Mick Mac Travels

Photography Workshop, Outer Banks, NC September 2021

Colin McNaught — Sat, 25 Sep 2021 18:14:19 +0000

A blog post from Colin: Now that our RV travels are over, several of our friends (particularly those not enamored of Facebook) have asked if I would publish some of my photographic efforts on this website. This will be the first post, showing photographs taken on a 5 day photography workshop I attended in …

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The End of Our Journey – Test Drive to Assateague

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Thu, 09 Jul 2020 21:42:40 +0000

Our wonderful dog Bindi did not do well on our journey to Cape Breton and back. Every time the RV was moving, she was panting, shaking and pacing, these symptoms worsening the longer we drove. We now see that the accident we experienced in the Spring of 2019 had affected her ability to travel …

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Fall Colors – 2019

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Tue, 15 Oct 2019 22:24:11 +0000

We were hoping that by pushing our return date back to mid-October, we would see some Fall colors. We were not disappointed, particularly driving the Kankamagus trail through the White Mountains of New Hampshire and the Green Mountains of Vermont. This will be the last post for this trip, we’re looking forward to re-acquainting …

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Cape Breton

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Mon, 14 Oct 2019 19:27:46 +0000

We had originally planned two months in Nova Scotia when we left in June. However, this being our second attempt, leaving late August, we knew that if weather and health held up and we were able to make it that far North, time would be short and we would need to focus on one …

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Bay of Fundy

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Tue, 08 Oct 2019 00:42:38 +0000

Fundy National Park We crossed the border into New Brunswick, Canada without incident and headed for Fundy National Park where we were booked in for three nights at the Point Wolfe campground. Looking at the van’s GPS on the way to the campground, we were surprised to see we were on Micmac Road! It …

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Acadia National Park: East

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sat, 28 Sep 2019 19:37:15 +0000

Blackwoods Campground Located at the Southern tip of the Eastern part of Acadia NP, Blackwoods Campground is a beautiful wooded area with a short trail to an ocean overlook. It is accessible to free bus routes covering the main section of the park which we took advantage of a couple of times (dogs travel …

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Acadia National Park: West

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Thu, 26 Sep 2019 16:47:14 +0000

Acadia National Park consists of several separate areas, most of which are located on Mount Desert Island. The Island is split by Somes Sound running North to South, separating the Western half of the Island from the Eastern half which contains the more well known tourist areas of the park plus the town of …

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Lake Lucerne and Camden Hills

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sun, 22 Sep 2019 17:00:25 +0000

Friends on ‘Lake Lucerne’ We had planned this part of the journey, but it was still a surprise. We had known Bill and Laura Michaud from our Sopha Medical days, when Colin was President and CEO, based in Columbia, Maryland. The company sold cameras and developed software for the Nuclear Medicine medical equipment market. …

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Boothbay Harbor and Camden

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Wed, 18 Sep 2019 13:45:55 +0000

Boothbay Harbor It was a lovely surprise to become friends with Nancy and Fred Kelly. Fred is famous around the Chesapeake Bay because of his many, many years of service as an environmental attorney and the helmsman behind the Severn Riverkeeper Association organization, now their Executive Director. Nancy too has a background in environmental …

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Owls Head

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Tue, 17 Sep 2019 15:57:12 +0000

We’ve known about Owls Head, Maine, because of our previous next door neighbor in our community in Annapolis. Susan and Norm Thomas spoke about it often and with such love, that we knew we had to experience it for ourselves. The Thomas’ moved away from Annapolis about 10 years ago to return to Susan’s …

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Alpacas and Friends

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Mon, 16 Sep 2019 12:50:21 +0000

Our next two campsites were through Harvest Hosts, a camping scheme which we joined this year. The hosts are often owners of working farms, breweries, or wineries. They offer free overnight parking to RVs and in exchange, hope that visitors might purchase items from them. On August 31st, we arrived at the Misty Acres …

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North to Maine

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sun, 15 Sep 2019 13:32:51 +0000

Some of you might remember that we were suppose to start our trip to the U.S. northeast, Quebec, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island (PEI) in May 2019, “Best Laid Plans Rev. 2.” We had not only intended to go, we actually had left Annapolis and were on the trip for 1 week when …

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Singapore

Colin McNaught — Thu, 18 Apr 2019 22:12:40 +0000

Many people I have spoken to about my trip have questions and misconceptions about Singapore so here’s a brief introduction. The word ‘Singapore’ is used to denote both the country and the city. It is a separate independent country located on an island approximately 35 x 15 miles, close to the Southern tip of …

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A Few Malaysian Birds and Insects

Colin McNaught — Tue, 16 Apr 2019 13:20:08 +0000

The following pictures were mainly taken around the Marlborough School campus where I was staying. They were taken with my Olympus mirrorless camera equipped with a 300mm (600mm – 35mm camera equivalent) lens. It’s quite difficult to hold steady but is particularly useful for insects close-ups, where a macro lens setup would require the …

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Malacca

Colin McNaught — Mon, 15 Apr 2019 15:25:27 +0000

My son Jon and I took off for a two day trip to the town of Malacca (Malay spelling – Melaka). The town has an interesting history, situated at the narrowest point of the Malacca Straits between Malaya and Sumatra, Indonesia. It had the benefit of a sheltered harbor and a prime position relative …

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National Parks in Malaysia and Singapore

Colin McNaught — Sun, 14 Apr 2019 12:00:48 +0000

I spent a day visiting two small National Parks in Malaysia, ‘Pulau Kukup Johor’ on an island west of the busy fishing village of Kukup and ‘Tanjung Piai’ located on the southern tip of Malaysia. Also I visited the ‘Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve’ in Singapore. All three were mangrove swamp wetlands which reminded me …

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Family visit to Malaysia and Singapore

Colin McNaught — Sat, 13 Apr 2019 14:12:57 +0000

[Apologies for the previous ‘blank’ post notification, finger trouble on my part, no doubt jet-lag induced] My middle son Jon and his wife Claire are teachers and have been teaching in Thailand, Bahrain and Malaysia for the last 20 years. Their current school, Marlborough School Malaysia, is a boarding school strongly linked with the …

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Best Laid Plans…

Colin McNaught — Mon, 28 May 2018 20:32:26 +0000

Our planned 5 month trip to Quebec City, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Maine, came to an abrupt end when Cheryl’s back problem worsened to the point where we had to return home for remedial treatment. We’re hoping to restart again in a few weeks depending on her recovery. In the meantime, here are some …

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2018 Spring Checkout – Assateague National Seashore

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Wed, 18 Apr 2018 15:49:13 +0000

It’s been a year since we returned from our 11 month trip around North America. Since then we have completed a number of house projects, fostered seven dogs, and adopted one, ‘Bindi’. We’ve upgraded the van communication electronics, installed a webcam, resolved an issue with the engine-driven alternator alignment and built in an extra …

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Home at Last

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Mon, 03 Apr 2017 00:47:04 +0000

After traveling 22,000 miles, no matter how much we loved each day of our trip, it was fantastic to get home! We walked around each room in amazement, so much living space. Thank you all our blog readers for your lovely comments, it was great to read your reactions to the places we stayed, …

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Whiskey and Frisky

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sun, 26 Mar 2017 13:42:21 +0000

What else is one supposed to do in Kentucky if not sample some Kentucky bourbon and visit some of the worlds most famous thoroughbred horses? We did both. The Buffalo Trace Bourbon Distillery Named after the area where buffalo used to cross the Kentucky river, the distillery is located West of Lexington Kentucky and has a …

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Alabama and Georgia

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Wed, 22 Mar 2017 03:14:10 +0000

With our minds set on returning home a little earlier than planned (after hearing tales of an early Spring at home), we headed due North towards Huntsville, Alabama, stopping at two State Parks on the way. Chewacla SP looks like a mountain biker’s dream with many miles of bike trails through the woods, alongside …

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Kissed by Wolves

Cheryl Tauber McNaught — Fri, 17 Mar 2017 01:21:30 +0000

When I heard we could go to a wolf preserve in Chipley, FL on our way to Alabama, I lost my mind in excitement to take part in this adventure. The non-profit Seacrest Wolf Preserve‘s goal is to create greater awareness of this keystone species and the contributions they make to their natural eco-systems. Funny rules were stated on their …

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Wakulla River, Florida

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Mon, 13 Mar 2017 11:45:54 +0000

Thanks to our new-found friends Larry and Catherine Duchesne from Alberta, Canada, we planned a trip with them to Wakulla Springs State Park to see the Lodge and take a boat tour on the Wakulla River. The Springs are one of the largest and deepest freshwater springs in the world and provide an area for …

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Florida Panhandle

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sat, 11 Mar 2017 14:59:08 +0000

Our stay at Gulf Island National Seashore was limited to 14 days by National Park rules so we traveled East, exploring the Florida Panhandle. Beachfront parks are in short supply at this time of year so we stayed at Rocky Bayou State Park for a few days, next to a State Aquatic Preserve and appreciated the …

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Emerald Coast, Pensacola

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Mon, 20 Feb 2017 16:10:09 +0000

Florida’s ‘Emerald Coast’, so named because of the greenish sea color near to its white sandy beaches, is the South shore of Florida’s ‘Panhandle’. We picked the area for a lazy few weeks of warmer weather and sunshine while we waited for the weather further North to entice us homewards. It delivered as promised, …

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The Big Easy

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sun, 12 Feb 2017 18:38:15 +0000

The origins of this nickname for New Orleans are many and varied. We settled for it as being descriptive of the laid-back lifestyle in contrast to New York, “The Big Apple”. Founded by the French in 1718, handed to the Spanish in 1763, back to the French briefly in 1803 before becoming part of …

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Cajun Country

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Fri, 03 Feb 2017 20:11:29 +0000

We were looking forward to spending time in South-West Louisiana for a number of reasons. Firstly, we have a liking for Cajun music and were interested in listening to and finding out more about Zydeco. Secondly, we both enjoyed reading the Detective Dave Robicheaux series of books about New Iberia by James Lee Burke. …

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A Family Visit

Cheryl Tauber McNaught — Thu, 19 Jan 2017 17:45:49 +0000

We headed north toward Dallas, Texas to visit my niece Sami and her husband John in the small town of Grapevine. Sami and John were married this past March in a private ceremony conducted by Sami’s cousin, Rabbi K’vod Wieder. The newlyweds recently moved from La Jolla, CA because of a job opportunity for Sami. We were …

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LBJ Country

Cheryl Tauber McNaught — Mon, 09 Jan 2017 01:46:41 +0000

When people speak about Texas Big Country, it’s not an understatement. The filling station (below) and attached store blew our minds. It was just so Big! We couldn’t imagine how these stalls would be filled up, but they were. About Lindon Baines Johnson (LBJ) Since the 60s, I wanted to see and understand the …

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Big Bend National Park

Colin McNaught — Wed, 04 Jan 2017 17:05:24 +0000

Having explored the rest of Big Bend area, we allocated a week to Big Bend National Park. It was well worth it. We stayed in two campgrounds, Chisos Basin and, when the temperatures dropped below freezing, breaking records for the Park, we moved to a lower altitude at the Rio Grande Village campground. The Rio Grande …

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Big Bend, Texas

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sun, 25 Dec 2016 15:31:11 +0000

Merry Christmas and Happy Chanukah . . . We traveled to Big Bend, Texas a week before Christmas and Chanukah. However, because we are publishing this post on the 25th, we want to wish everyone a happy and safe holiday! Lots of hugs from us both. Alpine, Fort Davis and Terlingua Our ultimate destination was Big Bend National Park but some Texans …

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White Sands, New Mexico

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sat, 17 Dec 2016 16:20:36 +0000

Dog Canyon We found Oliver Lee Memorial State Park as our home base for exploring the White Sands area. The park was tucked into the foothills of the Sacramento Mountains, East of the White Sands National Monument and at the entrance to ‘Dog Canyon’, an area first settled in 1885 by a Frenchmen F. …

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Geese and Cranes

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sat, 10 Dec 2016 14:03:55 +0000

The Bosque del Apache Wildlife Refuge, South of Albuquerque NM, is run by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service . It is an amazing place! It serves as a stopping off or wintering point for migrating birds traveling South in the Fall or North in the Spring. It’s located just South of a funky …

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Santa Fe, New Mexico

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 12:05:05 +0000

We both had visited Santa Fe several years ago and enjoyed the town very much so we picked it as our resting spot over the Thanksgiving weekend. This year Colin’s 72nd birthday fell on Thanksgiving Day and so what better celebration than dining at Santa Fe’s best (Asian) Indian Restaurant ‘Raaga’. The food, service, …

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Albuquerque, New Mexico . . .

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sat, 26 Nov 2016 05:42:34 +0000

New Mexico’s largest city offered us some interesting places to visit. We stayed in the foothills of the Sandia Mountains off the ‘Turquoise Trail’ route to Santa Fe within easy reach of Albuquerque. National Museum of Nuclear Science and History This was a ‘must’ for us as we both have backgrounds in Nuclear Medicine …

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Sedona Rocks

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sat, 26 Nov 2016 05:21:38 +0000

We took the advice of friends and approached Sedona from Prescott traveling East over the pass by Mingus Mountain then down through Jerome into the Verde Valley. We stayed for a few days at Dead Horse Ranch State Park in Cottonwood and made day trips to Sedona. Jerome The Route 89A Pass over the mountains and down …

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Music in Mesa – MIM

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Wed, 23 Nov 2016 13:26:54 +0000

The Day of the Dead We met Paul and Catherine Pickering by chance on Vancouver Island back in September, when we discovered surreal coincidences between our lives. They invited us to visit them in Mesa, AZ when we passed by on our way East and fortuitously, this coincided with an annual party they host, …

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White Tank Mountain Arizona . . .

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sun, 20 Nov 2016 17:39:33 +0000

The Arizona Desert We had a couple of friends we wanted to visit and in searching for a place to stay, we happened upon a wonderful desert park in the foothills west of Phoenix, White Tank Mountain Regional Park. The park was maintained immaculately, the graveled sites were ‘Zen-raked’ and roomy, and the desert scenery …

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Las Vegas, Nevada

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Thu, 10 Nov 2016 02:33:00 +0000

We couldn’t continue our journey to Arizona without stopping for a day or two in ‘Sin City’. We picked Lake Mead National Recreation area as our home for a couple of days and found a site with a wonderful view over the lake and mountains at Las Vegas Bay. Our site was on the …

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Death Valley, California

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Thu, 10 Nov 2016 02:31:14 +0000

Still in search of some warm weather, we headed South to Death Valley, one of the hottest places in the world. Our stop at Bishop was rewarded with some wonderful pastries at Schat’s bakery. Further on in Independence, stocking up for our journey, we stopped at a market and were engaged in the parking …

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Mono Lake, California

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Thu, 10 Nov 2016 02:27:19 +0000

We traveled South past Reno and Carson City with the Sierras to the west. Past the peaks around Lake Tahoe and at the foot of Tioga Pass from Yosemite we found Mono Lake. The lake has no outflow being surrounded by mountains and so the salinity level grows as more and more water evaporates. …

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Mount Lassen, California

Colin McNaught — Tue, 08 Nov 2016 16:25:40 +0000

Time to head South and find somewhere dry and warm. Death Valley sounded good to us so we planned our route to Mono Lake, down the Eastern side of the Sierras. However, Mono Lake looked a bit far for a day’s journey so we decided to have one last look at the Cascades and …

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Oregon Coast and Friends

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Thu, 03 Nov 2016 00:52:55 +0000

Oregon’s Gorgeous Coastline Since our first trip up the Oregon coastline was beautiful but too foggy for many photographs, we thought we would try a few more days to see if we could find some clear weather on the coast West of Eugene. After we eliminated Carl Washburne State Park as a campsite due to …

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Maggie’s Farm

Cheryl Tauber McNaught — Wed, 02 Nov 2016 19:58:03 +0000

About M&M My brother and sister-in-law, Michael and Maggie Tauber (M&M), are true Los Angeles kids. Growing up in North Hollywood and Burbank, these urbanites have been living in the greater L.A. area for most of their lives. Their house in Manhattan Beach is near all three of their grown up boys as well as their …

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Bend, Oregon

Cheryl Tauber McNaught — Tue, 01 Nov 2016 19:06:11 +0000

This was our second visit to Bend, Oregon, but on this trip, it was to visit two childhood friends whom I hadn’t been in touch with for over 50 years. The Cooper girls were raised with our family, our fathers and mothers, inseparable. Daily visits, weekends, all holidays, and vacations in Marietta Hot Springs were all …

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Columbia Gorge

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Tue, 01 Nov 2016 18:07:18 +0000

We couldn’t travel South through Washington and Oregon without visiting the Columbia Gorge. Known to Colin as one of the best windsurfing locations in the world, he was hoping for some action shots at Hood River. However, the weather didn’t cooperate for the three days we were there, very rainy and windless, so our …

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Estuary To Glacier

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sun, 16 Oct 2016 15:22:10 +0000

We visited both ends of the Nisqually River in Washington State, of which the source is a glacier high up on Mount Rainier. The river runs into the Puget Sound at the newly created Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge. Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge Most estuaries on the Puget Sound have been filled, dredged or developed …

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Northumbrian Pipers in the Pacific NW

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Wed, 05 Oct 2016 04:05:58 +0000

Bellingham, Washington. We contacted the Pacific North West Northumbrian Smallpipes (NSPs) Group (yes there really is one, and a very active one) to see if we could attend their monthly meeting near Tacoma, WA. We received a return email from one of their members living in Bellingham, Peter Dyson, who no longer makes the long …

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Seattle, WA

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Tue, 04 Oct 2016 15:48:22 +0000

Seattle Cityscape Showing us a beautiful blue sky from the Space Needle, Seattle was magnificent from 500 ft. up in the air. We followed this with a street level tour and found many fun places to go and observe. Pike Place Market (see below) was truly candy for the eye, and we spent a fun time at the Experience Music …

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Vancouver, BC

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Fri, 30 Sep 2016 22:44:20 +0000

We start most big cities with a Hop On/Hope Off (HO/HO) tour with buses which have many stops at all the most frequented tourist spots. Vancouver’s HO/HO allowed us to explore Chinatown, downtown architecture and night life, Stanley Park, and the Vancouver Lookout tower. As Colin had mistakenly booked the wrong day for the ferry crossing, …

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Campbell River – Vancouver Island

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sun, 25 Sep 2016 17:02:01 +0000

We were treated to more of the spectacular mountain , lake, and forest scenery on our way back from to the East Coast of Vancouver Island. We had decided to go further North to Campbell River and plan a whale watching trip. We had two campsites in mind and ended up in Elk Falls Provincial Park, …

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Tofino – Vancouver Island

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sat, 24 Sep 2016 13:43:34 +0000

Highway 4 leads right up to the First Street Dock in British Columbia’s Tofino, a hamlet where Clayoquot Sound meets the Pacific on Vancouver Island’s west coast. Getting that far takes a three hour drive into the mist, around hairpin curves, and through the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve to the ocean. The payoff is more than worth the …

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Far Fared They Forth…

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sun, 18 Sep 2016 13:44:10 +0000

Coincidences Picture the scene. Yesterday’s rain is gone, it’s a beautiful morning. We are strolling along one of Tofino’s beautiful beaches at the Pacific Rim on Vancouver Island. Cheryl is chatting to an old surfer hippie about best places to live, mentions Arizona as she went to the U of A. His buddy arrives …

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Salmon at Port Alberni

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sat, 17 Sep 2016 21:53:32 +0000

We decided to break our journey from Victoria to the mid-island Pacific Coast at Port Alberni. This city, although nearer the island’s East coast, is a deep water port sitting on the Alberni Inlet estuary’ which stretches all the way to the Pacific. Local industries of logging, papermaking and fishing are giving way to more …

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Butchart Gardens, Vancouver Island

Cheryl Tauber McNaught — Sun, 11 Sep 2016 01:50:10 +0000

Warning: If you don’t like plant or flower pictures, give this post a miss. With permission. The Butchart Gardens (pronounced Boo-shar) were created in the early 1900s by Jennie Butchart. She wanted to create something beautiful, in particular, to replace the worked-out limestone quarry which had supplied her husband Robert Pim Butchart’s nearby Portland …

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Victoria and South Vancouver Island

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sat, 10 Sep 2016 17:56:10 +0000

Victoria and Sidney Victoria, reputed to be “more British than the British” didn’t disappoint. We used public transport to visit the city centre, we found a Highland Piper at the Harbor (see movie below), sailboat racing at the Royal Victoria Yacht Club, drank a real pint (imperial size) at a city centre pub, and …

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Olympic National Park

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sat, 03 Sep 2016 12:07:52 +0000

Olympic National Park occupies most of the Northern Section of the Olympic Peninsula, NW Washington State. The National Park covers Mount Olympus (6,900 feet) and the foothills and valleys surrounding it. Because of the high snowfall in the area, it supports seven glaciers which feed the rivers surrounding it. The park has only radial roads leading …

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Land’s End in the Northwest

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Tue, 30 Aug 2016 05:50:03 +0000

Neah Bay via Lake Sylvia We planned to spend several days on the Olympic Peninsula, specifically the Olympic National Park as so many people had told us how much they enjoyed it. We scheduled a break after we crossed the extremely long bridge over the Columbia River Estuary at Astoria into Washington State. On …

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Oregon Coastline

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Tue, 23 Aug 2016 14:36:43 +0000

Oregon Coastline in the Mist On our way to the Pacific North-West, we decided to travel up the coast. The rocky shoreline and expansive beaches were reminiscent of the West Coast of Scotland and we enjoyed the views, even in the mist that followed us most of the way. In addition to the many …

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Elephants, Lions and Flowers

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sun, 14 Aug 2016 17:14:34 +0000

North to Oregon On our way from the LA area up to the Oregon border, we traveled most of the way on the Pacific Coast Highway (Route 1). When the coastal fog lifted, we had some beautiful ocean views. We also took a side trip or two, visited an ailing friend in Palo Alto …

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Wine, Redwoods and Junk Art in Sonoma County

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Fri, 12 Aug 2016 03:52:42 +0000

Santa Rosa, Sonoma County We were very happy to visit old friends from the days when Colin worked in Cupertino when his family was growing up. The Tembrocks’ children were similar ages and played together. We have many happy memories of staying with them in a cabin at Lake Tahoe and visiting their orchard in the town of …

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California Family

Cheryl Tauber McNaught — Thu, 11 Aug 2016 04:02:54 +0000

Heading south from the San Francisco Bay Area, we encountered the usual horrible auto traffic, but eventually made it to Manhattan Beach, where brother Michael and sister-in-law Maggie (M&M) made us very welcome. M&M had just become grandparents for the first time, so we were naturally anxious to see the new little peanut. (Sorry, …

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Northern California, revisited

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sat, 23 Jul 2016 08:15:34 +0000

Meeting Old Friends Colin has very fond memories of the time when, as an ingenuous young Englishman, he first visited and lived in Northern California in the early ’70s. We stayed with Davey and Morag Paterson, with whom Colin worked at Measurex, in Cupertino. The Paterson’s live in a beautiful community in the Santa Cruz Mountains …

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Crater Lake

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Wed, 20 Jul 2016 18:57:56 +0000

Crater Lake National Park We planned to spend a day or two at Crater Lake National Park on the way South to California and entered the Park at the North end. It was a cloudy day but we were not prepared for the weather we encountered as we drove the West Rim to the top. …

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Bend – Oregon

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sun, 17 Jul 2016 23:39:22 +0000

We decided to stop at Bend, Oregon on our way Southwest to California and spent most of our time at the High Desert Museum followed by a scenic tour over to the West side of the Cascade Mountains and back. High Desert Museum This is a privately run non-profit, well-appointed and maintained museum covering …

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Idaho – Craters – Falls – Fireworks – Gardens

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Mon, 11 Jul 2016 00:32:50 +0000

Alternative Routes Leaving the Tetons with a date to spend July 4th weekend with Martha and Doug (Lane) Peterson in McCall, Idaho, we had only a couple of days to explore Southern Idaho. The Snake River Canyon and Shoshone Falls at Twin Falls was our planned stopover. As usual, we ignored our van’s GPS …

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Grand Teton National Park

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Thu, 07 Jul 2016 16:37:26 +0000

The Teton Mountains Driving from Yellowstone South to Grand Teton National Park, we were unprepared for the dramatic views of the Teton Range coming into view. As we drove into the park, the view was even more beautiful as the mountains appeared behind Jackson Lake. Grand Teton, at 13,775 feet, is the highest point of the …

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Yellowstone National Park

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Mon, 04 Jul 2016 19:46:11 +0000

America’s first National park was created in 1872 and covers 3,500 square miles. The Yellowstone basin surrounded by mountains is really a Volcanic Crater or ‘Caldera’ created 640,000 years ago in an eruption when the land dropped 3,000 feet towards the magma chamber of molten rock below. The result is a an area of …

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Rodeo! Cody Wyoming and the Buffalo Bill Museum

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sat, 02 Jul 2016 15:05:33 +0000

Cody Wyoming We left the Black Hills and traveled North West to the Bighorn Mountains climbed the over 9,000 ft pass and, despite all the warnings of steep grades, overheated brakes, etc. we took Rte14Alt down to the Bighorn River Basin – what a beautiful ride! Then West to Cody, the Eastern gateway town to Yellowstone National …

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Black Hills SD: Deadwood – Mt Rushmore – Custer SP

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sat, 25 Jun 2016 20:12:10 +0000

The Black Hills The Black Hills were named so by the Lakota Indians because the hills were so densely covered in pines and looked dark from a distance. The Black Hills are situated West of the vast expanse of plains in South Dakota. The area, occupied by the Lakota, was excluded from white settlement by treaty …

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Badlands, South Dakota

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Thu, 16 Jun 2016 19:26:38 +0000

Along the Way The Badlands of South Dakota were named so by the Lakota Indians because of the extreme temperatures, lack of water, and rugged terrain making them difficult to travel in or through. We had planned a day stop at a small campground in Salem, SD but, hearing of the heatwave forecast, we …

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Duluth and a Pipe Lesson in St. Paul MN

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Wed, 15 Jun 2016 09:00:05 +0000

Canal Park, Duluth, MN When they learned we were heading South from Lake Superior North Shore through Duluth to St. Paul, several of our friends encouraged us to visit the area around the Aerial Lift Bridge in Duluth including the Maritime Museum. The bridge, spanning the Duluth Ship Canal, was completed in 1930 replacing …

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Lake Superior North Shore, Tettegouche SP

Colin McNaught — Sun, 12 Jun 2016 14:00:39 +0000

We left Bayfield, Wisconsin with a strong recommendation from our friends to travel up the North Shore of Lake Superior, from Duluth towards Thunder Bay. It was a beautiful drive along the shore. We waited out a thunderstorm in Two Harbors, visited Split Rock Lighthouse, and carried on up to Silver Bay where we were booked …

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Bayfield, WI and the Apostle Islands

Cheryl Tauber McNaught — Sat, 11 Jun 2016 23:02:46 +0000

Apostle Islands We found a great little City Park right above Bayfield overlooking Lake Superior. The weather didn’t cooperate for the few days we were there but we did manage to take a morning tour of the Apostle Islands before the rain set in. It was a long tour, we visited nearly every one …

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Copper Harbor and Delaware Copper Mine

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sun, 05 Jun 2016 09:00:33 +0000

On our way to Copper Harbor, situated at the tip of the Keweenaw Peninsula in Michigan’s UP (after seeing our first moose this trip, see right) we were given a clue about the area when passing through Houghton. On the map it mentions Michigan Technological University and we expected something small in this remote …

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Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Sat, 04 Jun 2016 12:50:22 +0000

On Land We stayed by Little Beaver Lake in a campground with 7 other sites, who were all under canvas. The road in was marked as unsuitable for large vehicles but although unpaved, hilly, and twisty, we have been on worse. Even though the main feature of the area is the 42 mile long …

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Ojibway First Nation Tent and Trailer Park

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Fri, 03 Jun 2016 12:56:25 +0000

Sault Sainte Marie On our way back to the USA to travel along Lake Superior in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, it was time for a laundry and haircut stop. We selected a two night camping spot East of SSM, Ontario (see name above), not sure what we would find. It turned out to be a perfect …

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Getting My Fur Fix

Cheryl Tauber McNaught — Thu, 02 Jun 2016 23:23:54 +0000

For Doggie Lovers Only! I saw the brochure at the welcome center and knew I had to have this particular adventure. Even with no snow on the ground, the brochure talked about tour visits. So I was game and it took little convincing for Colin to agree. The Husky Haven is owned by a …

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Birds Large and Small

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Wed, 25 May 2016 13:31:20 +0000

American Redstart Two days in a row we were woken up by a light tapping noise moving up and down the side of our van. At first we thought of a woodpecker but the tapping was very light. We finally caught a glimpse of a pair of very small birds, one black with some …

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Tobermory and the Bruce Peninsula, Manitoulin Island

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Mon, 23 May 2016 21:48:34 +0000

Tobermory We decided to make our way to the South shore of Lake Superior via Ontario’s Bruce Peninsula, taking the Chi-Cheemaun ferry to Manitoulin Island and on to Sault Ste. Marie. Tobermory, a harbor town at the tip of the peninsula, is named after the similar Tobermory in the West of Scotland. It is a pleasant tourist …

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Niagara Falls and Gorge

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Wed, 18 May 2016 16:07:59 +0000

Niagara Falls Happily, we visited both the US and the Canadian sides of Niagara Falls, and neither were so busy as to be oppressive. The Canadian side is by far, the more gorgeous side of Niagara for several reasons. The views are spectacular, and the public parks continue along the water’s edge for miles and miles …

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Our Journey Begins

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Thu, 12 May 2016 09:20:30 +0000

Visiting Old Friends The first step of our adventure touring North America was a short journey to Lancaster, PA to visit our friends who we met through the Medical Imaging business. Lon was the CEO of a start-up company in Newport News developing a new imaging device for early detection of breast cancer. Colin consulted …

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Chapel Hill and Durham, NC

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Wed, 13 Apr 2016 12:39:10 +0000

From Cheryl: This was a trip down memory lane for me. It had been 40+ years since walking the university towns of UNC and Duke. I spent a few years in this part of the South attending radiology school and getting to know the beauty of North Carolina. Studying, going to theater and music …

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Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

Colin and Cheryl McNaught — Tue, 05 Apr 2016 13:23:17 +0000

The cool winds of the north have started to meet us in SC. Cool 60s and beautiful blue skies, plenty of flowers budding all over the beach and grasslands. Colin wakes up early each morning before sunrise and goes out scouting for sunrise shots, while I’m still in dreamland. Myrtle Beach State Park, where we …

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Charleston, South Carolina

Colin McNaught — Sat, 02 Apr 2016 18:57:23 +0000

Charleston is a fascinating city, surrounded on three sides by water, lots of history, full of activity, a surprise around every corner. The weather didn’t cooperate with us and 50,000 runners descended on the city for the last day or two for the annual ‘bridge run’. However we greatly appreciated the ground floor of the …

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Low Country Touring in GA and SC

Colin McNaught — Wed, 30 Mar 2016 12:48:09 +0000

Tybee Island Tybee Island, Savannah’s ‘Beach Town’ is the site from which Fort Pulaski was bombarded and defeated by Union soldiers in April 1862 whose superior ‘rifled’ guns were too much for the Fort Pulaski walls. We toured the lighthouse but the beach was under reconstruction. Fort Pulaski After taking over the fort, Major General Hunter …

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Savannah revisited: Tours, Music, and Photo-Walkabout

Cheryl Tauber McNaught — Tue, 29 Mar 2016 11:01:33 +0000

We quickly came through Savannah earlier in our trip, but this time we came with the purpose of seeing spring. Green pollen everywhere so we got our wish. The Azaleas were magnificent and the bees active. We attended a concert during the Savannah Music Festival which featured Marc Broussard, a blues artist who was introduced to Cheryl …

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Mt. Dora & Clearwater by Foot, Canal Boat, & Seaplane

Cheryl Tauber McNaught — Sun, 27 Mar 2016 12:28:46 +0000

We parked at Clearwater Lake in Ocala National Forest as a center from which to tour the Harris Lakes area. This fresh water lake is circled by a trail which we took by foot; then hopped over to Mt. Dora for some “cute town” time; took a canal boat ride through the Mt. Dora Canal; and …

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Finding Sandhill Cranes

Colin McNaught — Sat, 26 Mar 2016 00:14:33 +0000

On our way South through Florida we happened on a beautiful Art Museum by the lake at Eustis with a mural of Sandhill Cranes by Kace Montgomery. We loved their elegance, their red caps and hoped we would see some live versions on our trip. While in Clearwater Lake in the Ocala National Forest, …

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Flamingos

Cheryl Tauber McNaught — Sun, 20 Mar 2016 10:00:46 +0000

Flamingo Gardens Wildlife Sanctuary Hundreds of thousands of American Flamingos used to visit the coastal areas of Florida in the 1800s. They were eradicated completely from the area due to egg and feather hunting over the last century. However, they were sighted again a few years ago in the Everglades National Park at a stormwater …

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Woodpecker Stalking

Colin McNaught — Fri, 18 Mar 2016 02:07:50 +0000

I’ve been trying to get a decent Pileated Woodpecker photo for over 10 years. One visits us regularly at home, poses while I get my camera, then flies off singing the haha ha Ha ha woody woodpecker song just when I’m ready to shoot. Very frustrating. I’ve been stalking one at the campground in Long Pine Key, Everglades NP for …

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Everglades National Park, Florida

Colin McNaught — Wed, 09 Mar 2016 14:34:21 +0000

The Everglades The Everglades is a vast tropical wetlands area stretching from Orlando in the North to the Southern tip of mainland Florida. The National Park covers only the lower third of the area. We visited at the end of Florida’s ‘Winter’ which is the dry season when a lot of the wetlands dries up …

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The Turtle Hospital at Marathon Key, Florida

Cheryl Tauber McNaught — Sat, 05 Mar 2016 14:59:13 +0000

It was high on my to-do list, to understand how rescued turtles are treated and returned to the wild when possible. At this turtle hospital, the veterinarians have a full surgery suite, research area, and patient recovery system that is very impressive. Previous to being a hospital, the building was a motel. Each of the …

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Florida Keys

Colin McNaught — Sat, 05 Mar 2016 13:19:02 +0000

The route west from the Florida mainland over the Keys to Key West is an amazing one. Last minute reservations were difficult so we only had three nights booked on Sunshine Key (close to Bahia Honda Key State Park). Warned of traffic problems, we left Ft. Lauderdale in the middle of the night, saw …

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Butterfly World, Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Cheryl Tauber McNaught — Fri, 04 Mar 2016 19:21:32 +0000

We spent a day at Butterfly World, well actually 6 hours and 600 photographs! I think Colin took 300 of them in the first 10 minutes. We walked our feet off, but now we can visualize what Eden looked like (if it existed, this is the way we’d have wanted it to look!) What a …

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Big Cypress National Preserve, Florida

Colin McNaught — Wed, 02 Mar 2016 12:30:07 +0000

Big Cypress National Preserve was created in 1974 from 720,000 acres of wet cypress forest and grassland. It is not a National Park, the Miccosukee and Seminole Tribes of Florida still live here, Off Road Vehicles are allowed and hunting is permitted in some areas. However, it has the feel of a National Park and has several …

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Corkscrew Swamp, Florida

Colin McNaught — Tue, 23 Feb 2016 12:15:23 +0000

Audubon Sanctuary Audubon’s Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, located about 30 minutes east of Naples, features a 2.5 mile long boardwalk through pine flatwoods, wet prairie, around a marsh, and finally into the largest old growth Bald Cypress forest in North America. The unusually high water levels for the time of year resulted in the bird …

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Sanibel and Fort Myers, Florida

Cheryl Tauber McNaught — Sun, 21 Feb 2016 20:51:59 +0000

Sanibel Island We made our way to Fort Myers to see our friends from long ago, Elaine Keeler and Sid Rheuban. I worked for Elaine in MRI Education and Testing for Picker International starting in 1986 through 1989. So it had been quite a while since we last saw each other, only keeping up with …

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Eustis and Mount Dora, Florida

Colin McNaught — Tue, 16 Feb 2016 12:42:07 +0000

Alternative Routes As usual, unless we are short of time, we ask our trusty German GPS to give us some alternative routes to our next destination. This often results in new discoveries and fun mini-adventures. So instead of heading for I75 down the West Coast of Florida we went down the middle and discovered …

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