December 24, 2011

I found myself stuck on the island of Borneo for several days, waiting for a helicopter to take me to a rig in the South China Sea, off the coast of Malaysia. Itching to explore, I asked a cab driver if he could take me to Lambir Hills National Park the following morning and pick me up in the evening. He agreed, and early the next day, I was in the back seat of his cab, riding to the entrance to the park.

I hiked to the Pukit Lambir summit, passing Dinding waterfall, getting there by mid-afternoon. I made the photograph above, took off my steel-toe boots, and waded into the water to make a close-up of the water cascading on the rocks. I was hot and covered with sweat, and thought about removing the rest of my clothes (I was the only one in the area) and swimming, but knew I had to get back to the park headquarters to meet my ride back to Miri. I put my boots back on, grabbed my gear, and headed out.

The following afternoon, I was sitting in an outside bar, having a beer (Tiger – I’ve had better) and talking with some locals. I told them of my hike, showed them these photographs, and told them of my desire to swim. One man smiled and said, “Good thing you didn’t. Lots of river crocodiles up there.”

April 2017

Hiking outside of Golden, Colorado with Linda, and friends Gary and Nancy and Bob and Bev. The morning started out quite warm, but by 1:00 P.M., the clouds started to roll in. It never rained on us, and we were off the mountain and sitting comfortably in the Holidaily Brewery, relaxing after the seven-mile hike.

February 2017

St. Lucia is a beautiful island. The landscape is incredible – quite mountainous and great beaches too. Linda and I spent a week there with friends Mike and Julie and Cliff and Karen. The Pitons are the most famous of the island’s landmarks. Gros Piton (the big one) and Petit Piton (the smaller of the two) are along the west coast, and both visible from Sugar Beach.

February 2016

I was working in Hannibal for several months between 2015 and 2016. Every now and then, while on business trips, it’s good to leave the brand-name hotels behind and find a good bed and breakfast. I booked a room at the Garden Inn B&B in downtown Hannibal for a week.

What I didn’t get was loyalty points, a pool, a 20 x 30 sq. ft. cookie-cutter room, and hordes of business travelers mulling around the breakfast bar each morning.

What I did get was a great room with character, an excellent breakfast each morning, and the house to myself. I was also within walking distance to the Mark Twain Brewery and the banks of the Mississippi River.

April 2017

It’s a lucky day when you get to see the sun shining in Seattle in April. I came here with Linda to see my son Jason, who is visiting from Sweden, and my daughter Valerie.

After a few cups of strong coffee and a couple of pints of Guinness, we drove to Gasworks Park on Lake Union. Seattle, with blue skies, is beyond the south shore of the lake.

February 2017

We were staying at the Bay Gardens Beach Resort in St. Lucia with some friends this past winter. One evening, the resort had four locals put on a show for guests. The highlight, at least for me, was this young man demonstrating his fire-eating skills. I don’t know what he had for dinner, but it was obviously spicy.

July 2014

I spent a lot of time working in Akron, Ohio, for HP’s Digital Imaging Systems (formally known as RPS). We had a training facility on the south side of town. On trips where I had to spend the weekend, rather than staying in a hotel in Akron, I instead stayed at the Brandywine Bed & Breakfast in Cuyahoga Valley National Park. During one stay. Linda drove down from Michigan and stayed the weekend with me. We hiked here and there, and at one point, became somewhat lost in the woods.

Cuyahoga Valley National Park is midway between Akron and Cleveland. You wouldn’t know this much beauty could be located so close to two large, industrial cities. It’s worth a visit if you find yourself in northern Ohio with time on your side.

January 2009

I was teaching classes in Troy Michigan during the week of January 27th through 31st. My classes finished early on Tuesday. I left Troy and drove north through Lapeer County, taking back-roads through farmland. The snows started around 11:00, just as I was driving down a rural road, somewhere between Metamora and Dryden. I saw this farm and not bothering to put on my coat, I pulled my rental car off to the side of the road, walked into the middle of the two-lane road, and made this photograph.

I’ll probably never be able to find this place again. Sometimes the best shots are random.

January 2012

I was in between rig trips – just off of a rig in the Gulf of Thailand, and on my back to Perth, Australia. I had three days in Songklha, Thailand, before flying back across the Indian Ocean to Perth. Looking for adventure, I hiked to the top of a hill to the Khao Tang Kuan Pagoda. The statue of Buddha overlooks the city. When I arrived a the pagoda, I took some time to reflect, rang a bell, and spoke with several locals who made the trip to observe their religion.

On the way down, I took a less direct route, hiking through forests down to the city center. On the way down, I encountered more monkeys (dozens) than I did people (three).

September 2017

The deserts of Western Colorado are quite different than the mountains of the Front Range, where we live. Driving back from Palisade, we passed this butte. It is along Interstate 70, and we passed it rather quickly. My friend Gary was driving, and I made this photograph through the back window while traveling around 70 MPH.

October 2020

Three years later we were driving through Grand Junction on our way to Utah. This time Linda driving west. I made this photograph of the same butte – different time of day and different weather.