Norma's adventures

County Kerry Adventures, August/Sept. 2011

2011-10-16T14:35:00.000-07:00

West Coast Scenes

Ireland is great in fall...no crowds, good weather and plenty of Guinness as always. From Ancient ring stones (left) to fresh seafood, colorful towns and Celtic music, there is lots to explore and experience. Aren't we lucky that we have a son and daughter-in-law living in Ballybunion? This time we explored the Beara and Iveragh Peninsulas using Kenmare as our headquarters. A highlight on the Beara Peninsula was the cable car journey of about 10 minutes over to Dursey Island. The car carries six people or one cow! There is a small village with perhaps 10 houses as well as acres of sheep and fine cattle. The one tarred road didn't have too much traffic, but then we were not walking during commute hour. The last cable car leaves the island at 4 p.m.

Son Glen found plenty of back roads for us to travel and we admired heather, St. Joseph's lilies and fuchsia bushes lining many of the roads. The sea is seldom far away on any West Coast road, so take time for a pub lunch of seafood chowder or mussels--always washed down with a Guinness, of course. Slainte!

New Adventures in Africa

2011-10-04T09:12:00.000-07:00

Early September found us exploring wildlife and humanity in Zambia and Malawi. We spent time in the remarkable Wildlife Camp on the Luangwa River just outside of S. Luangwa National Park. For selected pictures of our adventures go to https://picasaweb.google.com/norma.wightman/SouthernAfrica2011 . Elephant, giraffe, zebra, numerous species of antelope and birds highlighted our visit. Big cats remained elusive. We loved the view across the river as the sun set and the hippo came out of the water for their evening grazing.

The elephants even came to visit us in our rustic chalet, one rubbing up against the roof thatch one night as it reached for succulent leaves in the tree next to our verandah. It was exciting to wake up to a large black sihouette visible through the netting. Then on our last morning in camp an elephant family visited the delicious bushes just behind our chalet (photo above).

The humanity story is less exciting. The women of Africa work harder than one can imagine. The load carried by this woman through the bush (photo above), miles from town, is indicative of how part of each day is spent gathering fuel and water. Deforestation is rampant in both Zambia and Malawi, as in much of Africa. As we drove to the park, sacks of charcoal awaited pick up along side the road. It is the only resource rural people can sell for a few kwatcha at the expense of the environment.

Record Snowfall at Crater Lake

2011-07-22T16:47:00.000-07:00

Winter was a harsh one at Crater Lake National Park with more than 56 feet of snowfall. The rim drive is not fully open and the popular boat trip to Wizard Island only opens at the end of July. When we drove to the park on July 18 and arrived at an overlook at 8,000' the temperature was 39oF. Wooly caps and gloves were very welcome! Record snow assures that the lake will be at a good capacity this year.

Yosemite is Gushing

2011-06-22T11:28:00.000-07:00

Father's Day was not the best time to visit Yosemite, but we were in Fresno and made a day trip to view the splendor of the falls. Yes, the crowds were bad in the valley, but Glacier Point provided a magnificent vantage point without being too crowded.

Down in the valley we tried to walk to Bridal Veil Falls, but got drenched on the way to its base so were content to admire it from afar. At Lower Yosemite Falls we got pretty wet crossing the bridge, but it was a warm day and kind of fun to get a shower from the terrific volume of water coming down. Looks like this year there will be falls well into autumn as there is still significant snow pack in the Sierras. Don't miss this marvelous spectacle!

Rattlesnake Dines in Montana de Oro State Park

2011-06-13T08:25:00.001-07:00

Earlier this month Virginia Jensen and I took a morning hike along Rerservoir Flats Trail in Montana de Oro State Park. Fortunately Virginia had her camera with her as suddenly we came upon a rattlesnake very preoccupied with devouring a baby rabbit. We watched for 10-15 minutes and the snake didn't even blink, much less move a muscle. The bunny also was not moving. We lost patience and moved on so we can't even guess how long it took the snake to savor the entire bunny. An adventure with nature indeed!

Henry Coe State Park Splendid in Spring

2011-04-20T20:13:00.000-07:00

April in Henry Coe State Park shows a stunning display of wildflowers. With four companion backpackers we counted about 80 flowering plants on a 6-day trip from the Coe headquarters to Coit Lake, Missippi Lake and back to the park entrance. This was new territory for me, but the 87,000 acres park provided a variety of ecosystems from grasslands, oak woodland, chapparal and many acres recovering from the 2007 Lick fire. Visibility was good enough to afford a distant view of the snow-capped Sierras. Pachecho Falls was stunning with multi-level cascades of water dropping into round emerald pools. Cougar prints in dried mud teased us, but wildlife viewing was restricted to an angry rattlesnake, rabbits, turkeys and a variety of song birds. Until our last night camping at Poverty Flats we saw very few people, even though this park is little more than an hour from San Jose. (photos by Bob Early)

Pinnacles National Monument Abloom

2011-04-09T14:14:00.000-07:00

A mid-week trip to the Pinnacles was the highlight of spring blooms so far this year. While the Shooting Stars are virtually finished the Virgin's Bower was in its glory along with lots of belly flowers and the Indian Paint Brush was ablaze. An early Bitterroot is pictured. I have never seen it so green in the 12 years I have made my annual spring trek to this amazing park. Three condors were sighted (one adult and two juvenile) while hiking up Condor Gulch--how appropriate!

Anza Borrego Desert State Park in Bloom

2011-03-05T14:44:00.000-08:00

I visited Anza Borrego for two days this past week and although the wildflowers were only rated a 4 out of 10 on the wildflower website, I thought it was splendid. I counted 30 flower species in bloom on a 3-hour hike to Maidenhair Falls. The treasure at the end was a display of stream orchids--who would have expected this in the desert! Spotted in bloom along Hellhole Canyon: Canterbury Bells, Bigelow's Monkey Flower, Fiesta Flower, Desert Lavender, Fiddleneck, Chuparosa, Ocotillo, Rock Daisy, Indigo Bush, Desert Dandelion, Sugar Bush, Wild Almond, Bladder pod, Apricot Mallow, Chia, Cheesebush, Brown-eyed Primrose, etc.,etc. This State Park is awesome.

2010-08-17T15:15:00.000-07:00

Sierra Backpack over Franklin/Shotgun/Farewell Gap

August 6-9 six intrepid backpacks under the leadership of Jim Warner headed out of Mineral King and over Franklin Pass (11,000'+); then down the slippery slope toward no-name lake and up and over Shotgun Pass (11,000'+) the next day. Trails in the Golden Trout Wilderness left something to be desired so we happily returned to Sequoia National Park at the top of Farewell Gap. However, we did experience a bit of WEATHER the night before....first rain, then hailstones the size of garbanzo beans for about 30 minutes. Fortunately we had just finished setting up camp so huddled inside tents and sleeping bags until the storm was over. The next day out dawned bright and sunny. More than 100 wildflowers were noted during the trip. Alpine flowers were at their peak. Thanks for Jim and Sequoia Natural History Association for making the trip possible.

English Countryside Walk Brings Surprises

2010-06-28T12:44:00.000-07:00

Travels in England took us to many friends and family members. We enjoyed visits with some folks we had not seen for 15 years including a lovely lady who arranged the flowers at our wedding in Rhodesia 44 years ago!

We enjoyed the company of Peter's South African niece, Tina , for a week in Cornwall. Tina and I enjoyed seeing the Eden Project where an old clay pit has been transformed into an amazing botanical garden which features a steamy rainforest biome, Mediterranean biome and outdoor features such as a decorative edible garden. We also trekked over sections of the Cornwall Coast Walk for delightful views of rocky coast, sandy beaches and a riot of wildflowers.

Back in London, a friend guided me through a walk in the Chiltern Hills, northwest of London. I was amazed during the hike to be walking through the Chequers estate--the Prime Minister's country residence. I couldn't imagine the secret service allowing hikers to wander past Camp David!

For more photos go to http://picasaweb.google.com/norma.wightman/UK2010

Swiss Rail Top Way to Travel

2010-06-28T12:18:00.000-07:00

A Swiss Rail Pass allowed Peter and Norma to fully focus on the fantastic scenery in this mountainous country. We revisted Lauterbrunnen after a 38 year absence--the waterfalls are as fantastic as ever. A funicular and gondola took us up the Shilthorn, but not on the clearest of days. A highlight of our rail travels was taking the Bernina Express from Chur, Switzerland to Ticano, Italy and then by bus to Lugano. No tunnels on this track, just breath-taking stone viaducts over rushing mountain streams 300-400' below the tracks! The bus trip was also hairy as our driver skillfully maneuvered through narrow streets with the bus side mirrors inches away from buildings. Yes, this is the most expensive country in Europe, but the scenery is hard to beat!

Look at more photos at http://picasaweb.google.com/norma.wightman/Switzerland2010

Keeping Fit Abroad

2010-06-28T12:07:00.000-07:00

The Wightmans spent six weeks in Ireland, England and Switzerland recently. Norma continued her mountain hiking in Ireland with son, Glen and daughter-in-law, Elaine. We hiked one of the 12 Bens in Connemara National Park, County Galway, and also Croagh Patrick, Ireland's holy mountain in County Mayo. Neither is very high, but Croagh Patrick had the stoniest trail ever and some pilgrims do it barefoot! My sturdy walking shoes and hiking staff were very welcome, thank you!

See more photos http://picasaweb.google.com/norma.wightman/Ireland2010

Grand Canyon Trek in April Cool Weather

2010-04-30T20:56:00.000-07:00

With four hiking buddies I spent seven days hiking in the Grand Canyon from the Grandview Trail down to the Tonto Rim Trail; on to Phantom Ranch and back up Bright Angel Trail. The original plans were to hike up toward the North Rim, but heavy seasonal rain led to swollen creeks that were dangerous to cross. So we amended our plans and did a long day hike from Phantom Ranch up to Ribbon Falls through the impressive Bright Angel canyon that eventually emerges into high desert. Wildflowers displays were amazing with fields of Sego Lilies, Brittlebush, and various blooming cacti. The grandeur and scale of this canyon is like none other.

Snow Time in the Sierras

2010-02-13T07:22:00.000-08:00

Solitude

Snow flakes sieve down from leaden sky,fall on his parka sleeve, each flake unique.He stops. Watches the flakes land, then melt instantly—ice art turned to water.

He listens to his heart pump, blood rushing to his ears, then he resumes skiing. His poles dig deep into the soft snow leaving blue tunnels behind.

He spots a squirrel scurrying to a cache of pine nuts; sees a few animal tracks, but no other living creature.

He passes fir trees wearing shrouds of snow

on their boughs, each branch bowed down, grieving.

He stops to listen again— a slight rustle of flakes falling on his jacket

and the pumping heart, every molecule in his

body at peace with heart’s rhythm.

Ice-blue solitude soothes; erases his work-a-day world.

Flakes drift down as he resumes his journey out of self.

2/2010

Cut Out Unwanted Catalogs

2010-02-13T07:16:00.000-08:00

Interested in cutting down on catalogs you no longer want to receive? Go to this website http://www.catalogchoice.org.

Enter the names of catalogs you no longer want and a notice will be sent to the companies.

It takes about 90 days to process your request.

Photos from Patagonia

2009-12-19T14:14:00.000-08:00

Patagonia Featured Fearsome Wind

2009-12-18T13:12:00.000-08:00

Peter and I took a marvelous trip to South American in November-December with Overseas Adventure Travel (OAT) to Argentia and Chile. After a few days of recovery in Buenos Aires we headed south to Patagonia. The winds were fearsome, but scenery was terrific. Go to http://picasaweb.google.com/norma.wightman/PatagoniaAdventure# to see 101 select photos of our adventures. A highlight was being able to land at Cape Horn--certainly the farthest south we have ever been. Taking a small boat through Chile's fjord country and landing at various places via zodiac was a great way to experience that part of the world.