Peoria and the Chocolate Revel (SCA)

The ride from Chloride to Peoria was too warm.  I had meant to start at about 9 o'clock, got 20 minutes down the road, and discovered a set of keys went missing.  Drove back to the campsite, still no keys, tore down half the load, still no keys, gave up and started driving, and found the keys lying in the road just past the campground.  They had been run over, but the 2 keys I did not have duplicates for were fine.  Sigh of relief.  Left (finally) at noon thirty.  Pam and Joseph were excellent hosts, allowing me to stay for three nights so I could attend the Chocolate Revel.  As you would expect from the title, there was a lot of chocolate in a wide variety of desert dishes.  Other food was served as well, including a very nice deep fried rabbit won-ton.  Lots of strangers to talk to, and I got to see an elevation to the order of the Pelican, as well as the premier bestowal of the Black Champhron, an armegious award for equestrian excellence. 

"Jousting"

Note the jousting, done with pool noodles and hobby horses.  Too silly not to include.

Chloride Arizona, Sept 25th

A very quaint town, with friendly people.  I stayed at the campground, and did not take any pictures of the town in spite of its 'living ghosttown' look.  The weather was very mild, in the low 80's for highs and mid 50's for lows. 
During the evening I took some photos of the cacti and other plants and played with the camera to get a few photos of the dusk skyline.  I was quickly reminded why one does not blindly back up when cactus are part of the surroundings.  No real harm done, except to my dignity.

 
Please feel free to comment, or ask for details.  I am still trying to find my narrative voice, and would appreciate some feedback.

Improbable Viking, Thor Hyderdhal Sept 20th (SCA)

This was my first small out of kingdom event.  It was nice to visit and talk with those at the event.  Gate was about 25-30, and there were 2 different discussion groups I took part in, one about preparing for a judged cooking contest, and another on the varied material found within butchered animals which we moderns rarely think about.  The feast which followed was very nice, and had a lot of meat served.  Among the courses was a rabbit stew which I quite enjoyed, as well as a slow cooked pork.  The only thing that spoiled the evening was the rain that chased me back to camp, and got me quite wet.  The temperature was mild however, so I did not get very chilled.

On to Battle Creek Campground.

One last picture of the Coast of California.  A tow truck driver was at the view point where I was taking pictures, and offered to take a couple of me.

I did not take any pics at Red Bluff or Battle Creek Campground, but did have a nice time.  The change in vegetation from the coast and into the high interior is quite varied.  As you go inland, it dries out.  At Red Bluff, it was very arid, but going East from there, into the Lassen National Forest, the elevation changed quite rapidly.  Red Bluff is at 305 feet, whereas 50 miles away at the Battle Creek Campground, it was 4,800 feet.  That sure made for a difference in temperature as well as vegetation, though to me it was not a lot wetter.  On my winding way down south on highway 70, I did stop at Yankee Hill to take a few pictures.

There was a bit of haze in the air, so the distance just seems to fade off in the picture, in person it appeared to get drier and drier the farther out you looked.

Klamath to Red Bluff

No pictures of this.  Mostly because I do not have a decent lens for getting shots of the giant redwoods.  There were a lot of the giant tree along the highway, and taking the scenic route was worth it.  There were many pullouts and short walks to take, of which I only did one.  I turned inland off the 101 onto Hwy 36.  The tourist info guy I talked to had said tourists in cars and vans do not like Hwy 36, but bikers do, and I quickly knew why.  Twisty and windy, followed by windier and twistier.  It was a great ride, and one I would like to repeat without the trailer.  There were next to no services along the road, and at the start there were a fair number of homes, they thinned out and then stopped when I entered Shasta-Trinity National Forest.  Very nice, very dry.  In 3 hours of riding, through mountainous terrain I passed 0 lakes and went back and forth over a few very dry creek beds.  The heat increased the farther I got from the coast, and by the time I got to Red Bluff, it was well over 80F, with the day peaking around 88F.

Klamath Cali.

Klamath is nice.  Very small with only a few amenities, but great scenic views abound.  Below are a few of the pictures I took at Hidden Beach, an aptly named place.  There was only a small sign posted on the highway, and if a local had not told me about it, I would have missed it.  It was a half mile walk to the beach on a decent trail which wound through a coastal rain forest.  Folks who have been to coastal BC forests would have noticed some things the same, huge trees, dense green underbrush, ferns and soggy moss.  But the addition of mature maple and other deciduous trees competing with the evergreens and the diversity of the underbrush is different.  The breeze from off the water was very cool, and the surf was low, with the tide flowing out.

The middle photo above shows the maples intertwining over Hwy 101, the Redwood Highway.

I have no idea what kind of berry is pictured 5 above, nor do I know the type of bird in the one just above.  Can anyone help label them?

Start, in Sasketchewan

So, I will show a few of the pics I took this summer, mostly as a way of showing some of the places that I have really enjoyed in Canada, and then transition to the ones from other countries.

Starting off, a shot of Mom and Dad's home.  A place of many good memories.
Next up, a view from a look out tower in Prince Albert National Park.  I had one hand on the camera and the other hand swatting Skeeters.

It was a very wet June, and as a result the Mosquitoes were bad.  As in do not stop moving, stay inside your tent or go where they are not nearly as bad.  Maybe not the worst skeeters I have ever experienced so far.... but very close.

Two photos, taken at Emerald Lake in Banff National Park.  In the top pic, you can see a green space on the slope as a result of a slide years ago.  The flower is a close up from when I
was walking through that area.

intro

So, at the fine age of 50,  I decided to travel the world.  My decision was difficult to put into effect, but I have managed to shed/sell/get rid of most of my possessions.
I hope to be able to travel to many countries while avoiding winter.  I grew up in Prince Albert Sk, Canada and have had quite enough of it.
My plan so far is vague and the road is long.  I am forcing myself out of my comfort zone and stepping off into the deep end with minimal planning.
I have been an active member of the SCA,http://scademo.com/ for more than half my life.  Getting to events outside the areas I have lived in will be a fun thing for me.
To help keep expenses down, I couch surf part of the time, and cook in return for couch space.
So far, I have taken from June 1st 2013 to Sept 10th to visit with friends and family in Canada before fleeing the cold and heading south.