Posts from 2024
Africa Trip Summary
Here’s a rundown of our five weeks in Africa, September - October 2024. 1. South Africa - Mukaleke in Pafuri After flying to Johannesburg SA from Newark, w...
Camping while Self Driving in Botswana
You might be wondering: what was it like camping in Botswana during the self driving experience? Let’s dive into it.
On the Road
After a quick turnaround to close things down at Keuka, we are on the road again. Heading west to Napa via Oregon.
Safari Wildlife Highlights
We captured a lot of video footage that didn’t fit into my other videos from our safari adventures in South Africa and Botswana. Here’s a compilation of the ...
Self Driving in Botswana
We had an amazing adventure driving ourselves around the northeast corner of Botswana in two 4x4 Land Cruisers.
Self-Drive in Botswana Part 3: Moremi
This will be my last update-as-I-go post as we are done with our African safari adventures and will begin the long journey home tomorrow.
Self-Drive in Botswana Part 2: the Wet Part
We have moved up to the northeast corner of Botswana for our exploration of the Chobe National Park over five days and four nights.
Self-Drive in Botswana Part 1: the Dry Part
We are well into our self-drive part of the Africa trip, so here’s an update on the first portion.
Elephants in Action
I haven’t talked much about the elephants because… well, they are everywhere and almost start to blend into the background.
Luxury at Camp Okavango
We concluded our time with Kalahari Breeze Safaris with a luxury stay at Camp Okavango.
Birds of Botswana
What do you do when you are driving around looking for the “big stuff” on game drives and bush walks? You find, identify, and photograph birds!
Wild Camping in Moremi Game Reserve
We concluded our wild camping experience with Kalahari Breeze Safaris with four incredible nights in the Moremi Game Reserve. Our Moremi wild camp crew fro...
Three Lionesses, Eight Cubs, and One Cape Buffalo
Our story ends with a tranquil scene of three lionesses with their eight (!) cubs (two of the lioness sisters are the mothers of the cubs) drinking from a sm...
Cheetah Relaxing in Moremi Game Reserve
I had all but written off hope of seeing the solitary, elusive cheetah on this trip when we pulled up to one resting in the shade beside a grassy knoll in th...
Mating Leopard Couple in Okavango Delta
On all but one day while in the NG-32 concession of the Okavango Delta, we were able to visit a mating leopard couple. Leopard laying on tree bough
Wild Camping in the Okavango Delta, NG-32 Concession
Upon arrival in Maun, Botswana we began nine nights of mixed camping and lodging in the Okavango Delta with Kalahari Breeze Safaris.
The Wild Dogs Cry Out In The Night
Not exactly at night, but in the early evening as we approached our camp in the NG-32 concession of the Okavango Delta, we encountered a pack of wild dogs an...
A Love Letter to Warthogs
Dear warthogs: we didn’t get off to a great start. I judged you early, and I judged you wrongly.
Ivory Wilderness
Our travel companion, booking agent, and tour guide Ken did a great job of selecting our second safari stop.
Leopards at Ivory Wilderness
Completing our trifecta of predator fun, I now present to you leopards finishing their antelope meals at Ivory Wilderness.
Hyenas at Ivory Wilderness
We had small glimpses of spotted hyenas while up at Makuleke but we craved more. We got that in the Ivory Wilderness.
Lions on the Giraffe at Ivory Wilderness
We had an amazing experience immediately upon arrival at Ivory Wilderness in the Klaserie Private Nature Reserve: witnessing the aftermath of a lion pride ki...
Mammals and Reptiles of Makuleke
And now for some mammals and reptiles! Stay tuned because I have even better ones coming from our stay in Ivory Wilderness.
Birds of Makuleke
Despite my struggles I’m getting a few decent wildlife shots.
Bush Walk Through Lanner Gorge
What is a bush walk? Going hiking with rifles!
Baobob Hill House
We are just two days from completing our stay at Baobob Hill House and I have so much to say!
A New York Minute
We had some spare time in Jersey City today before having to report to Newark airport for our flight to Johannesburg, and Karen hadn’t spent much time in the...
Africa Prep
Julie and I drive to Newark on Sunday, and on Monday we fly non-stop to Johannesburg SA with three close friends for an African safari adventure.
You’re Retired - Start Acting Like It
With the purchase of our home in Napa, plus some additional re-evaluation of our future finances, Julie and I have done a deep dive into our processes for ma...
Moving Days
I’m in Napa CA taking possession of our new home. Lots of family help here to get things moved in and organized.
Debby Hits Keuka
Debby hurricane-then-storm hit Keuka Lake last Friday with some interesting impacts.
Recent Gaming: 1861, Pax Renaissance, White Eagle Defiant
I’ve been playing some heavy strategy games lately, thanks to several willing guests.
What are my interests?
I’m playing with Google’s NotebookLM. It was a challenge to find the right sort of Google account to gain access. My university’s enterprise account doesn’t ...
Return to Bethel Woods
Almost exactly 9 years ago we were driving Matthew to West Point to report for R(eception) Day and start his Beast Barracks training. On the drive over from ...
Read Later Workflow
I last wrote about “long reads” and read later workflows back in 2011. Time for an update.
Welcome Brooks
From Napa to Florida, from Rory to Brooks.
Rory Louis Brooks
Please welcome to our world Rory Louis Brooks, son of Jacob and Kaitlin, and our first grandchild.
Thank you Rick Steves
I’d like to share some gratitude to Rick Steves. The man has been a virtual travel companion for me throughout a lifetime of international adventures.
Moving Days
We spent the last part of April solving our Oregon storage challenge: storage rental cost has almost tripled in 4 years, and we now have better line of site ...
Sand Dunes and Alpacas
We returned to Oregon from southern Utah using our now-normal route up through Salt Lake City, across Idaho, then into the Columbia Gorge.
Capitol Reef
We last made a real visit to Capitol Reef National Park in 2018. I say “real” because it is easy to drive through on highway 24 and claim you went there, but...
Return to Goblin Valley
We returned to Goblin Valley State Park for more adventures, our last visit being in 2021.
Arches National Park - Devils Garden
About six months ago we booked the only night we could find in Arches National Park. The campground is in the Devils Garden area, deep into the park (about 1...
Dead Horse Point State Park
Julie and I returned to one of our favorite state parks, Dead Horse Point State Park.
f”Baby shower for {peanut}”
The title is a play on Python F-strings, using a placeholder for the baby boy to be named later.
Offroading in Black Dragon Canyon
Julie and I are intentionally doing more offroading to gain experience points with our van.
How I Don’t Want to Grow Old
As I approach my 60s and hang around a lot of folks (mainly white dudes, and sometimes the women who love them) in their 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s, behaviors co...
Desert Camping and Hiking
We are loving being back in our van, finding remote dispersed camping spots and hiking new trails.
Member-Guest Golf Tournament at Rio Verde
My Keuka Lake friend invited Julie and me to come down to Arizona to their home, and me to play as his guest in their annual member-guest golf tournament. We...
Farewell Spain
Julie and I keep getting asked: are we glad we spent 3 months abroad? What was our favorite part? Would we do it again?
Madrid and Toledo with Jennifer
For our final week in Spain we were reunited with Madrid as we played host for my sister Jennifer.
Barcelona with Jennifer
Our final stint in Spain is a tour de force of Barcelona and Madrid with my sister Jennifer. Her first trip to Spain ever, and first return to the European c...
Barcelona Redux
Julie and I took the train(s) from Sevilla to Barcelona, getting settled with three days of buffer before my sister Jennifer joins us.
Bird Watching in Doñana Natural Park
Julie and I spent a day with a private guide exploring the natural beauty of Doñana Natural Park, nestled between Cádiz and Sevilla in southern Spain.
Sevilla
My opinion of Sevilla is probably lower than it should be as I’m growing weary of visiting highly touristed sites. Julie ranks Sevilla in her top 2 Spanish c...
Cádiz
A bit on Cádiz, mostly independent of the Carnaval action I already talked about.
Carnaval in Cádiz
We timed our stay in Cádiz to coincide with Carnaval, having no idea what to expect.
We’re Holding
Coffee, that is.
Ronda
Ronda seems to be on everyone’s small-town-must-see list in Andalucía, and we can see why.
Marbella
Our return to the European continent was on a flight from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria back to Málaga, and from there we caught an Avanza bus (pre-booked, a re...
Las Palmas and Gran Canaria
We enjoyed a respite from museums (mostly) and our normal tourist routine in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.
Moto Scooter on Gran Canaria
I rented a three-wheel scooter for a grand island adventure on Gran Canaria, with spectacular stops and mild regrets.
Carnaval in Las Palmas
It is carnaval season in Spain, and we had our first encounter in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.
Marrakech Meh
Oh Marrakech. I’m glad we visited, but I doubt we’ll return.
Morocco Atlas Mountains Adventure
Our second excursion took us to the Atlas mountains south of Morocco. We joined our guide Ismail and five other guests for some hiking and exploration of fiv...
Marrakech Quad Excursion
With five full days in Marrakech Morocco we wanted to get out into the country a bit. Our first excursion was a three hour adventure riding quads in the loca...
El Torcal and Antequera
On our last day in Málaga we rented a car and explored the hills north of town.
Málaga
Málaga has a reputation as the place you fly into and then escape to get to the resorts along the Costa del Sol. I’m glad we stayed here for several days!
Hiking the Caminito del Rey
Before we left for Spain I put together a loose framework for our transitions as we roamed Andalucía. Knowing that we’d get plenty of old Europe culture in t...
Cooking in Spain
I’ve been doing some cooking and meal preparation here in Spain, attempting to learn some local dishes.
Hiking around Granada
Julie and I did some hiking in the hills and valleys near Granada.
Granada and the Alhambra
It is hard to imagine the beauty and sheer imposition the Alhambra has on Granada without seeing it in person.
Out and About in Córdoba
With so much time in Córdoba we roamed quite a bit. The Jewish quarter is a maze of twisting passages, all alike, but with surprises around every corner.
Córdoba: Mosque-Cathedral and Madinat al-Zahra
Córdoba was our first stop in our tour of Andalucía, where Muslim, Christian, and Jewish history collide in ways that we are still trying to understand.
El Escorial
Our final adventure to the outskirts of Madrid was to visit El Escorial, the historic residence of the king of Spain.
Dining in Madrid - Some Redemption
Two weeks ago a wrote about the mediocre state of dining in Madrid. I’m happy to report that after getting recommendations and then booking some innovative r...
My 2024 Theme - The Year of Language
It is time for a new yearly theme! Note: I don’t buy the journals, but Myke and CPG Grey popularized the idea of creating yearly themes.