The World Through Our Lens
As Bob and I motored our way through Cinque Terre, we marveled at the vast mountainsides transformed into arable terraces filled with vineyards. It was hard to comprehend how grapes harvested at the bottom of the slopes could be transported up to the top until we came upon a grower operating a monorail train for just that purpose. Read more
When Bob and I visited Monteverde, we hiked in the Monteverde Cloud Forest Preserve multiple times. One day, we found ourselves alone on a trail in the jungle. I was ahead of Bob when I heard him exclaim in a loud whisper “there they are!” I stopped in my tracks for Bob could only mean the Resplendent Quetzals. The pair was perched less than 20 feet to the side of the trail. Read more
Our drive north from Lower Sabie Rest Camp brought us to Nkumbe Lookout in Kruger National Park.
The most-desired species of bird for Bob and me to see when visiting Costa Rica was the Resplendent Quetzal. In an effort to fulfill our dream, Bob pre-booked an early-morning guided hike in the Monteverde Cloud Forest Biological Preserve. Just before noon, our guide heard the Quetzals vocalizing, but it was actually Bob that picked them out high in the cloud forest canopy. Read more
While staying for a few days in Te Anau on the South Island, Bob and I made frequent trips into Fiordland National Park. Panoramic views of the landscape were spectacular and in places made even more beautiful by broad swaths of Russell Lupins that grow in abundance there. Read more
It was a rainy afternoon when Bob and I finally made it to Lake Matheson to explore the walking tracks there. The famous reflection of Mount Cook and Mount Tasman did not materialize on the lake’s surface, but we sure had dandy views of a New Zealand Bellbird alongside the trail. Read more
Located in Gros Morne National Park, The Tablelands in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, are actually a section of the Appalachian Mountains that was once molded by glacial ice into a flat-topped plateau now called the Long Range Mountains. It is a unique geological landscape often compared to that of the planet Mars. Read more
On a wintry day, Bob and I headed to our local Toronto, Ontario, park for some fresh air and a bit of exercise. As we walked the asphalt trail through a wooded section of the park, I noticed movement off to the side of the walkway. A young Virginia Opossum had dared to be out of its den during daylight hours! Read more
Baker’s Brook Falls is situated in Gros Morne National Park in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is actually a series of three waterfalls that tumble over three successive limestone ridges underlying Baker’s Brook. The middle set of cascades, seen here, are the most impressive. Read more
Having left Cerro de San Juan Ecological Reserve behind us in Tepic, Bob determined that there were still sufficient daylight hours to make a stop and go hiking near La Bajada. The coffee and banana plantations in that area promised good birding habitat, and it wouldn’t be too far off our route back to San Blas. Read more
