parking lots to two of the homes on the tour. Shuttling for 6 hours gave me chance to meet and talk to all sorts of interesting people from El Dorado County. The home tour was a success raising close to $5,000 and giving the locals a chance to visit some really interesting homes.

Other highlights included a canoe trip with my friend Karel, a couple of 5+ mile hikes with my mom, suprising Harry with a new used bike on his birthday, a visit with the Gilligan family in Davis over Halloween weekend, and an astronomy night up on Mt. Tam. I traveled with my Aunt Sue, Karel, and another amateur astronomy buff, Greg up to Mt. Tam for an astronmy night put together by the San Francisco Astronomy Club. There were 20-25 telescopes to look through and lots of different galaxies and constellations to learn about.

Sunday November 8th I'll arrive in San Jose, Costa Rica. If I can successfully negotiate the Coca-Cola Bus Terminal and get on the right bus I'll end up on Montezuma sunday night. Needless to say I'm very excited to begin my trip to Costa Rica. I'm looking forward to traveling around the first 2 weeks and then settling down at an Eco-Lodge in Uvita at the end of November. Stay tuned for updates from Costa Rica.

Orange County/Los Angeles, CA

2009-10-09T21:04:00.000-07:00

After a week of hostels along the Central Coast I was ready for some peace and quite at my Dad and Step-Mom, Mary's home in Irvine. To stay in shape while visiting Mary and I did morning yoga on several occasions and I tried to keep up with my old man on a couple of bike rides around town. October is a brilliant time of year in Orange County. I enjoyed 12 straight days of sunshine and temperatures in the 70's. Here we are at Laguna Beach.

I was also fortunate to get in visits with my cousin Julia who was in town from the East Coast and my cousin Lisa, her husband Jim, and there 5-month old baby, Haley. I stayed with them for a couple of nights in Van Nuys. There was lots of action in a short period of time including a poker night, playing basketball for the first time in 6 months, and an art festival in South Pasadena with a group of Lisa and Jim's friends. The big thrill though was meeting Haley for the first time. It was great spending time with the Boyd's in "Family Land"!

I also got to spend some time my friend Beni who I've kept in touch with since we met in Panama. We had a great dinner in the Koreatown section of Los Angeles and also went mountain biking in Laguna Coast Wilderness Park. Beni's got mad skills on the bike and always makes a huge effort to get together when I'm in town which is much appreciated.

Even with all the time spent with family and friends I still found a couple of interesting places to visit on a day trip. My brother tipped me off about an interesting place in Landers, CA called Integratron. Along with 40-50 other people I had a 30-minute sound bath at the Integratron. No idea what a sound bath is? Do a little reading on the Integratron or better yet take a ride out to Landers and experience it for yourself.

After the sound bath I did a short visit to nearby Joshua Tree National Park. The best time of year to visit Joshua Tree is in the spring with it's wildflowers in full bloom. I found the park to be beautiful this time of year despite the dryness and dust. I'd like to come back to this park again and see more of it. The second picture below is a Joshua Tree up close with many more across the landscape.

Central Coast, CA

2009-09-28T22:28:00.000-07:00

Leaving the Bay Area my first stop heading south was the ocean town of Santa Cruz. I spent half the day mountain biking in Wilder Ranch State Park and the other half checking out the restaurants and shops in downtown Santa Cruz. At the state park I started by riding along a series of bluffs overlooking the ocean. After completing this section I crossed Highway 1 and rode up along some of the mountain trails where it was 20-25 degrees warmer than at the ocean.

The following day I made a quick stop to check out Monterey and Carmel. Here's a recognizable albeit hazy shot of Pebble Beach for all the golf fans out there.

The rest of the day was spent winding along highway 1 right along the ocean. It was a slow and sometimes foggy drive but was well worth it. My first stop was Point Lobos State Preserve. The oceanfront was filled with a variety of spectacular geological formations and plant life.

I stopped for a hike to the beach at Andrew Molera State Park and then proceeded on to Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park. I'd been looking forward to this State Park to see yet another unique waterfall. McWay Falls was a dramatic site with water falling 80 ft. directly onto the sand beach.

I continued on with another couple of hours making it to San Luis Obispo by nightfall. I made the hostel in San Luis Obispo my home base for the week. This was one of the best hostels I stayed at for both its comfortable accomodations and interesting mix of hosts and travelers. Highlights included biking and trail running at Irish Hills, hiking up Bishop's Peak, Mtn. biking and coastal rock formations in Montana de Oro State Park, and the Shine Cafe in nearby Morro Bay. I hiked up Bishops's Peak one morning with Arend from Denmark and Andres from Sweden. An interesting discussion of our different cultures and travel experiences added to the great view overlooking SLO.

The day at Montana de Oro was highlighted by more amazing geological formations, eucalyptus groves, and stunning views of the surrounding mountains and ocean.

Friday I traveled further south to Santa Barbara. Along the way I stopped at La Purisma Mission near Lompoc. Spanish Missions can be found up and down the coast of California. La Purisma was particularly interesting because the of the 1820's style that has been maintained. The city of Lompoc is also known for it's more than 60 painted wall murals. Works of art like this one can be found all over their downtown area.

I also made stops in the wine country towns of Solvang and Los Olivos, hiked up Gaviota Peak for a great view of the ocean & Channel Islands, and payed a visit to the Mtn. Biking trails of Pt. Mugu State Park. I was fortunate to see one beautiful place after another over the course of 7 days along the central coast.

San Francisco Bay Area

2009-09-20T21:49:00.000-07:00

On Labor Day my brother and I drove to Marin County to hike and sightsee in the area. After spending a night at the Marin Headlands Hostel we hiked up to the top of Mt. Tamalpais and through Muir Woods. From the top of Mt. Tam we could see a low cloud cover below the city skyline.

In Muir Woods we saw an amazing array of trees the most impressive of which were the coastal redwood sequoias.

After a night at the San Francisco Ft. Mason hostel and Fisherman's Warf I dropped Tom off at the airport. I then headed down to Saratoga to visit my old friend John Gilligan, his wife Lisa, and their two kids Ryan and Casey.

Inbetween saturday morning soccer, shooting hoops in the front yard, and coloring at the kitchen table John and I managed to squeeze in 3 bike rides. The first was a 57-mile road ride from Saratoga to Boulder Creek and back. I thought I had done some tough rides on my trip but 6000 ft. of climbing on this sunny thursday afternoon really pushed my limits. John does these types of hillclimbing rides all the time so he'd typically push ahead and then patiently wait for me to catch up. Saturday and sunday we did 2-3 hours of mtn. biking enjoying some great trails and views in the area. At the end of my visit I left my road bike in the garage and am now travleling with the mtn. bike John generously loaned me.

Next stop was my Aunt Sue's in Hayward. I joined Sue for a visit to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, to see the Richard Avedon exhibit. We also saw the Giants take on the Colorado Rockies in AT&T Park.

On my final night my Aunt's friend Karel joined us for dinner at Souley Vegan in downtown Oakland. We enjoyed some friday night live blues and a huge sample platter of delicous vegan soul food. Here we are pictured with the owner. If you make it to Souley Vegan you must try the yams!

Lotus/Yosemite, CA

2009-09-07T08:55:00.000-07:00

I left Oregon back on August August 30th and headed for Lotus, CA home of mom and step-dad, Harry. After 52 days of travel it was a good feeling to unpack the car, sleep in a familiar bed, and eat a home cooked meal. Already visiting were my step-brother Rob and my nephew Parker. The five of us spent a day at the California State Expo enjoyeing various exhibits, motorcycle jumping, fireating jugglers, and interesting food. Parker and Harry downed the heralded zuchcini weenie. This culinary creation is a hollowed out zuchini filled with a hot dog and deep fried in batter similar to a corn dog.

On sunday I took a long bike ride on the American River Trail Bike Path. This trail was probably the best urban trail I've been on the entire trip. The bikepath is smooth, scenic, and doesn't have any car traffic whatsoever. The trail fed me into Old Sacramento and the area near the California State Capitol Building. Tuesday night I made a stop at my Aunt Sue's and had delicious vegetarian dinner with her and a couple of her friends Carol and David in Berkley.

After picking my brother Tom at the airport we headed to Yosemite National Park along with my mom and Harry. The sights were amazing to say the least. The park is filled with glacier carved rock, waterfalls, valleys, giant sequoias, and meadows. We visited for a couple of days with the highlight being the 8-mile hike on the Panorma Trail from Glacier Point back to the valley floor. Pictured below is the signature formation associated with Yosemite, Half Dome.

The picture below was taken from Glacier Point where we started our hike. Nevada Fall and Vernal Fall can both be seen in the picture. We eventually hiked our way to both falls.

Near the end of the hike we were rewarded with a spectacular view of Vernal Fall. Because the water level is low this time of year we saw dozens of smaller waterfalls as opposed to one huge waterfall seen most of the rest of the year.

After returning to Lotus and resting our weary hiking muscles Tom and I ventured out onto the south fork of the American River which runs past my parents property. On a summer weekend day a couple thousand rafters will pass by their home on the river.

Tom headed down the river in a raft while I floated on an innertube. Although this river is fairly tame, there were a few rapid sections along the way and at one point I was tossed off my float into the cold water. Good Fun!

Here's a picture on the back deck of myself, Mom, Harry, and Tom. The next 7 weeks will be spent visiting various parts of California. Updates may be a little less frequent but hopefully just as exciting as the first two months of the trip.

Bend/Crater Lake/Ashland, OR

2009-08-28T10:18:00.000-07:00

On sunday I drove from Eugene to Bend. The drive took took me from the lush, green Willamette Valley to the arid high desert of Central Oregon. The Deschutes River gave me the chance to try something I'd seen in a few places on my trip, stand-up paddleboarding. This sport which has been gaining in popularity requires you to stand on a board, similar to a surfboard, and padde in an upright position. It took me about 30 minutes and some advice from a few local paddlers on the river to get the hang of it. Paddleboarding was a lot of fun and something I'll do again in the future. After paddleboarding I did some hiking around Tumalo Falls.

Sunday night I headed to a neighboring town called Sisters to camp in their Municipal Park. I found a good spot at the campsite and started to unload the camping gear when I small problem came up. My tent was missing. I'm not sure if it was lost or stolen but it wasn't there so I didn't have a tent to sleep in. Since I already had a good spot at the campground picked out and it was late at night my solution was simple, sleep in the car. This turned out to be more comfortable than expected and I manged to get a decent night of sleep.
The next night I was in luck as I had a friend of a friend lined up to spend the night with. I stayed with Tannus & Heather Quatre and their 3 kids. Tannus and I did a 2 1/2 hour hike up Mt. Tumalo. The view of the buttes, forests, and surrounding mountains was spectacular. After car camping the night before I was especially grateful for a home cooked meal, warm shower, comfortable bed, and generous hospitality.

Heading south from Bend I stopped at Crater Lake National Park. I squeezed in a hike up to the top of Garfield Peak for a great view of the lake. Crater Lake was a wonder to see with its almost indescribable shade of blue water.

From Crater Lake I headed down to Ashland, home of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. I stayed at the Ashland Hostel which was conveniently within walking distance of the festival, Lithia Park, the Ashland Co-Op, and everything else in downtown Ashland. Wednesday afternoon I biked the Bear Creek Greenway up to Medford and back. In the evening I checked out a free concert given by the Portland Cello Project and saw an exciting presentation of Macbeth in the Angus Bowmer Theater.

Eugene, OR & Oregon Dunes

2009-08-22T20:44:00.000-07:00

Eugene was a lot like Portland only much smaller and more emphasis on the local school, the University of Oregon. T-shirts, hats, and flags could be seen everywhere supporting the Oregon Ducks. I stayed at the Whiteaker Hostel which is located in a artsy neighborhood about 10 minutes from campus. Similar to other places I've visisted I took to my bike to explore the city and surrounding areas. Once again bike lanes and bike paths made getting around very easy especially along the scenic McKenzie River and U of O. Here's a hidden urban garden I found on the U of O campus.

Something I've wanted to do on the trip but hadn't gotten around to was to see a minor league baseball game. Eugene presented the perfect opportunity to see a game for the low price of $5.50, cheaper than a movie. I saw the hometown Emeralds take on the Vancouver Canadians and score a 4-2 victory in front of 2,900 fans. Eugene plays their home games in Civic Stadium which was built in 1938. Seeing a game in an old-time ballpark added to the experience for me.

Friday afternoon I took a trip to the Pacific Coast to check out the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area. This area stretches about 40 miles along the Pacific Coast south from the town of Florence. I took a hike through Carter Dunes that took me to a path leading right to the beach along the Pacific Ocean. I got lucky and had a beautiful sunny day to walk the beach, breathe the fresh ocean air, and enjoy a bit of solitude.

The big weekly event in town is the Eugene Saturday Market. This is more than just fresh produce from local farms, it's local crafts, food & drink vendors, and live music. I met my friend Dion who I met while staying at the Port Angeles hostel at the market for lunch and travel disucssion. We enjoyed a good conversation, excellent lunch, and some live music which included several kid rock bands. These kids had gone to summer rock camp and were now performing the top songs they learned while at camp. The crowd got bigger when the kids started playing and for good reason.

On the way back from the market I passed a building wall with a good message to remember courtesy of Bob Marley and the artist who painted this.

Portland, OR

2009-08-19T17:41:00.000-07:00

After several cool days in the 60's in Port Angels and the San Juan Islands I was looking forward to getting back to summertime temperatures in the 70's and 80's. Portland provided sunshine, a vibrant city with distinct neighborhoods, and great opportunities to enjoy the outdoors. I got a spot in the centrally located Northwest Hostel. My first day there I took in the Portland State University saturday farmer's market. It was the biggest farmers market I'd seen yet filled with tons of local produce. The area specializes in various berries so I bought a bunch to eat during my stay in Portland. From there I walked 45 minutes to Washington Park. Washington Park is huge with many attractions the most famous of which is their Internationally acclaimed
Rose Test Garden. It was not only impressive because of it's size but also the variety of colors and types of roses it had.

Sunday was a day I'd been working towards for several weeks. The main event for sunday was the Portland Century Bike Ride. I'd completed a few 100-mile rides before but this one posed something a little different than what I've experienced in the past, climbing. This ride had plenty of rollings hills and a couple of 700 ft. climbs which made the food/rest stops even more enjoyable than usual.

The course took us from Portland out into the country and then along the scenic Columbia River Gorge. The last leg brought us back through the city for an energized final 10 miles. Here I am on the Broadway Bridge with less than 5 miles left. It was a great ride and a really enjoyable way to see the area.

While in Portland I got together with a friend of a friend, Chris Rennie, who's spent the last 14 years in Oregon after growing up in Michigan. We hit an art/music festival in one of Portland Northeast neighborhoods on saturday afternoon and then I joined Chris and his wife Jen for an enjoyable dinner on their balcony one night during the week.

On tuesday afternoon I drove out to Multnomah Falls, about 40 minutes east of Portland. The Falls, Columbia River Gorge, and surrounding area provided one of the most scenic hikes I'd taken on the entire trip. I did the Multnomah-Wahkeena Loop which had about 10 different waterfalls along the way. Some of the Falls were tucked back between mountain sides providing about a 15 degree temperature drop. On a hot day like tuesday it provided a few short "air conditioning" breaks.

I found Portland to be a vegetarian's heaven. The city had great farmers markets, several grocery co-ops, and a couple dozen vegetarian restaurants. I didn't have time to try them all but I really enjoyed Bye and Bye, Blossoming Lotus, Black & Red Cafe, and Papa G's Vegan Organic Deli. While the only time I rode a bike in Portland was the century ride I do have to say Portland is a super bike friendly city. Wide, well-marked bike lanes can be found everywhere and I ran into several people who do not own a car and use their bike as their primary means of transportation. All in all Portland was a great stop with friendly people, great food, beautiful scenery, abundant sunshine, and lots things to do outdoors.

Olympic National Park

2009-08-11T21:15:00.000-07:00

Before leaving the Seattle area I visited Safeco Field for the first time. It's always a treat visiting a new ballpark and Safeco didn't dissapoint even though it was a closed roof game due to some rain. I attended the game with 3 longtime Mariner fans and one new one including my Aunt Glo, Uncle Frank, cousin Adam, and his daughter Sophie. The Mariners defeated the White Sox 6-4 in a game that featured a couple of Home Runs from the home team.

The next day I left Seattle and headed for Port Angeles, WA which put me in close proximity to some of the prime areas of Olympic National Park. I stayed in the Thor Town International Hostel, a work in progress hostel with a lot of friendly travelers, several of which were from Europe. I was able to check out a few sections on the north side of the park including Hurricane Ridge, Elwha, and Storm King. Hurricane Ride was a bit foggy but that just added to the mysteriousness of the mountains.

A short hike through a rain forest brought me to Marymere Falls.

A longer 2.5 mile hike through more rain forests and I found the natural hot springs pools. There were 7 different pools all with warm water approximately 100 degrees. Laying in the pool was pretty similar to a regular hot tub temperature wise but the thick forest and surrounding scenery really made it a unique experience.

San Juan Islands, WA

2009-08-09T13:07:00.000-07:00

On tuesday night I took a Washington State Ferry from Anacortes to Friday Harbor, the largest town among the San Juan Islands. Driving a car onto a ferry and enjoying the sights while we traveled to the Islands was a new and exciting experience in itself. Upon arrival, I headed to the 5-acre farm of Ken and Deb Davis, a few miles from downtown Friday Harbor for another couchsurfing stop. Within minutes of my arrival I was drinking one of Ken's delicious home brewed beers made with sourdough hops and learning all the ins and outs of his farm and the islands. Ken & Deb had a couple of friendly WWOOFers staying on the farm for the summer, Jeff and Andrea. The farm featured goats, chickens, tomatoes, beans, apples, plums, strawberries, golden raspberries, and wild blackberries.

On wednesday afternoon I explored the main island by biking all over. Amongst the rolling hills there were plenty of interesting things to see including deer, cows, alpacas, sheep, blue heron, sea otters, farms, harbors, passing ferries, islands in the distance, wildflowers, wild berries, and an assortment of other plant life.

On thursday I planned out another biking excursion, this ride would require a 45-minute ferry ride to Orcas Island. The goal of this ride was to explore a different island, ride to the top of Mt. Constitution, and return to the ferry terminal in time to take the 7:40 back to Friday Harbor. I was successful exploring another island and climbing to the top of the Mountain. It took about an hour and 15 minutes of climbing to cover the 5 miles from the base of the mountain to the top. Needless to say I was spent... but the view from the top was amazing.

I had one remaining goal, to get back to the ferry terminal by 7:40. It wasn't mant to be. I rode back to the ferry terminal but missed the last ferry of the day back to friday harbor by a good 30 mnutes. I headed across the steet to the Orcas Hotel. The owner was out of rooms and placed several calls to other nearby hotels. Nothing available. About the time I started picturing myself sleeping on a dock or park bench a Canadian traveler walked in. Amy was traveling from Halifax, Nova Scotia to Friday Harbor, WA all in one day. She was in the same boat as me having missed the last ferry of the day. "Captain Doug" the owner of the hotel had a solution for both of us. He'd take his on his motor boat back to Friday Harbor. All we had to do was meet him down at the dock and he'd take care of the rest enjoying an evening ride for himself in the process.

Friday I did a short mountain bike ride with Andrea, said goodbye to my friends on the farm, and then took the car on the ferry back to Orcas Island. I headed to Doe Bay Resort to spend a night at their hostel and enjoy their hot tubs overlooking the water. I had the 8-person hostel building all to myself for a quiet night of sleep. Saturday I arranged for boat transportation to Sucia Island State Park for kayaking, hiking, and a night of camping. I took the kayak from Fox Cove were I camped up to Shallow Bay. This path along the shore gave me great views of the incredible sandstone rock formations that are found on many parts of the island. I also did a couple of short hikes and kayaked the other direction to Ewing Cove. On this route I saw 30-35 sea otters. Some popped their heads up in the water while others layed on rocks. The San Juans Islands were a beautiful place to visit and offered lots of opportunities for outdoor adventure. the third picture below is a small rock island covered with sea otters. The fourth picture is Fossil Bay where I camped.

Seattle, WA

2009-08-04T18:58:00.000-07:00

Following the Mt. Rainer stop I headed to Allyn, WA to meet up with several realtives I hadn't seen in many years and some I hand't even met yet. We spent a couple of days resting and relaxing at my aunt & uncle's beach house. It was great catching up and enjoying some rest and relaxation on the North Bay of Puget Sound. Here are my Aunt Gloria and Uncle Frank.

Here's my cousin Jane and her two daughters Kylee and Ellie. Ellie showed a great curiosity to see pictures of family memebers she's never met. I showed her as many family pictures as i could find on my laptop and then we turned to facebook for a few more. I also got to meet Jane's husband Mark who I'll hopefully see again next week for a Mariners-White sox game.

After a couple days in Allyn I headed to Issaquah to spend a few more days with my cousin Adam, his wife Sara, and kids Brady and Sophie. The highlights included several sessions of playing cars & trucks with Brady and a hike with Adam and Sophie to Snoqualmie Falls.

On monday I carpooled with Adam into Seattle to "the office". On monday my office was the 10th floor of the Seattle Public Library, a uniquely designed state of the art facility. I met Adam for lunch at Cyber-Dogs and walked through Pike Place Market after work. After much time spent at campgrounds and out in the wilderness it was great to feel that big city vibe again.

Mt. Rainer National Park

2009-07-31T23:29:00.000-07:00

On wednesday I drove 7 hours from Boise to Mt. Rainer National Park. The picture above is my first glimpse of the 14,441 ft. mountain. I found a great spot to camp in the Ohanapecosh section of the park. The site had a fresh smell of pine in the air and rushing river just below my tent site.

The beauty of this national park is almost indescribable. It's so much more than just a mountain with snow on the top of it. The park is filled with forests, glaciers, rivers, lakes, waterfalls, wildflowers, and much more. First stop was Grove of the Patriarchs which features 1000-year old Douglas fir and western red cedar trees.

I hiked to Silver Falls and then later stopped at Hidden Lake.

From the Sunrise area of the park I hiked to Frozen Lake and then up to Fremont Lookout. The roundtrip was a little over 5 miles with the Lookout providing a beautiful view of Mt. Rainer.

Boise, ID

2009-07-29T09:36:00.000-07:00

On sunday I drove from Hailey to Boise. I made one interesting stop along the way in the Twin Falls area. I stopped to look at and admire Shoshone Falls. I arrived in Boise late sunday afternoon and it was about 96 degrees. The plan was to camp for 3 nights but with the 10 pm temperatures expected to be in the low 80's I searched for an alternative. I found Hostel Boise. The hostel provided a/c, reliable wifi, and a comfortable bed.

I explored Boise by foot and by bicycle. The Boise Greenbelt provided 30 miles of paved trails winding through city parks, Boise State University, and along the Boise River. I watched people "float" down the river in rafts, intertubes, kayaks, and other interesting floatation devices.

I saw Honest Abe and the state capitol building.

I visted the Idaho Anne Frank Human Rights Memorial. The Memorial is an impressive display of statues, benches, engraved quotes, flowers, grass, and waterfalls.

I discovered the Boise Co-Op Grocery store in the charming Hyde Park neighborhood.

I give two thumbs up for Boise. It's a very relaxed and easy going city with great natural scenery, distinct neighborhoods, lots of trees, and green parks. The name Boise is derived from Les Bois, the french term used for trees or woods. Boise also had a spectacular Rose Garden in Julia Davis Park. It's always good to stop and smell the roses once in a while.

Hailey, ID

2009-07-26T22:33:00.000-07:00

On wednesday I drove from West Yellowstone, MT to Hailey, ID. The route I took brought me past Craters of the Moon National Monument. I didn't have a lot of time so I took a few pics, got a few bug bites, and jumped back in the car. I arrived in Hailey having set up my 2nd couchsurfing stop, this time with Sam Bell, his wife Julie, 14 year old vegetarian daughter Sarah, twin 12-year old boys Alex (aka Alejandro) and Nick, and last but not least 7 year old Katie. As soon as I arrived we headed over to the Wicked Spud for the wednesday night live music. It was a scene from smalltown America where everyone seemed to know everyone, kids ran around freely, and the beer flowed on a warm summer night. Here's an overview picture of Hailey from a nearby mountain we hiked part of the way.

While staying in Hailey I also visted nearby Ketchum and Sun Valley. This area features the Sawtooth Mountains, the Big Wood River, lots of mountains for skiing, and the Wood River Bike Trail System. I took advantage of the rails-to-trails bike path to explore the area and climb some hills. Here's a shot looking towards Ketchum and Sun Valley as well as the Sawtooth Mountains.

Here's a clean view of the area to the west of Hailey.

Here are pictures of Sam & Katie followed by the twins Alex & Nick.

Saturday afternoon we went up to the Sun Valley Skating Center for some summertime outdoor ice skating. Everybody had fun skating and the kids got their hands on some jawbreakers which for me just added to the excitement. I had my first jawbreaker in about 25 years.

I wore my lucky Cubs hat given to me by my cousin Allison and her husband Phil and it paid off big time. I didn't fall once while skating and afterwards I got a free beer at Lefty's Bar & Grill in Ketchum. When I walked into Lefty's the restaurant manager shouted "Free Beer for the man in the Cubs hat". It turns out the manager moved to Sun Valley from Roselle and makes sure to give a free beer to the first Cubs fan through the door each day.

Yellowstone National Park

2009-07-24T22:06:00.000-07:00

I spent about 2 days in Yellowstone National Park and West Yellowstone, MT. When you think of Yellowstone National Park you think of Old Faithful. This park is huge and has so much more to offer than the Old Faithful. I probably took about 50 pictures of various geysers and then headed to the Canyon area to check out what's know as the Upper and Lower Falls. I've selected some of the best pictures as a sample of what I saw. Visitors realy need a full week or more to explore the park fully. There were a couple of downsides to the park. Camping was a little crowded and the temperature got down to about 38 degrees in the early morning hours. The crowds as well as wildlife blocking traffic at times caused some lenghtly delays getting into and out of the park.

After driving 14 miles in 2 hours to get out of the park it was 10 pm and I didn't have a campsite lined up for the night. I planned on taking Highway 20 into Idaho to Henry's State Park Campground when I stumbled on the Old Madison Hotel. After seven straight nights of camping I was ready for a bed and a hot shower. This hostel appeared at just the right time. I'm now in Hailey, ID which is near Ketchum and Sun Valley. I'll report again in a few days.

Jackson Windup

2009-07-20T12:54:00.000-07:00

The weekend focus was on biking and enjoying the beautiful scenery. On saturday I met with couchsuring contact Rose Caiazzo for an introduction to mountain biking in Jackson. She took me to the nearby Cache Creek Trails. The first time through we did what is known as the Putt-Putt Trail. The singletrack riding and scenery were jawdropping. The second time through I went on my own and did the Hagen Loop which runs along Cache Creek and though several pine forests. Pictures just don't do this area justice but here ya go.

On sunday morning I got some laundry done while it rained for the first time on my trip. It cleared up for an afternoon road ride along Fall Creek Rd. This lightly traveled backroad offered rolling hills and more great views of the Tetons. I did have to be careful of a few cows crossing the road.

The 5 days of camping in Jackson came to a finish as I enjoyed a great meal with some of my camping neighbors. Skip and Liz from New York City had been camping next to me for the last three days. They came fully prepared with tables, cookware, food, wine, beer, and welcoming hearts. They also asked Nicolas from Paris to join us. Nicolas was stopping in Jackson for one night only as part of a cross country bike tour from New York to San Francisco. The four of us shared an evening of food, drink, laughter, and great conversation. Now on to Yellowstone.

Grand Teton National Park/Jackson

2009-07-18T10:31:00.000-07:00

On wednesday night I drove into Teton County. I had hoped to arrive by sundown but the trip required me to pull over for several scenic lookouts. At one such stop a couple of buffalo slowed things down even more by crossing the road.

I was able to find a campsite about 10 minutes outside of Jackson. The site has hot showers, friendly people, it's across the street from a bike trail, and it's close to town. I'll wind up staying at this site for 4 or 5 nights. On thursday afternoon I met up with Jack Delay from Teton Village for a hike. Jack is another couchsurfing contact who is an avid skier, hiker, and biker.

The first portion of the hike seen above was a pretty steep climb. We hiked up to the tram above Teton Village. All told this was a 5-mile hike with about 4,200 feet of elevation gain. We took several rests to catch our breath and drink water. Going back down was much easier. We took the tram and returned to Teton Village in 5 minutes

Late friday afternoon I packed a sandwich and headed into Great Teton National Park. I rode about 20 miles through forests and meadows to reach Jenny Lake. Along the way I spotted a moose drinking water.

I found a nice quite spot overlooking Jenny Lake with the mountains in the background when I looked over my shoulder and saw a bear about 50 feet away. Fortunately the bear didn't seem interested in me or my sandwich. I slowly moved in the oppostite direction of the bear and it kept moving on its own path barely noticing me. I decided to move to the other side of the parking lot near the Snake River to eat my dinner. Sorry, didn't have time to whip out the camera and take pictures of the bear.

Wyoming Part I

2009-07-15T11:03:00.000-07:00

On tuesday I drove from Laramie to the Wind River campground about 20 miles south of Thermopolis. I got an unexpected surprise on the portion of the drive from Rawlins to Shoshoni. The surprise was some of the most beautiful uninhabited land I've ever seen. Along this stetch which took about 3 hours to cover I probably saw about 25 cars or trucks and even fewer homes.

On this route I passed several towns including Lamont, Muddy Gap, Jeffrey City, and Sand Draw. These towns were so small they didn't have houses, gas stations, post offices, or for that matter any people. Nevertheless, Wyoming has some of the most beautiful country I've ever seen and I haven't even been to Jackson yet.

All of this driving was done so I could visit the thriving metropolis of Thermopolis. What's in Thermopolis you ask? The World's Largest Mineral Hot Springs which can be seen at Hot Springs State Park.

At 8:15 this morning I entered the building shown below. I was able to relax in 104 degree natural mineral water for 20 minutes. The bath house was free due to an agreement with the Shoshone and Arapaho Indians that has been in place since 1896.

Colorado

2009-07-13T14:55:00.000-07:00

The rest of the stay in Ft. Collins turned out great. I ended up staying with Felix for a total of 4 nights. We did another bicycle ride, a 3-mile run, and one afternoon I did a hike at Grey Rock. Overall the first couchsurfing experience was very positive. I also visited a friend of a friend, Ian Cohen, and his family just outside of Ft. Collins. Ian's an experienced camping enthusiast who gave me an hour's worth of insight over the phone on all things camping about 3 months ago. On thursday afternoon I headed to Rocky Mountain National Park. I was lucky to find a spot to camp at Long's Peak Campground, elevation 9405 ft. I survived the night without any storms or bear attacks. After daytime temperatures in the mid 80's the overnight temperature got down to about 45 degrees. I did about 4 hours of hiking in an around Bear Lake pictured above. This section of the park had several lakes, a rushing river, and several small waterfalls.

On friday I headed to nearby Boulder to visit some old Glenview friends Aaron & Eric Schacht. I had a great time staying with Aaron, his wife Laurie, and their son Ethan. On friday and saturday Aaron and I biked all over Boulder using the extensive bike trail system. The best trail runs alongside Boulder Creek as well as several parks, the University of Colorado, and the popular downtown Pearl St. area. On saturday we hiked up the Flatirons at Chautauqua Park in Boulder. On sunday, Aaron and I went up to Walker's Ranch for a challenging mountain bike ride. The already difficult ride was made even more grueling by the 7,500 ft. altitude. Good Fun!

Inbetween all the biking and hiking we played several games of H-O-R-S-E, shot pool, and visited the Boulder Farmer's Market. Eric & Aaron's mom Judith joined us for a couple dinners including a perfect summer night picnic at Chautauqua Park. Pictured below are Aaron, myself, Eric, and Aaron's son, Ethan. It was great to reconnect with two friends I hadn't seen in more than 12 years. Next stop Wyoming.

The Trip Begins

2009-07-06T21:35:00.000-07:00

At 4:30 am on July 5th, 2009 I left Evanston for Ft. Collins, CO. The trip through Illinois, Iowa, and Nebraska was a sunday drive. Once I crossed into Colorado the skies became ominous and threatening. Soon it began to rain and conditions became right for a tornado. The rain and hail came down so hard that most of the cars on Interstate 76 pulled off onto the shoulder to wait it out. On top of that a tornado warning was issued for the county I was in. After about half an hour the storm passed and the sun began to shine again. Rainbows emerged from the clouds and it was smooth sailing for the final 90 miles of a 17 hour car trip.

I arrived at the home of Felix Wong in Ft. Collins, CO at about 9:30. This was to be my first couchsurfing stop. What is couchsurfing? This question is best answered by visiting www.couchsurfing.com. I contacted Felix several weeks ago to arrange a stay with him in Ft. Collins. He's provided me a guest room, lots of good information about Ft. Collins, and even inivited me to join a group of his friends for a going away dinner for one of his friends. We will also go bicycling 2 or 3 times while I'm here. On monday we went out for a 30-mile ride which included a several steep climbs. Coming from a flat area like Chicago this proved to be quite a challenge. Add the thinner air at 5,000 ft. elevation and I can sum up my first ride in Colorado in one word, exhausting. It was a satisfying feeling though to know I could comlete this ride and adjust to the climbs and thinner air. Here's a picture from the group outing with Felix on the far right.

Pictured below is the Horsetooth Reservoir above Ft. Collins. The road on the right side of the picture was one of three difficult climbs we did. The good thing about climbing is there's always a descent to follow. Coming down the other side I probably went faster on a bike than at any other time in my life, exceeding 40 mph.