Tag: travel

A herd of caribou stands on an ice shelf, staring directly at the viewer. On a rise in the midground stands a lone bull with massive antlers, silhouetted against the distand blue mountains.

Caribou Kingdom: The Magic of Migration in The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

August 1, 2024

I crawled from my tent and stared at the ice wall along the northern horizon. It looked like something from a fantasy novel, the bulwark of some legendary polar kingdom. No escalade could scale these battlements: the shimmering bastion was a superior mirage, reflected from the Beaufort Sea eleven miles away. And this was no … More Caribou Kingdom: The Magic of Migration in The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

Aialik Glacier rises in a sheer wall of craggy blue and white ice. Tiny kayaks bob in the middle ground.

Kayaking Aialik Glacier, Where Geology Mirrors Psychology

June 28, 2024

My Laddie’s mother came to visit us in May, and since she’s fond of kayaking, we took her to Seward for a paddling excursion at Aialik Glacier. I’d watched the weather forecast all week and booked just a few days ahead, choosing the lone sunny spot in the meteorological lineup, It didn’t disappoint. Mountains rose … More Kayaking Aialik Glacier, Where Geology Mirrors Psychology

A silhouetted figure stands atop beach logs on Dungeness Spir. Mt Rainier rises misty blue in the background.

Three Hidden Wildlife Walks Outside Olympic National Park

June 1, 2024

Almost three million visitors flocked to Washington’s Olympic National Park in 2023, but the biome doesn’t stop at the park gates. The surrounding areas offer many lesser-known gems. On our recent trip to the Olympic Peninsula, my Laddie and I explored three local sanctuaries full of wonderful wildlife (and unlike many of the popular hikes, … More Three Hidden Wildlife Walks Outside Olympic National Park

Vanishing Vagabonds: Crossing Paths With Bohemian Waxwings

February 29, 2024

Too often I forget that Nature is more than a postcard: an exotic destination like jungles, deserts, or coral reefs. It’s not a place we visit, but a realm we inhabit. Environmental phenomena can whisk us on journeys even in the humblest urban landscape. Still we chase the thrill of terra nova, like earlier this … More Vanishing Vagabonds: Crossing Paths With Bohemian Waxwings

A great horned owl peers up from a green patch of clover, vivid yellow eyes blazing through the pink blossoms.

The Fifty-Dollar Owl: Contemplating the Cost of Conservation

September 5, 2023

My overseas work contract recently concluded, but after three years of vast Australian skies and wilderness at my doorstep, I couldn’t bear returning to the congested mid-Atlantic sprawl I’d once called home. Instead, I took a job in another remote pole: Alaska! I’ve hopped hemispheres from the Great Southern Land to the Great White North. … More The Fifty-Dollar Owl: Contemplating the Cost of Conservation

An aerial view of the South Australian outback. Black alluvial veins slither across red earth. Ridges and peaks of white rise up, giving the landscape a crumpled look.

Red Reflections: A Final Australian Adventure in the Flinders Ranges

August 1, 2023

The winter solstice seemed a perfect time to reflect on the past season and welcome bright new opportunities that accompany the returning sun. But clouds lay thick as doubt over South Australia’s coastline as my plane descended into Adelaide. Local news later reported it was among the area’s wettest days on record. Rain pounded so … More Red Reflections: A Final Australian Adventure in the Flinders Ranges