A dot on the Greenland ice cap

We made this photo some years ago while flying across Greenland at low altitude in our small single-engine Mooney. From the ice cap below to the low-hanging clouds above everything was white. We had no radio navigation aids and the only possible landmark was a radar antenna installation on what was called the DEW (Distant Early Warning) line. Luckily, our dead-reckoning navigation saved us. Look very very carefully at this photo and you will see a small black structure that was the DEW outpost. It was our only contact for hundreds of miles. This picture won’t win any photo awards but it shows how little we had ... [Read More]

The Suez — one of the world’s true crossroads

If you’re thumbing through a brochure offering cruises try to find one that takes you through the Suez canal. Parts of this important world artery were dredged more than 2,000 years ago. The modern waterway extending a hundred miles from the Mediterranean to the Red Sea was opened in 1869 and widening continues today to meet ever-growing need. The Suez will give you some views of global commerce you can’t find any other way. It is a busy and vital link with a constant flow of heavy traffic. One day I counted 26 ships lined up and waiting for permission to enter the canal at the ... [Read More]

A must stop in Russia

The Hermitage museum in St Petersburg is one of the world’s greatest art centers. Six large buildings on the Palace embankment house some 3 million items, including the largest collection of paintings in the world. When we visited several years ago I was dismayed by the lack of first-rate maintenance for these facilities. Outside of the buildings weeds were growing. Inside some walls revealed peeling paint. However, the displays of priceless treasures seemed to be intact. [Read More]

Checking a site in Haiti with my friend Christophe

A had a good aerial view of the site on the north shore of Haiti being considered for a new resort. However, I needed to get a close-up look at the beach and surroundings. I was able to follow a dirt road from the crude camp-like hotel where I was staying to within a couple of miles (my guess) of the proposed site. Then my walk got more complicated. The road became a trail and that soon was lost in a swampy area with thick vegetation. As I was picking my way through I heard crashes ahead. I wondered what sort of animal it might be ... [Read More]

The many pleasures of Lake Chapala

Several thousand U.S. citizens have chosen to retire and live in the Lake Chapala region of central Mexico. There are good reasons. The climate is balmy all year. Bougainville blooms decorate walls up to roof levels. Costs are low compared with locations in the states. There is good medical service. And, if you have a hot horse that needs refreshing, you can lead him to the lake as these two muchachos have done. When you lead a horse to water you may not make him drink but there’s no resistance to a cool bath. [Read More]

Visiting the Argentine station in Antarctica

When we hear about the research stations established by various nations in Antarctica we imagine compounds consisting of living facilities, laboratories, and utility installations. Thus, it is a rude surprise to find that most of these stations are one-room huts. This Argentine station that we visited is typical. The stations that are manned year-round usually have only one or two hardy observers staying there. Life is grim. In fact, a man spending the winter at one of the stations went crazy and set it on fire, hoping to be rescued. It was a futile gesture. [Read More]

Anvers Island claim to fame

During an expedition to Antarctica we stopped at Anvers Island to observe a penguin rookery. Reportedly, some 30,000 penguins live on the island. We didn’t count them, but we know there were a lot of them. In fact we had to be careful not to step on any of the baby chicks. One of our distinct and enduring impressions of penguins was that they walk funny. Years later, when we got to be old we found we had lost much of our sense of balance and we were walking funny just like penguins. We solved the problem by learning to walk with a cane. Now we ... [Read More]

Do Pelicans Always Turn Left?

Perhaps our only contribution to the scientific knowledge of wild things has to do with brown pelicans. This vital bit of knowledge was garnered over a period of many years, during which we spent vacations at a small hotel at Punta Pescadero in Baja. From our terrace we could watch pelicans diving for fish in a scenic cove. After some years of dedicated pelican watching, we made an interesting discovery. Each time a low-flying pelican spotted a fish below, he would make a left-hand, counter-clockwise spiral dive for his prey. We have never seen a pelican make a right-hand, clockwise spiral dive. Intrigued, we began speculating about ... [Read More]

Surprises good and bad across the Gobi

Riding the Trans-Siberian Express eastward out of Irkutsk we were awakened one night by a terrible clatter. The car shook, and it sounded like people were hammering on the outside. Later we found that that was precisely what was happening. It seems that when the train crosses the Mongolian border it pulls into a shed where the cars are jacked up and the wheels are changed. This is necessary because of a difference in track gauge. This is but one of the reasons the Trans-Siberian is noteworthy. It traverses the expanse of Siberia, swings around scenic Lake Baikal, winds through beautiful terrain in Northern Mongolia and then ... [Read More]