The Kali Gandaki river is on the western side of the Thorung La Pass. And for most trekkers, this is the descending part of the Annapurna Circuit. The river flows through a large valley that starts in Tibet and cuts through the Himalayan mountains. At one point the river is 18-20, 000 feet below the mountain on either side, making it the world's deepest gorge. Continue reading »

Short answer: $1455 USD.

That's for 2 of us with a guide and a porter for a 17 day Annapurna Circuit trek (days 4-20 on this itinerary), inclusive of all food, lodging, transportation, entrance & trekking fees, starting and ending in Pokhara, with an exchange rate of 70 Nepali Rupees per 1 US Dollar It DOES NOT include any transportation costs getting to Pokhara or any lodging or food in Pokhara.

Long answer: Continue reading »

A little reflection on our Yellowstone transport/lodging. Music: Good Old Mountain Dew by Tony Rice, David Grisman from Tone Poems

The thermal features of Yellowstone, in addition to all their science coolness, have a beauty that always surprises me. Check out the little gallery after the jump. Continue reading »

We're back from our travels in Wyoming. We went to Yellowstone, flying in & out of Jackson or Jackson Hole (not quite sure which). Everything went well, no particular crises arose. The RV thing was, uh, an experience -- one which I shall detail in a few days. Continue reading »

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We're renting that RV for Yellowstone, but we're not going to be hanging around the campground during the day. There are trails to be trod. But one of my worries is that the behemoth we're driving will be too big to park at the trailhead. You know how I hate surprises and not knowing things ahead of time. What to do?

Google Street Views. Above is the trailhead I was worried about. As you can see, plenty of room. I find it equally amazing and disappointing that all the roads in Yellowstone are in there. You can drive around the park in the comfort of your own house. I guess it nets out on the positive side -- I got my answer about the trailhead parking. And Yellowstone only gets really good when you get off the roads and onto the trails. I'll really despair, however, when the Google Trail Views comes online. I'm hoping that's a few years out. Continue reading »

This summer marks our bi-annual family vacation -- every two years H, Z and myself head west to one of the national parks. On the last one we went to Glacier, f'instance. This summer we're heading back to Yellowstone. We went in '03. Since this will be the last 'official' trip with Z (college and all that next year), I let her choose the destination, and she picked Y'stone.

Now I'm not a re-visitor. Usually I'm one and done - "Seen it, check, next place please." So this presents a bit of an issue when your daughter picks the six-year-ago destination. But since Yellowstone is a big place, I figured I could make a second trip of it with little overlap. But it took me too long to spec out the itinerary, and the proper lodging in the proper order was unavailable. I called a year ahead instead of a year and a half.

But once I set an itinerary, I'm a stubborn man. Although H's bear phobia precludes any kind of tent camping, the hard-sided RV remained the final camping option. So, we're renting an RV. It's not the Stripes EM-50 "Urban Assault Vehicle" pictured above, but I feel that it will be close. I never pictured myself behind the wheel of an RV, but there's been plenty of non-photographic expectations in my life thus far, so I forge ahead. But I figure that worse-case, I get to tell a good story, and you get to be amused. Continue reading »

Revisiting our trip to Namibia, and trying out some new video software. For some reason the day we drove from Cape Cross to Uis has stuck with me. The geology was wonderful, as was the solitude - we passed just one car on this 6 hour journey. It's 4:41, enjoy. Continue reading »