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I’m feeling kind of blue today…..but it is a HAPPY BLUE!

I follow a couple of Blogs that post to the Lens-Artists challenge each week, and was inspired enough by the other posts that I read to offer up a post of my own. This week’s challenge by Lens Artist Ritva Sillanmaki asks to select one color (excluding Black and White) where the chosen color is the prominent hue, and share a maximum of 6 photos.

My 2019 visit to the Moroccan city of Chefchaouen came immediately into mind. Located in the Rif Mountains of Northwest Morocco, it is known as Morocco’s “Blue City”, as all of the buildings have been painted blue.

Strolling through the Blue City gives one the feeling that the whole city is giving off good vibes. That’s why so many foreigners go out of their way to make the journey here.

Blue is often used in Islamic Art and Architecture, such as in the Registan in Samarkand, Uzbekistan in the picture below. Built during the Amir Timur dynasty and subsequent Renaissance, the buildings were there to show power.

From my guiding days in Southeast Alaska, I had the privilege of seeing many different hues of blue on glaciers and icebergs, especially on cloudy or overcast days (or times of low sun angle). The very large berg in the shot below was taken on an expedition through Endicott Arm fjord several decades ago. The greater density of the ice, the more blue is reflected. Paddling dangerously close to such a large berg is both humbling and awe inspiring.

And if paddling close to blue ice is not close enough for you, then try camping for a couple of days ON the LeBlondeau glacier in SE Alaska. In low light, the entire landscape changes to hues of blue. You also might want to look at parts of your body that may also be turning blue!

I can see that you viewers might be getting cold by now. Let’s go for a blue in someplace much warmer.

If you time it right around midday, the short paddle trip through Melissani Cave on the island of Kefalonia, Greece might give you the most electric blue water you could imagine. But wait until the sun gets high enough in the sky to directly come through the hole in the cave’s roof to illuminate the water.

Hope you are all feeling warmer by now, and feeling kind of blue (A HAPPY BLUE of course!)

Check out the other posts from Lens Artists Challenge #398 to see all of their wonderful responses!

“There are the moments I love most often when traveling: the gentle, rhythmic jolt of train wheels on rails; the long, mournful blast on the locomotive’s whistle way up ahead; the feeling of being taken inexorably on a journey, heading somewhere new, yet moving slowly enough to have time to take in the changes along the way.”

Frank Gardiner

It seems that everything moves slowly in Cuba. That’s a big reason why I liked visiting there so much…….And riding through the countryside on a slow train gives your mind time to really engage with what you are experiencing!

The opening quote by Frank Gardiner epitomizes the train journey I took several years ago through the sugar cane fields of central Cuba. I found this quote on a post from a British photographer and world traveler who has a blog that I follow on WordPress. I’m grateful for her permission to borrow it.

The “Valle de los Ingenios Azucareros” translates as the “Valley of the Sugar Cane Mills”. You can board the train at the city of Trinidad and head east through that valley. It is now designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Cuba was the World’s leading sugar producer in the 1700s and 1800s. A railroad was built between the city of Trinidad and Sancti Spíritus to provide more rapid and reliable transport to a seaport to keep the sugar from spoiling.

The steam engine train is now used mostly by foreign tourists who want to experience the Cuban countryside and learn about its unique history. The valley is a living museum, with dozens of former sugar mills, plantation houses, and other facilities. I heard other passengers speaking Spanish, Portuguese, several different accents of the English language, German, Dutch, French, and Svensk while I was riding the train. Riding in the open air was relaxing and added to the convivial atmosphere of the journey.

The sound of the steam engine locomotive and the slow clanging of train wheels over the tracks made for a bucolic ride past the fields of sugar cane. Thoughts drifted to sugar cane cutters rhythmically swinging machetes in the hot sun all day. I pictured a young Luis Tiant toiling in a field like this one before he fled to the United States to make a name for himself.

The industry has been in gradual decline, which rapidly accelerated in the 1990s, and many of the big mills are now closed.

For the hefty price of an extra $1 USD as a tip, you may be permitted to “drive” the train, and they will take a photo of you doing it. FYI, there were no derailments on that day!

One of the stops on the train was at Manaca Iznaga, a historic former sugar plantation and a World Heritage site. Its famous 147 foot high tower was built in 1816 to monitor enslaved workers toiling in the fields. It also served to display the owner’s stature in the sugar industry and is a reminder of the encomienda economic system in Spanish New World Colonies.

For a small fee, one can enter and climb the tower and enjoy majestic views of the surrounding valley. I thought of the sugar barons of long ago viewing their foreign enslaved laborers imported from what would later become Senegal, Sierra Leone, or Togo. What a barbaric system that was! Then, reflecting on the current time, I looked at the poverty in the valley below. Considering all of the history that has unfolded in Cuba since that time, I wondered. “How much better off are the people of Cuba compared to yesteryear?”

The former nearby hacienda has now been converted into a restaurant and there are also shops nearby. One enterprising gentleman brought his tamed falcon to the town square, where you could take a picture with the bird for a small tip.

You might even get lucky enough to sample a cup of juice from the sugar cane while it is being pressed.

And, what better way to finish off a hot day in the subtropical sun, than by drinking a cold Bucanero Fuerte beer!

I took this trip in 2016, when it was still possible for U.S. Citizens to make a trip to Cuba with a group, for intercultural communication purposes. Cuba’s situation today is much more precarious, as the country is facing a severe energy crisis. The rail line appeared to close during Covid, but as far as I can tell, it is back up running again. Other points of interest in the Trinidad area included a visit to Playa Giron. Most English speakers refer to that place as the “Bay of Pigs”, another historically important location in Cuban history during the mid twentieth century.

I would like to thank photographer and blogger Sarah Wilkie for the inspiration to write this post. Her post titled “Gallery: From a Train Window” on her Travel With Me blog, led with the quote from Frank Gardiner, which so perfectly fit my Cuban train ride experience.

I hope that someday soon I will be permitted to visit the island again. For others who can go, I wish you a Buen Viaje!

There are a lot of reasons to visit the island of Kauai, the Garden Isle of the state of Hawaii. There are stunningly beautiful landscapes like Waimea Canyon, lush rainforests, rich history and Hawaiian culture, beaches with monk seals and turtles, and guided outdoor excursions for the more adventurous. However, the one reason we chose to come here was to ride the Ke Ala Hele Bike Path to cross off state number 49 of our bucket list to complete a bike ride in every state .

We chose to stay at the Kauai Shores Hotel near Kapa’a which sits right on the beach at the south end of the trail.

The Kauai Shores Hotel became our base camp for other adventures on the island. There are also lots of other amenities nearby. We visited their Lava Lava beach club restaurant several times and the food was excellent. The hotel even had a local weather station conveniently located on the premises. It proved to be quite accurate, as the wet coconut advised us that it was raining.

The mostly paved bike trail follows the eastern coastline of Kauai northward from the hotel.

A Kona low pressure system that had been in the news for causing flooding on other islands still lingered offshore. The foreseeable forecast called for showers almost every day, so we simply put on a rain jacket and pedaled anyway. Traffic on the trail was light.

Towards the northern end of the trail, the rain diminished. Riding on a smooth, paved, wide open path next to the Pacific Ocean was more than we could have ever asked for!

Some feathered friends we hadn’t met before came out to greet us. This Red-Crested Cardinal was particularly inquisitive.

So were the ubiquitous chickens along the pathway.

A few hundred yards from the northern terminus is a side trail leading to a parking lot through a tunnel of trees. Songbirds chimed in as we rode through it. Symphony or Cacophony? An exhilarating experience regardless of which one…..

Heading back south towards the hotel, there are very few buildings and lots of nature to enjoyably ride through.

Closer to town, the previous days rains formed a puddle that Beth chose to circumnavigate.

Some less intelligent person decided to speed straight through the puddle, which resulted in a brown stripe appearing on the back of his rain jacket. He used to do the same kind of thing when he was a kid. Boys will be boys!

But is was all fun while doing it. Now that we had completed the business part of the trip (completing biking state #49) we were free to use the next few days to explore other parts of this beautiful island. This included a visit to Waimea Canyon, the Grand Canyon of Hawaii.

We also took an opportunity to take a tubing excursion through former sugarcane irrigation canals which ran through caves.

Now, with 49 states biked in, we have only Maryland left to do. Hopefully, the spill in the Potomac River be cleaned up by next year, so we can do a 124 mile multi-day ride on the C and O towpath from Hancock, MD to Washington DC to check off the last state on our bucket list!

The figurative expression that something “Is for the Birds” suggests that it is “worthless”. But in Hawaii’s case, the expression should be taken literally and not figuratively.

There are all types of birds on the Hawaiian Islands, many of which are non-native and were introduced. Others are native, and only found on these remote islands.

The Common Myna (pictured below) is well, very common. Native to Asia, it is now one of the world’s most invasive species and adapts well to urban environments. When in flight, the while markings on the underside of their wings is similar to that of a mockingbird.

One thing that will be apparent to the first time visitor is that you will encounter Wild Chickens EVERYWHERE, and not just in the natural landscape. Chickens, which were introduced, were part of the sugar cane plantations of the past. When the sugar cane industry declined, many of the plantations let the chickens loose. Today, chickens running wild is one of the leading causes of car accidents on the islands.

You will find chickens roaming around in restaurants, even fine dining establishments. The picture below was taken in the Lava Lava Beach club restaurant in Kauai, where the chicken spotted crumbs falling from a nearby table and made a mad dash across the floor to be the first to claim the prize! I needed a faster shutter speed to catch him!

And, at a food truck lot in Maui, mama brought the whole family of chicks to scour the grounds, hoping to find a table with some sloppy humans nearby.

While riding the Ke Ala Hele bike path in Kauai you will likely see chickens acting as sentinels on the fences next to the path.

On that same bike path, I caught the attention of a Red Crested Cardinal, who landed on my bike tire and then hopped up on a wooden fence to study me intensely.

We encountered the Erckel’s Spurfowl in the photos below near the end of the road at the top of Waimea Canyon on Kauai. They are non-native and are endemic to the Ethiopian Highlands of NE Africa. They were introduced by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the 1950s and 1960s for recreational hunting.

This guy showed no fear of us and we didn’t even need a zoom lens. He just walked right up to me, and stared me down as if to say in Jersey style…. “Hey! You looking at ME?”

When I told him he wouldn’t get any payment from me for posing for a picture, he turned and walked away, apparently annoyed.

We also saw many shore birds, including curlews, sandpipers, petrels, and the egret in the picture below.

What trip to the islands would be complete without seeing the official state bird, the Nene (Hawaiian Goose). It is endemic to the islands, and has the smallest range of any goose. They were nearly extinct by the mid 1900s, but protected status has allowed their numbers to be on the rebound. Watch out for Nene Crossing signs when you are driving on some of the back country roads.

You might also see a wild turkey running around in a subdivision, like we did while visiting the Big Island.

While driving to the top of Haleakala National Park, we stopped at the visitor center. While we didn’t see the ‘I’Iwi bird (Honeycreeper) in the wild, I thought it interesting enough to snap a picture of the NPS photo of it.

Finally, upon returned to our rental condo, we played a card game of Big 2, where the winner of each hand would proudly wear the hat of the Royal Chicken. It was perched atop a beautiful Tropical Bird of Paradise!

Yes, this Hawaii place is definitely for the Birds!

Most of the Spanish that I am able to speak is due to my being taught by Mexican ghosts. And some of those ghosts that I knew are now actively haunting an abandoned mission hospital in Mexico where I worked almost 50 years ago!

Just do a You Tube or Google search for “Sanatorio y Maternidad ‘La Esperanza’ ” (Hope Hospital in English) in Aguascalientes, Mexico, and you find all kinds of stuff about paranormal activity in this former hospital!

The small mission hospital closed in the early 2000s, with accusations of malpractice. I happened to live and work there one summer two decades prior to that. And, I’m pretty sure that I met some of the ghosts currently haunting the place while they were still alive.

Sanatorio La Esperanza served poor people who often didn’t have enough resources to pay the public hospital a few blocks away. Since we couldn’t rely on patients to pay the bills, most of the resources to run the hospital came from donations from churches in the USA. Wages for workers was low there, even by Mexican standards. Most of my 2,280 peso per month wage ($100 USD) went back into the hospital to pay for my room and board. But the staff remained close and committed to serving those in need.

So, who were the people who became ghosts to haunt this hospital?

The majority of people who pass on don’t end up being spirits that haunt a place. Those that do usually fall into two categories; either they perpetually live through a traumatic experience there, or they have some personal attachment to the place that they feel they cannot leave. I met a few people that summer long ago that would fit into each category.

Some of the spirits may be former physicians, most of whom were underpaid and severely overworked and had few resources to work with. Besides living and working at the hospital, I also was a patient there for about a week. I vividly remember having several doctors and nurses in my room, including the elderly nurse who lived on the same back hallway as I did. That back hallway faced a ravine with open sewage. On oppressively hot summer days you had the choice to completely close the windows and suffocate from the unbearable heat or open the windows and let a foul breeze waft into your room along with a few hungry mosquitos that could get through the small holes in the screens. Listening to the staff discussion of trying to diagnose my ailments (possible typhoid fever or Montezuma’s revenge) motivated me to learn Spanish quickly. Since that happened nearly 50 years ago, most of the staff who visited my room must have passed on by now. So, since I learned a lot of Spanish from them, I am telling the truth that I learned the language from Mexican ghosts.

Most people who have experienced the paranormal activities in the former hospital swear that at least one of the spirits is a former nurse. I doubt it was Margarita, a nurse that was only a few years older than me who I once took on a date to a baseball game. Margarita is still probably alive.

However, I suspect that the elderly nurse who lived on the back hallway could be the culprit. Her name escapes me, but she rarely left the hospital. The only time I remember her briefly leaving the hospital was to attend Mass on Sunday mornings. People thought she was a bit odd because she used formal pronouns (Usted) even when addressing people she knew well. She was often seen wandering the halls even after her shift was over. Given her age at the time and the amount of years that have since gone by, she surely is no longer living among us in the flesh. Maybe her personal attachment to the hospital kept her there wandering the halls after death.

There were several former patients who had traumatic experiences that summer who also come to mind. One was a young man whose family transported him to the hospital in an old pickup truck. He had a bloody towel draped over his head. When doctors removed the towel in the examination room it revealed that half of his face was missing due to a shotgun blast. That young man survived and had many operations and stayed in the hospital for quite a while that summer. When he finally saw himself in a mirror for the first time, you would not believe the amount of tears that could flow out of his one remaining eye. I doubt he lived a very long life and can imagine his tortured soul wandering the hospital halls of today.

A few other patients died there during my time working there. Things happened daily that would make a young American man grow up quickly!

But all was not bleak that summer. Once in a while, I got to experience cultural immersion by attending events with local people. I got to ride a donkey bareback while attending baptism services at a local reservoir. While many of those folks in attendance that day have already passed on, I doubt if any of them had strong enough ties to the hospital to be presently haunting it.

I also went on a few epic hikes that summer with Reuben M., a Mexican national who spoke good English. He was 23 years my senior and has probably passed on by now. But he was a gentle soul, and I doubt if he is one of the ghosts that haunt the hospital.

Most of the folks in the picture below are probably still among the living. But even if any of them have already passed, they might count only as ghosts that helped me learn Spanish and not ones which would be currently haunting the hospital.

Finally, I’ll end with a picture I took of the hospital staff on the front steps of Sanatorio La Esperanza. Maybe one or more of them are some of the ghosts that are wandering the halls at the present time.

I swear that they were all present when I shot this picture, but when I had the film developed……They were GONE! Could it be that I was working with ghosts the whole time I was there?

The term “red flag” usually connotes danger or something risky that you need to avoid. However, cookies dressed up as flags with red are perfectly acceptable to eat! They also are great conversation starters around the dinner table….

When friends invited us to dinner last week, they suggested that we bring a dessert. There would be a few other people attending, some who we would meet for the first time. Our hosts mentioned that all of the attendees had a lot of travel experience. We wondered, “What kind of dessert would be appropriate to bring to a dinner full of world travelers?”

Then, I heard my inner vexillologist whisper in my ear. “How about some cookies dressed up as international flags?”

Originally, we thought of trying to represent countries from many different continents using many different colors. Realizing that the reconstruction of some flag designs might be very difficult and require artwork beyond our capabilities, we settled on only two additional colors besides the white icing (red and blue). From the pictures below, you can see why it would be difficult to decorate a cookie with a Bhutan flag or a Zimbabwe flag.

In the end, most of the flags with Red, White and Blue came from either Europe or Latin America, but still ended up stimulating both conversation and taste buds at the same time. More than one of us had visited most of the places represented, with the exception of Greenland. The other countries were Denmark, France, Netherlands, Iceland, Cuba, Costa Rica, Panama, and Greece. See how many you can match!

Your doctor may suggest that some desserts should be red flagged, but if you can eat sugar, then a Red Flag dessert may be just the thing to make your next dinner gathering a memorable one. Or maybe a green or yellow flag dessert for that matter!

Sorry, but we’re not referring to the Wizard of Oz. The Wizard we are alluding to is much more powerful than that. He lives on an island in the middle of Crater Lake National Park.

Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the United States (1,943 feet deep) and the island where the wizard lives is named after him. I’ve viewed him from afar for the last 30 years, but last summer I got to meet him up close and face to face..

You should try to see the Wizard for yourself. But know that he is not taking any appointments until the summer of 2029!

The wizard used to live below the surface of the earth, trapped underneath a large, 12,000 foot mountain that used to be called Mount Mazama. He longed to see the surface, to feel the sunlight. He dreamed of feeling snowflakes caressing his face. So, he devised a plan to make that happen. His anger and frustration kept building. Finally 7,700 years ago, he caused Mount Mazama in the Cascade Range to blow its top and lose almost 4,000 feet of height. That created the caldera where Crater Lake sits. But the wizard still lived below the surface of the newly formed lake.

However, the wizard could look up through the crystal blue waters of the lake and see sunlight from above for the first time. Summoning whatever strength and magic he had left in him, he started to slowly rise from the bottom of the lake. He kept rising until he finally broke the surface of the water. Then, he became an island. His head is now more than 750 feet above the lake. He loves his new home!

The only way to visit the wizard in person is by taking a boat from Cleetwood Cove, which requires a steep 1.1 mile descent from the rim and a drop of over 700 feet on a series of switchbacks over loose pumice. It is not recommended for people with mobility or health concerns. After 30 years of being unsuccessful in obtaining a permit, I finally got one for Beth and I on August 21, 2025.

We were blessed with a beautiful sunny day with almost no wind. Having visited the rim several times, the first time cruising the lake provided a much different perspective of the landscape. Massive volcanic dikes where liquid magma cooled in cracks between rocks below the surface of Mount Mazama and had survived the initial explosion were now appearing as sentinels on the cliff sides of the lake.

After halfway around the lake, the boat dropped off hikers who had permits to climb Wizard Island (including us). We would have a few hours before another boat would pick us up at the end of the day. As we approached the island, my heart swelled with anticipation of finally meeting the Wizard in person.

I had recently been treated for Achilles Tendonitis and although I made it safely down to Cleetwood Cove to catch the boat, it started to flare up again while climbing to the top of Wizard Island. Beth took my backpack which helped for the time being. I vowed to climb to the top and ask the Wizard to see if he had some magic left in him to heal my heel!

The view from the top was magical! I waited on the Wizard to respond to my request for either healing or a word of wisdom. Alone at the top of the Cinder Cone in the middle of the lake, the silence was deafening!

It was plain to see why the wizard chose this vantage point to make his home. Finally, it was time to leave and catch the last boat back. As I limped down the trail, a thought kept creeping into my mind. Was it the wizard finally speaking to me?

The voice said, “You probably shouldn’t have done this hike so soon after having Achilles Tendonitis!” So said the wise wizard…..

He also said, “You made a wise choice in choosing your spouse!”

The last boat of the day came and picked us up for our return to Cleetwood Cove. We finished the circumnavigation of the lake and saw a few more wonders of the National Park, including the Phantom Ship and the Old Man of the Lake.

It took a bit of hunting to find the Old man of the lake, a 30′ tall Hemlock stump with a waterlogged bottom, which perpetually floats in the lake. It was discovered in 1896 by geologist Joseph Diller. Carbon dating shows it to be 450 years old.

Later, we cruised by the “Phantom Ship”, the other island in Crater Lake. It is so called because it resembles the outline of a ghost ship, especially on foggy days.

Disembarking from the boat at Cleetwood Cove, we made the long, painful slog up the hill to the rim where our car was parked. Beth again took my pack and waited at the top for me as I limped up the trail.

The trip to see the Wizard set me back months in my recovery from Tendonitis. But in retrospect, I have to admit that it was totally worth it! You see, the trail down to the lake is under repair now, and it won’t be open again until summer 2029. So, if you want to see the wizard up close, you’ll have to wait a few years to do so. And plan ahead, because lots of folks are lined up waiting for their chance to visit him!

When the Universe sends you a freezing fog, don’t fret……..just chill out!

Here in Central Oregon, we’ve been living with freezing fog for almost a week now. High atmospheric pressure leads to air stagnation and a temperature inversion. The cold air drains down into the valleys, cooling air to its dew point, resulting in freezing fog. They say that the Northern Lights should have been visible this far south last night and should be visible again tonight. But only if you can go uphill far enough to get out of the inversion to see them….

Being stuck in a cold, foggy environment might keep you cooped up indoors. It can also be depressing to some. On the other hand, you could put on your warmest jacket, pack your hat and gloves with you and drive out to the East and walk among the Juniper trees.

When you get off trail and wander through the open forest, make sure to be able to trace your footprints back to where you parked your car. Otherwise, you may quickly become disoriented, and become lost. Your body might not be found until Spring.

But if you are confident that you can find your way back, then go deeper into the forest. Find a place to sit down, and be one with nature. Find a stump or a log to sit on, and sip some hot cocoa from the insulated mug you brought with you. Imagine the Aurora Borealis that will be dancing out of sight in the sky above you tonight. Stop and be thankful for the moment that you are in. Dare to dance by yourself! Nobody’s looking….

Your skin might be cold, but your heart will be warmed. And, you just might find that when you return home, you will be a different person than when you left to go for a walk. You might become a better partner to your spouse, or be less annoyed by your neighbors or co-workers.

So…..don’t lament when the freezing fog comes to blanket your life. Go frolic in it!

Ask any person who was born and raised in Central Oregon, and most will not have any good things to say about a Juniper tree. However, of all of the forests that I’ve walked in, the Juniper forest has become my favorite.

Lots of forests have redeeming qualities. You can walk through many of them; Oak/Hickory forests, Beech and Sugar Maple forests, Lenga forests, Spruce/Hemlock forests, forests of Pine, Eucalyptus, Acacia, or even forests full of Pohutukawa trees. However, a Juniper forest is where I regularly go to restore my battered soul; where I went to mourn the loss of a friend; and where I took weekly visits to get me through more than 20 years of teaching. It is a place to feel the most at peace…..where the soils are sandy enough to comfortably cushion your aching body while camping at night, and with a canopy open enough so that you can look up and see stars while laying down. It is a wonderful refuge from a topsy-turvy world; a place where an one can escape the ills of society and restore themselves.

Thankfully for us who live in Central Oregon, we have lots of Juniper forests to explore, as we are located on the shores of the Sagebrush Ocean, stretching from Bend eastward to Wyoming. An archipelago of islands of juniper punctuate the Sagebrush Ocean, similar to how the islands of Micronesia and Polynesia are scattered throughout the Pacific Ocean (I dare you to look at a map of the Pacific Ocean and its islands). As Central Oregon grows in population, you may have to travel further from town to find the solitude that you need.

At 29,000 acres, the Badlands Wilderness Area one half hour to the east of Bend, is one of the places offering an escape to the ever-growing suburban sprawl of Central Oregon. There are over 50 miles of trails in this area. I often go there, but you might want to avoid it on the weekends when it gets crowded.

After 10 minutes of walking, you can no longer hear the traffic on Highway 20 and your mind is free to embrace the ecosystem around you. Underneath the thin sandy soils you will likely find basaltic lava flows. Much of the thin soil is from the ash of past eruptions of Cascade volcanos. When the skies are clear, you can go off trail and explore, as the juniper stands often result in the loss of understory vegetation like rabbitbrush or sage.

But be very careful if you go off trail. While it is easy to explore without getting very lost when the visibility is good, beware when it clouds up and you can no longer orient your direction if you can’t find the sun. When off trail, everything looks exactly alike. It is easy to become disoriented and get lost. With no surface water around, becoming lost in a large area of Juniper forests could end up being your last hike ever. As a geographer however, I can confess that I’ve never been lost. But, I will have to admit to occasionally having been in some fairly large circles of uncertainty.

Like anywhere else, if other humans frequent a place, one should bring something to carry out trash left behind by some other careless human. I forgot to bring one on the day that I hiked. I did manage to pick up three dirty tennis balls (folks bring their dogs out here) and put them in my pocket. But when I saw that one careless dog owner left two doggie bags full of poop on a Juniper stump, I felt guilty about leaving it there, but didn’t want to put it in my jacket pocket.

My conscience got the better of me, so I returned with a garbage bag the following day to remove it. I could have also felt guilty for making another drive out there and spewing more hydrocarbons into the atmosphere. But when you realize that the Juniper tree is the best tree species to sequester carbon dioxide, you recognize that you are in a symbiotic relationship with the trees. I pump more CO2 into the atmosphere by driving out there, and the Junipers take it as fuel and end up expanding their range. I end up feeding the trees that heal me mentally. While it doesn’t absolve me of all of my sins of contributing to anthropogenic climate change, but it does make me feel a tiny bit better…..

What is so special about a Juniper forest?

The pleasantly pungent aroma of Juniper and Sage after a rain, is a sensation like no other. But don’t expect to experience that sensation often, as Junipers are adapted to drought.

You will not find yourself in a green tunnel like you would while walking through other forest types. In the Juniper forest, you can look up at clouds in the sky, or observe tracks of all types of critters left behind in the sandy soil. You might want to take notice and recognize what your own tracks look like in case you need to retrace your steps if and when you get lost. Soon, your thoughts drift to natural history and biogeography and suddenly you forget for a brief time the awful state of the world that was broadcast on last night’s newscast. You are startled by a sudden noise nearby, but are soon amazed to see the fleeing hawk or owl that you scared off.

Once in a while, you might walk to the top of a ridge and gain a glimpse of the Cascade Mountain in the distance, like you see in the photo below.

Upon returning home after a soul-cleansing walk in the forest, you just might step out on your front porch to catch a beautiful sky at sunset. That view seems like enjoying a fine dessert after a wonderful meal!

What a wonderful way to end another joyful day of walking among the Junipers!

The landscape belongs to the person who looks at it- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Ahhh, Landscapes! What other topic could entice a geomorphologist/geographer who is only an amateur photographer to want to submit a post where professional photographers showcase their photos?

I follow a few of the photographers who post each week and enjoy viewing their posts, but don’t usually participate in the LAC. However, I am very interested in the concept of PLACE, and this topic especially motivated me.

Landscapes evoke strong emotions in many people, myself included. While many photographers of landscape don’t include human artifacts or animals in landscape photos, I occasionally include either animals or man made items into the concept of landscape photography. The opening shot of the King Penguin Colony on South Georgia island makes the landscape. Even without the abundant wildlife there, the landscape of the island is stunning. However, the fecundity of the landscape of such a remote and seemingly inhospitable place makes it such an unforgettable place.

Sheldon Wildlife Refuge in Northern Nevada is a minimalist landscape, but I feel the empty chair gives it more of a feeling of remoteness. I spent lots of days during the pandemic there.

My tiny blue tent in the field below the Parinacota Volcano makes the high volcano seem even more impressive than it is (and makes me feel smaller than I already am!)

To really get an eagle eye view of the power of glaciers to carve the landscape, climb up to the top of Reinebringen to see the flooded out glacial valley. The tops of the peaks are sharper, as they were shaped by frost shattering and not glacier scouring. Truly a majestic place!

Sunlight on Yellow Tents, Blue Ice and the Purple Lupine of Tsaa Fjord in Icy Bay Alaska…..I can still hear the boom of glaciers calving when I see the picture of this landscape.

I’ll close with a shot of a double rainbow viewed from the beach of Lincoln Island, Alaska, from my guiding days in Southeast Alaska. This picture brings back the smell of seaweed from the tide lines, and the crunching sound of my boots over the wave rounded pebbles on the beach. Time to build a beach fire above the high tide line!

Dang! It’s really hard to pick only six!

Who knew a Swamp Rabbit could be such an endearing animal?

In our quest to ride bikes in all 50 states, we opted to ride the Swamp Rabbit Trail from Greenville to Travelers Rest to check off the state of South Carolina from our bucket list of states. The trail far exceeded our expectations.

Since we only lacked three states in the Southeastern USA, we chose to fly to Asheville, N.C. and rent a car. From there we would drive to different rail trails (N.C., VA, and S.C.) and rent bikes at the trailhead of a rail trail.

A beautiful sunny Thursday in early October saw us venturing into Reedy Rides, a bike shop in downtown Greenville. Seth, a helpful store employee, set us up on a couple of seven speed cruiser bikes, a map of the trail, and some recommendations of where to stop along the route.

You couldn’t have asked for a better weather day. Well, you could have, but you wouldn’t get one that was any better! Sunny skies, no wind and temperatures in the low 70s, made for a perfect start of a smooth ride on the paved trail.

The Swamp Rabbit Trail is a 22 mile multi-use greenway that traverses along the Reedy River on an old railroad corridor which connects the cities of Travelers Rest, SC and Greenville, SC. After the old Greenville and Northern Railway ceased operations in 1997, the land was purchased in 1999 and converted into the multi-use greenway which opened to public recreation in 2009.

The trail name comes from the railroad’s rough ride, as passengers noted that the train over the wetlands was uneven and jerky, which made the ride seem like a rabbit hopping through the wetlands. Today, the paved trail offers a smooth ride for bikers. You will likely see a mix of runners and bikers, some of whom are local, as well as many people who have traveled far to enjoy this wonderful trail.

The route offers variety of ecosystems, from shaded forests, to urban greenways, to bucolic countrysides.

Often, there are openings in the canopy which lets the afternoon sun warm you as you ride.

Heading north from Greenville and before you reach Travelers Rest, the campus of Furman University sits just off the trail.

We took Seth’s recommendation to divert off of the trail and pedal around the lake at the university. The beautiful 940 acre campus sits in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains and is internationally recognized for its beauty.

Even the turtles could not resist crawling up on a rock to enjoy such a beautiful sunny day!

Near the northern end of the trail is the charming town of Travelers Rest, honored as one of “The South’s Best Small Towns” by Southern Living Magazine.

The name of the town says it all, as it was once a stopover for low country travelers seeking an escape from South Carolina’s summer heat. Today, it is a destination for outdoor enthusiasts and foodies. Downtown boasts a number of boutique shops and eateries, as well as a brewery. The D Cafe describes itself as the place “where coffee meets creativity”.

Travelers Rest, or TR as the locals refer to it, is into local, fresh food, as the sign below relates.

While we were tempted to eat at any number of places in Travelers Rest, we already had our hearts set on eating at the Swamp Rabbit Cafe, a place that we had already pedaled past, just to the north of Greenville. On the route back, I stopped to take a picture of the vintage rail car at the pocket park located at Sulphur Spring Road in the community of Berea.

Just to the north of Greenville, we pulled off the trail and parked our bikes at the Swamp Rabbit Cafe and Grocery. Their mission is to “buy, sell and cook with fresh, local food to support a sustainable food system and provide a community space where people come together to celebrate meals.” Beth said that the bread on her turkey sandwich, which is baked daily and salted and glazed, was the tastiest bread she had ever eaten. The Pecan Brown Ale I sampled from Steel Hands Brewing out of Greensboro, NC was so delicious, that I was tempted to move into the area so that I could have it more often!

Pumpkins displayed just outside of the market added to the ambiance.

Hunger now satisfied, we rode south along the river and used an underpass to avoid crossing a busy street.

The trail continued into Falls Park, the crown jewel of the city of Greenville. It is a wonderful oasis in the middle of a growing city where one can walk, bike, or just relax and listen to the sound of the waterfalls.

Falls Park kind of reminded us of Sioux Falls, South Dakota….only it was a bit more upscale. We ended up staying at one of the hotels overlooking the park and the river. For dinner, we opted to dine at “Up On The Roof“, a stylish rooftop hangout overlooking the park, with scenic city views.

So, if you are ever anywhere near Upstate South Carolina, you should consider getting together with a Swamp Rabbit. After all, it is such an endearing animal.