Andrew's Awesome Adventures

January 11, 2014

Our last day in the Galapagos was mostly spent traveling. Waking up before sunrise to catch our boat back to Santa Cruz, we didn't get to see much more than a beautiful sunrise. The boat ride was again uneventful and we went straight from there to a car to the ferry to the airport. Still got some great views, especially of the clouds, but not quite as exciting as the last few days.

January 9, 2014

I know what you're thinking. It's not that.

We started today by renting some bikes. We were to ride down along the ocean and take the path to the Wall of Tears, a large stone wall built by hand by prisoners formerly kept on this island.

Then they happened: crabs. Big blue ones.

January 8, 2014

Today's goal was simple: climb the Sierra Negra volcano to get a better idea of how these islands formed and see how the climate changes across the peaks. The hike would take much of the day but should also provide beautiful views of the islands. In theory.

January 7, 2014

My dad and I awoke early this morning for our flight to the Galapagos. Landing on Baltra, we zoomed through baggage claim (carry on only) to meet Silvia, our naturalist guide for the day.

With Silvia, we got on the bus transfer to the Santa Cruz ferry. A short ride later and we were on Santa Cruz and met our driver. The plan for the day was to take a leisurely drive across Santa Cruz with a few stops before having lunch in Puerta Ayora and catching the ferry to Isabela, where we would spend the next couple days.

Japan. A country with legendary swordsmiths who create deadly works of arts. A country where things are done the right way irrespective of time and cost. A country where traditions are built over centuries, and are lived rather than just respected.

Apparently Andrew is still doing things and posting on here. I said I would too. It's been a while: I'm not even sure what year the last one was. When you know Andrew, time becomes an irrelevance. It's like Purgatory, but without the vague sense of hope.

Some good friends came to visit me for the weekend. We started with the simple, exploring a few of the National Monuments nearby. After that, we decided to try something a little more adventurous: hike from the rim of the Grand Canyon to the Colorado River and back in a day.

Last winter, my brother and I went to Ouray, Colorado. A reasonable drive from my new home, I wanted to show my brother what I enjoy so much about ice climbing.

The Ouray Ice Park is an awesome place. This natural gorge has water pipes running along the top rim . Many years ago, some clever climbers decided to tap the pipes to run water down the cliffs. This makes for very reliable ice climbing conditions with some awesome climbs. As a bonus, the natural hot springs in town make an excellent way to relax after a day on the ice.

As some of you know, I recently moved to Flagstaff. Things have been busy and I'm way behind on my travel photos but even staying home can be an adventure. Simple yet special. These are some photos from near my new home--a bit of mountain climbing, playing in the river, the recent eclipse in Flagstaff's beautiful dark night skies, and even some ancient pueblo ruins. Lots more to do here--I'm looking forward to it.

Sometimes it's easier to just put stuff up than write about it. These are old ones from Toronto.