Fall Is Coming to Massachusetts

The leaves are starting to turn in Massachusetts. As I hiked Greylock I took photos of the the various leaf colors.


A wide angle view of the area around Mount Greylock and Pittsfield, Massachusetts.


Red leaf hanging from tree.


Fish-eye view looking up at the trees and sky while hiking at Mt. Greylock.

Hiking Mt. Greylock in Massachusetts

A beautiful fall day in New England, perfect for hiking Mt. Greylock. It was pretty windy but sunny and warm.


The the summit Bascom Lodge provided refreshments and a roaring fire in the fireplace.


The view out of the window at the Bascom Lodge was really interesting this afternoon so I blurred the War Memorial Tower and focused on the window itself.


View of the War Memorial Tower at the summit of Mt. Greylock.


Fish-eye view from the summit of Mt. Greylock.

First Day Back in New York

Jon and I just finished a 17-mile bike ride. It's great to be home after 7,767 miles on the road. I will start sorting through lots of photographs tonight, then it's back to work tomorrow. Thanks to everyone who followed the blog and sent great emails of encouragement along the way. I can't wait for next year's trip.

Chigago Tribune

We stopped for the night at Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio where we had many family vacations in summers past. I also worked at Cedar Point the summer between my sophomore and junior year of college so it's been a family favorite for years.


We arrived late so we got the evening pass for the last few hours the park was open. Jon still had time to ride the Dragster and the Wicked Twister. He also jammed in a few others since the lines weren't long for a change.


Jon ready to accelerate on the Wicked Twister.

A Quick Stop in Chicago

We stopped in Chicago because Jon had never been there. We drove to North Michigan Avenue and had a stroll on the Miracle Mile. The weather was unusually outstanding for Chicago, not windy and very warm so it made for a great visit. We had to make a stop at the Apple store of course and the great Garmin store on North Michigan Avenue since we had been using the Garmin GPS for our entire trip.


We stopped for lunch at Lawry's in downtown Chicago where Jon enjoyed some fine prime rib.


Jon posing in front of the Seward Johnson sculpture "God Bless America" located in front of 401 North Michigan Avenue. "God Bless America" (2005) was created by artist J. Seward Johnson, Jr., grandson of the founder of Johnson and Johnson.


Jon on the Michigan Avenue bridge over the Chicago River.

Celebrating My Birthday at Lake of the Woods, Ontario

Jon and I drove east from Winnipeg to Lake of the Woods, Ontario near Kenora to visit the lake cottage of Shane and Rachel Fainman. The cottage is a log cabin on an isolated island near Clearwater Bay. We had three days of absolutely perfect weather allowing us to enjoy kayaking, fishing, swimming, hiking, photography and great meals prepared by Rachel.



Jon preparing for his first ever kayak in my TideRace Hardcore Xcite 17-foot kayak.


And he was hooked. Jon quickly became an avid kayaker at Lake of the Woods enjoying the smooth water and excellent shoreline.


Jon enjoyed an impromptu rowing expedition after the small engine on the boat we were using flooded and we couldn't get it started for 20 minutes. Jon finally got it started and although he got a blister we make it back to the cottage relatively unharmed.


Very dramatic clouds at sunset on Lake of the Woods.


Jon and I spent a very nice morning doing some macro photography near the cottage. We found very interesting mushrooms and wildflowers to photograph.


I took this very small wildflower up close with a very large aperture to blur the background.


Early morning dewdrops on a spider web macro shot using a tripod.


Weed up very close.


Mushroom closeup.


Shot from my kayak on Lake of the Woods. Notice the Canadian Shield (Precambrian era rock).


Sunset from the Fainman's dock.

Visiting Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

The Forks is a lovely riverfront area in the heart of downtown Winnipeg. A meeting place for thousands of years, it is the city's most popular gathering place, attracting nearly four million visitors each year.


Canadian Pacific rail car at the Forks in Winnipeg.


As a teenager Neil Young lived in this house on Grosvenor Avenue in Winnipeg. We are staying right down the street on Grosvenor Avenue.


Pedestrian bridge over the Red River in Winnipeg at the Forks.


This bridge is the only one in North America with a restaurant in the middle. We stopped for a bite at the Salisbury House restaurant on the bridge. Great views.


Jon and I both admired the Canadian postal boxes on the street.


Jon and friend at the Forks, Winnipeg.


Canadian Flag at the Forks.

Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Canada

A very long day of driving from Calgary, AB to Winnipeg, MB with stops along the way in Moose Jaw, SK for this tourist shot. We drove 822 miles through the endless prairie of Saskatchewan and were very happy to arrive in Winnipeg.

Taking a break at 6,900 ft. in Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada

We did quite a bit of hiking in Banff National Park and were rewarded with some great scenery along with tired feet.


An interesting cloud over Peyto Lake.


View of Herbert Lake, Icefields Parkway.

Columbia Icefield Bus, Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada

We drove the Icefields Parkway up to the Columbia Icefield. We took the Brewster Ice bus out onto the glacier and walked around a secure area of the glacier.


The Columbia Icefield is located on the boundary of Banff and Jasper National Parks and is one of the largest accumulations of ice and snow south of the Arctic Circle.


There are eight major glaciers including the Athabasca, Dome, and Stutfield Glaciers, all visible from the Icefields Parkway. The Columbia Icefield feeds streams and rivers that pour into the Arctic, Atlantic, and Pacific oceans. It was an astonishing place.


Jon on the glacier.


Hiking on the glacier.


Front of the Brewster Ice bus.

Morant's Curve on the Bow Valley Parkway, Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada

Morant's Curve on the Bow Valley Parkway, Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada. We had just stopped to take a photograph of this very famous view when a Canadian Pacific railway train started coming around the bend. Jon and I both dashed across the road to get into position to capture the train on the curve. It was an exciting momemt and a lovely scene to photograph.

Jon at Morant's Curve.

Icefields Parkway, Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada

We climbed up to Bow Summit (6,956 ft summit) and the water is really that color.



We left Banff early in the morning and drove up 1A towards Lake Louise. We spotted a family of Rocky Mountain Big Horn Sheep on a cliff and I got this photograph with my Nikon 400mm lens.


View of Banff from the road leading up to Mt. Norquay.