Sep 17
Apparently, I have trouble with the vacation concept. I run around doing stuff and adventuring and having a great time, but I’m TIRED when I come back. So today, my story is that I relaxed. I didn’t do much. That’s my story. I got up and went for another snorkel at Two Step and it …
Sep 16
Today is my second to last day on the island and one I had been looking forward to since signing up for the Hawai’i Island Festival of Birds. It was the day that I went to Kaloko-Honokohau for the guided bird walk. All told, we saw 18 species of birds, though except for the Wandering …
Sep 15
One of the charms of traveling, I suppose, is that you get to deal with the unexpected. You’re not in your nice little bubble. Okay. I’ll buy that. But is there way to convince the universe that I’ve had enough unexpected? This morning I got up and did the first of the Hawai’i Island Festival …
Sep 14
You hear, “Go big or go home” all the time, but I think the lesson I need to learn is to go small AND go home. Last night, not knowing what kind of weather the day would bring, I searched local birding areas trying to get an idea about where I could go. I was …
Sep 13
So this silly hurricane is taking its sweet time. It’s having some effects, but so far it hasn’t “arrived” yet. I got up this morning and checked all the reports and determined that if I went snorkeling it would probably be pretty rough and murky. I’m not sure about that decision, but it’s the one …
Sep 11
Back home, babysitting the granddog, my mom is gritting her teeth (and not exclusively about the dog.) Just before my first trip to Kona in September of 2012 (second trip to Hawaii) my mom and dad purchased a Nikon Coolpix camera that was supposed to be okay for snorkeling. I got five trips out with …
Aug 17
For the last week I have been a blissful combination of artist and tour guide as I gathered Ruth Buchanan up at the airport and showed off Oregon (in between making her teach a class at the fabulous Oregon Society of Artists (OSA) in Portland.) More about the class tomorrow. Thursday – Airport pickup, Blicks, …
Jun 04
As a follow up to last year’s highly enjoyable trip to the Allen Spring Campground, I made another reservation for the same weekend this year and Friday went over to this fabulous campground near Sisters, Oregon. This year a friend, Gretchen, came with me. Gretchen is a birder as well, and we planned to hit …
May 22
This weekend I drove over to La Grande to enjoy the Friends of Ladd Marsh Bird Festival. I had seen this even on my Facebook feed last year and had kept an eye on it all year long. They have some great programs over there. I hadn’t made up my mind whether or not to …
Apr 14
Last week I went south and west to visit the coast. This week I headed south and east to visit Klamath Falls, Burns, and Ontario. Part of my job is doing training around the state; a couple of times a year I go on a bit of a “tour” to areas where new employees have …
