Surreal. That's the first and undoubtedly the most accurate word I used to describe the experience of being in the South African bush.  Of the 1300 photos we captured while staying at Singita, we narrowed it down to these 147 and I'm sure there are many more worthy of sharing but didn't quite make the cut.  I assure you, this will be the longest photo album of the mini-series.

As you can observe from the first blog post (Arrival), the Boulders Lodge property is set out in the wilderness. There are dirt roads, paths, and crossings as well as an airstrip 10 minutes from the Lodge, but other than that, it’s in isolation. This fact became clearly evident when only after an hour of checking in to our #7, two mammoth Kudu moseyed down the embankment shaping the outdoor shower, grazing on the tall African grasses in their paths. Alright, this is the real deal. Confirmed.  To clarify the title of this post for the uninitiated, "The Big Five" refers to the five remmost dangerous animals to hunt in the African bush.  They are: Lion, Leopard, Buffalo, Rhino, and Elephant.  Of course, most safaris these days aren't about hunting, rather just tourism, recreation, and photography.  And as all safari-goers hope, we were lucky enough to see each of the big five, live!

Quite often, the first animals you'll observe on a South African safari are Impala, a smaller breed of Antelope featuring a gorgeous amber coat.

They survive in numbers, and they are visible everywhere, morning and night.  Only 15 minutes into our first game drive, we encountered a small crash of White Rhinos but we weren’t lucky enough to spot any of the more rare Black Rhinos through the course of the trip. The same crash popped up a few times throughout our drives.

We also came upon a sizable herd of Buffalo creeping toward a pond for a pre-sunset drink; maybe 50 or so. Although they are a member of the “big five,” they appear comically harmless, rolling in the mud and accidentally grabbing giant wads of sloppy earth on their horns.

Moving on from the Buffalo watering hole, a tower of Giraffes intersected our road, slowly yet swiftly making their way through the bush with steady, massive strides.  Giraffe turned out to be Candice's favorite animal on the trip...you'll have to ask her why.

On our first AM game drive the vehicle crept through the misty, foggy Sand River and observed a small bloat of Hippopotamuses.  The river is quite shallow during the winter months, whereas during the summer (rainy season), it can be quite roaring.

The first big "wow" moment occurred shortly thereafter.  JD informed us a pride of lions remained on the property after killing a buffalo the day before, so we pursued them hoping to catch a view of the kill. After a short venture into the bush, the vehicle slowed and we approached the entire pride, most of them sleeping, but a few up and about.  To our amazement (and a bit of nausea), we found a young male, flanked by his whole pride, gnawing, crunching, and licking on the desolate formation of a buffalo carcass.  Pretty much all that remained were the bones, ribs, a leg, lungs, and teeth.

The vehicle and guests paused sitting stationary for a while, observing these giant cats take turns gnawing on the carcass.  As the sun slowly rose, the lions shifted positions to avoid baking in the emerging heat.  Before we knew it, the vehicle was completely surrounded by the eight members of the pride and momentarily, we were literally stuck.  After perhaps 30 minutes, the young male decided to relocate the buffalo carcass, out of the sun and out of the view of the lingering, opportunistic vultures.  The sheer power required of the cat to move that thing by himself was awesome.

Once the pride rearranged and provided an exit path, we moved on to the rarest and most fortunate sighting of the entire safari: an entire den of African Wild Dogs. For several weeks, the area guides tracked the pack from a distance, all hoping the dogs would den on their property. As fortune would have it, the pack denned on the Singita property, giving the Singita guests first viewing rights. As the dogs selected a fantastically safe den location, reaching the den required JD to veer well off the vehicle path and into some intensely thick bush on the edge of a steep ravine. High with excitement, JD inched the vehicle as close as possible to the den, nearly tipping the whole deal over and down to into the ravine.  "This is terrible," Phanuel warned before JD chuckled and calmly reversed us out of danger.  When we arrived, we were treated to a mini-jackpot of African wildlife, viewing a pack of 10-13 critically endangered dogs. Scientific estimates place the total population at about 2000 in the world.

Upon our arrival, JD immediately pointed the alpha female was feeding the pups with regurgitated food from a recent kill; a kill likely made within the last few hours.  Another adult female, the beta female, and her pups accompanied the alphas in the den.  JD explained it was somewhat rare for an alpha female to allow a beta female to mate and raise pups in the same pack and den.  Typically she, and she alone runs the show.  But given the gravitas of their survival, you have to wonder if they know the longevity of their species is on the line.  A truly amazing sight for us to witness first hand.

Retreating from the den of African Wild Dogs, we cruised past a dazzle of Zebras co-mingling with an implausibility of Wildebeest.  I'm using only the scientifically correct terms (per JD) for each group of animals, you should know.  Zebra and Wildebeest often roam together as their diets are are similar.  The most widely accepted scientific theory explaining a zebra's stripes is that the stripes create a dizzying, kaleidoscopic effect when the dazzle is fleeing from a predator on the hunt.  The predator is more likely to become disoriented and unable to zero in on an individual Zebra.  That said, nobody knows for sure, and we will likely never know.

After returning from the action packed AM game drive, we decided to do some souvenir shopping at the Singita shop situated half way between the Boulders Lodge (ours) and the Singita Ebony lodge.  The shop is more accurately described as a boutique selling with safari gear (vests, hats, blankets), jewelry, beautifully crafted high end furniture, and more.

Kobus placed a request on the radio and a porter arrived to drive us the 2 minutes. We didn’t end up buying anything, but on the way back, sitting at the base of a tree on the side of the road was a gorgeous female adult leopard. What an incredible looking cat; coat shining in the unimpeded afternoon sunlight.  The porter/driver stopped the truck for us to observe.  The only problem was: I DIDN’T BRING THE CAMERA! Why would I ever think I need the camera on what is literally a ninety second drive to the store??!!  Total safari fail, but I assured myself we would have other opportunities to view Leopard so I brushed it off and put myself at ease.  We'd only taken two drives so we had much to look forward to.

Turns out, the leopards creeping around the property during our three night stay felt the need to be in stealth mode. JD (the Guide) indicated he hadn’t seen a Leopard for 10 straight days and nights which is quite a rare dry spell. After we told JD about the mid-day sighting on the way to the store, he was hell bent on tracking down a leopard for our group; more specifically, the elusive female leopard who slyly appeared for us while I was unprepared.

I relayed this story to JD, and on the following PM game drive, he and Phanuel went to work. The video clip from the previous blog post is our immediate departure from the lodge to track and spot her. The guides and trackers use a number of factors in order to locate various animals on the vast property. As I mentioned, the guides from several lodges communicate via radio and provide updates. General intuition is at play when thinking about each animal’s typical movements each day. The trackers are able to identify each native animal’s tracks in the sand and approximate a general direction and time of movement. And of course, if you’re tracking a predator, you observe the behavior of its prey.

Phanuel and JD collectively put us right in her general proximity. This was obvious because the Impalas in the area were barking their alarm calls, communicating to each other the imminent presence of danger. We were in pursuit of a leopard on the hunt. You can hear the alarm calls in this short video (sorry about the "back of the head" action in this one):

In these instances, tracking from two spots is better than one. Phanuel hops down from his seat, pulls the rifle from its case, and clips a portable radio to his belt. He glances down at the tracks in the road, looks up shading his eyes from the sun, and then turns back at the guests in the vehicle. “See you,” he says.

JD advances the vehicle in the opposite direction and we cruise around, all the guests eager to get this done! The pursuit lasts a good 45 minutes, impalas alarm calling all over the place, but despite all our efforts, we weren't able to locate her. We rendezvoused with Phanuel and resumed our game drive. We circled her location several times and were so unlucky to not view a kill as she was definitely hunting. So close, yet so difficult to spot when they want to hide.

Almost as soon as we pulled out of the immediate vicinity, defeated, a breeding herd of 20 some elephants slowly emerged from a tree line into our clearing. As they lumbered through, JD rattled off an inspired plethora of interesting facts: 22 month gestation period and 20 hours a day spent eating were the highlights. Additionally, elephants are pretty much the only animal in the South African bush that can die naturally due to their size; even the fiercest predators don’t attempt to down an adult Elephant.

As I mentioned in the last post, the tracker’s skills really shine (no pun intended) after dark during night spotting. Depending on your game sightings in the day light, the night spotting typically is typically done during the last 45 minutes of the PM drive. On one drive, Phanuel spotted a gorgeous owl. Another, a tiny black scorpion. But the most amazing piece of night spotting skill came when Phanuel spotted a chameleon perched in the low hanging branches of a tree on the side of the road. Mind you, the vehicle is moving at maybe 15 MPH and Phanuel is moving a single flood light left to right, up to down in search of these night creatures. His ability to spot a single chameleon near the ground in pitch black was wildly impressive.

The AM game drive on the second to last day was on the slower side with one notable exception.  JD transported us over to a known den of spotted hyenas.

Hyenas, being nocturnal creatures, are seldom seen in broad daylight.  But on our arrival at the den site, we pulled into direct view of a mother hyena, snoozing at the base of the den with two pups, alternating between moments of play and rest while circling, ascending, and descending the dusty mound of earth they know as home.

In between the AM and PM game drives on our second to last day, Candice and I decided to flop ourselves down on the house patio and close our eyes for a short outdoor nap.  A troop of nine or 10 monkeys had other (spiteful) ideas.  One by one they appeared, first emerging in the tree directly above the outdoor shower, then seemingly from every corner of the property.  And these little suckers are not shy about their desires: 1) food, 2) beverage, and 3) gaining entry to the house in pursuit of 1 and 2.  One moment I'm lounging on the porch, pondering our glorious accommodation, enjoying a fine, cold, golden can of Castle Lager, the next moment Candice is whipped up in a fever of panic, pleading with me to return to the safe confines of the house.  I got a couple of (crappy) photos and then acquiesced, slinking back inside to capture these videos:

On our final go round, a morning drive, we revisited the same pride of lions previously finishing off the buffalo.  As it was first thing in the morning, they were just winding down their night and getting ready to rest.  If you know cats and their behaviors and tendencies, it won't surprise you at all to read they were lounging, playing, and otherwise jacking around, like these dimwits attempting to ascend a small tree:

While viewing the pride, JD received some promising cat spotting news on the radio: one of the other guides had solidly located two leopard cubs on the property and marked the general vicinity on the road with a small fallen branch.  Ever persistent, JD prioritized this for us.  It was our last shot, so he and Phanuel got after it.  The other guide located the cubs near a dry river bed, so we cruised up and down, backwards and forwards while Phanuel tracked on foot.  After encircling the area two or three times, we thought to ourselves we were surely outmaneuvered once again.  The vehicle proceeded up the hill and halted to collect a half-smirking Phanuel.  "There," he said, pointing down at a male leopard cub laying in a thick area of grass about 10 feet away, "Now the pressure's off."  Even after pointing him out, it took the guests several seconds to lock on to this beautiful creature with our naked eyes.  Being a young little dude, the cub was not entirely comfortable with the presence of the vehicle, and as such, picked up and trotted off a few times, but even though we were somewhat antagonizing him, JD assured us the cub was better off getting accustomed to the vehicle and learning it introduced no harm.  Due to the leopard's stealthy modus operandi, our photos of him aren't the best, but we captured what we could.

To avoid unnecessarily distressing the cub, we bid farewell and pulled away.  JD parked the vehicle on the edge of a valley for a coffee and cake break.  Gazing out across the valley, a solitary giraffe stood out among the trees.  In a nearby clearing, a troop of Baboons frolicked about.  Knowing we were soon to depart from this most incredible piece of the earth, we made every effort to absorb it all one last time.

Upon return, many people asked me, "what was the singular coolest thing you saw while down on safari?"  The intent of this question is undoubtedly to keep my answer brief, most certainly the antithesis of this blog series.  My answer would be something about our proximity to the wildlife.  I couldn't possibly imagine we'd be able to park a Land Rover literally in the middle of a pride of Lions feeding on a Buffalo kill without fearing for our lives.  While I took a good number of the photos with a 55-200mm zoom lens, it doesn't subtract from the immediacy of the experience.

Up next, the magnificent little Western Cape wine district named Franschhoek!

“You can sleep when you get to Cape Town.” – Kobus, Singita Boulders Lodge host, aka the magic hospitality sprite

5:30 am – The phone rings - its the wake up call.  We open our eyes and shake out remnants of the vivid dreams induced by our malaria prophylactics.  Nothing too intense (or violent, as some people report), but certainly more vivid than usual.  We get dressed in many many layers of clothing.  Pre-sunrise morning temperatures hover in the mid 30’s F.

5:55 am – A night porter knocks at our front door, ready to escort us down the wooden path to the Boulders Lodge.  Guests are not permitted to walk around the property unaccompanied before sunrise or after sunset.  And depending on the proximity of any game sighted near the lodge, guests are sometimes not permitted to walk through certain areas on the property unaccompanied during the day either.

6:00 am – The guests and guides congregate in the lodge.  Tea, coffee, juices, cakes, muffins, etc are served…some caffeine and calories are encouraged to fuel our senses on the morning drive.  All the guides in the area have already been in radio communication with each other to discuss where various groups of animals may have traveled over night and whether or not any kills were reported.  The guides often pre-agree who will go in each general direction on the properties.  In doing so they must consider the type of animals in pursuit so as to avoid placing an over abundance of pressure on the wildlife (potentially causing them to relocate their dens, for example).  I, being a know-it-all of course, engage our guide JD in lots of conversation about nature, absorbing his vast knowledge, explaining what I can about our habitats in North America, and asking lots of questions.  My safari persona begins to surface.

6:15 to 6:30 am – The guides and guests exit the lodge, venture up to the dusty circle drive, and mount the vehicles prepped by the tracker.  Each guest is provided a soft sided hot water bottle (serving as a highly effective hand/lap warmer), blanket, and fleece poncho (aka Safari Snuggie).  JD the guide readies a rifle with the bolt and ammunition.  When asked, Phanuel (the tracker) indicated he’s never in his 20+ years of tracking had to shoot at an animal; warning shots only.  Quite reassuring.  Also, a machete is tucked in the front grill of the truck.  JD assumes the driver seat and mans the radio while Phanuel takes the special tracker seat suspended out in front of the vehicle on the left side where he has the best possible view of game and their tracks.  JD fires up the rover and we’re off into the chilly morning winter air, made chillier by the breeze blowing through the open vehicle.  JD announces a general drive plan: locating a pride of lions, stalking down an elusive female leopard and her cubs, etc.  The guests bundle up and expose only their cold hands to ready their cameras.

6:30 to 9:30 or 10:00 am – Morning game drive.  I know everyone's looking forward to reading about all the wildlife, but I have a dedicated post on this in the queue.  Stay tuned for the next installment!  There is a method to this madness.

9:30 or 10:00 am to 11:00 am – We return to the lodge for our “real” breakfast out on the terrace.  By now the sun has warmed the humans and our environs to an adequately comfortable state.  Sometimes couples elect to dine with each other, sometimes the guides join in for the meal, sometimes couples maintain their privacy.  One morning our AM game drive surprisingly concluded with “breakfast in the bush.”  The staff set up mobile food stations, tables, chairs, and place settings out in a quaint little clearing where the guests in each vehicle sat together to dine with the guides and trackers.

It was a nice time to get to know each other without the loud cranking of the Land Rover engine impeding conversation.  Genuine conversation.  I asked Phanuel about his training: what it takes to become a “senior tracker” (there are evidently only a few handful/s in the country) besides 20+ years of experience.  In so-so English, he recounted one particularly memorable story of training in the bush with his tracker mentor.  He found himself staring down a lion (who wasn’t at all pleased with Phanuel’s proximity) from 50 meters away.  The lion growled, then initiated a “mock charge” (a fake attack).  Phanuel said every fiber in his body and thought in his mind urged him to flee.  But you run and you’re dead; 50 meters is nothing for a lion to make a kill.  His mentor literally grounded Phanuel in position by grabbing and holding his belt.  Moments passed, the lion eventually relaxed, and the pair of trackers slowly retreated.  “It was terrible,” he said, using his go-to catchphrase Candice and I found most humorous.

11:00 am to 1:00 pm – Downtime.  The only true downtime of the day.  We usually spent this time bathing (Candice indoors, me outdoors), setting aside some laundry, downloading pictures and backing them up, recharging batteries (lithium-ion and human), and relaxing in the winter sun on the house patio.

1:00 pm – Lunch service begins. Having typically finished breakfast at 10:30 or 11 am, we opted for pretty light lunches.  Again, our server Enuel greeted us on the terrace at the lodge and tended to our likings.  All the meals were really terrific.

3:30 pm – The guests and guides assemble around one of the lodge bars in advance of the PM game drive.  By now, many of the guests (including me, of course) have switched over to adult beverages, but others (fun haters) stuck with coffee, tea, juices, or sodas.  Similar to the prep for the morning drive, the area guides have synched up on the day’s animal activities.  Each guide has his/her general route planned, informs the guests, and we’re on our way again.  The earth’s natural light at sunset (and sunrise) are superb for photography…the other-worldly golden orange glow cannot be adequately replicated by software, and can’t be adequately articulated in my words here either.

5:45 to 6:00 pm – Sundowner.  Unbeknownst to many (the first night, at least), the land rover is packed with a cooler full of snacks and beverages.  JD and Phanuel bust out the cooler, a small card table, some tableware, and set up shop in a clearing “cleared” for safety by Phanuel.  A few small appetizers are served, along with beer, wine, coffee, or tea.  As the sun goes down, many of the resident nocturnal predators begin to stir and prepare for a semi-relocation of their pride/pack/herd, etc or perhaps they prepare to hunt, so we must be cautious of where we stop the vehicle, dismount, and imbibe.  The sunset in the African sky is spectacular.  Just as you’d imagine it or as you’ve seen it on television.  One of our sundowner spots was near a small pond providing lovely reflections.

5:30 to 7:00 pm – The PM game drive is very similar to the AM game drive except at night, the trackers really get to flaunt their skills.  At night, a different set of creatures emerge.  More on this in the next post covering wildlife.

7:00 to 7:30 pm – The vehicle returns to the circle drive and is greeted by a small fleet of night porters who offer lanterns and flashlights for the walk back down to the lodge.  A host/ess welcomes each guest with a damp cloth to cleanse our fingers.  At this point dinner service is underway, and each couple is free to dine immediately, wind down with a cocktail, or retreat to their house and return later.

7:30 pm and later - Dinner.  The staff did an incredible job of making every dinner a unique experience for each couple or family as well.

After our drive the first night, Candice and I elected to go straight from the vehicle into the fire-lit dining room where the chef prepared a 100% vegetarian tasting menu for us featuring one of my new favorite dishes: Lentil Bobotie.

The second night we scheduled a pre-dinner wine tasting down in the lodge's 12,000 bottle cellar.  Francois (the sommelier) had nothing specific planned and just let the group’s conversation direct his choices for tastings.  One semi-gregarious female guest wanted to explore the differences between Chenin Blanc and Sauvignon Blanc, so Francois obliged and our tasting took off from there.  We mentioned to Francois that our next destination after Singita was the Franschhoek wine district, so he kindly provided a small pack of recommended wineries in the region.  In 45 minutes we concluded and ascended from the cellar.  Kobus greeted and informed us he prepared a dinner surprise in our house.  A night porter escorted us down the walkway to #7 and we were delighted to find the house completely done up in candles, lanterns, and flowers, some jams playing on the speakers, bubbles in the bath, and a bottle of South African sparkling wine (can’t be called Champagne) chilling on ice.

A slight step up from the Mexican all-inclusives featuring swans sculpted from bath towels...not to be hating on the swans.  Or the Mexican all-inclusives.  They rock.  Anyway, in the main living area, the table was set and a fully vegetarian tasting menu presented.  A few minutes later, Kobus rang the house phone and asked when we’d like to begin dinner as well as gathering our requests for any specific wines we enjoyed down at the tasting.  Traversing back and forth between our house and the lodge, Enuel served our dinner, two courses at a time, about 20 minutes apart.  What a wonderful experience and meal.  Really top class service.

Our final dinner at Singita was also a surprise.  As the guests returned from the PM game drive, we all filed around the side of the lodge to a secluded area for alfresco dining complete with multiple food stations, lantern-lit trees, space heaters, and a “campfire” burning in the pit.  In the middle of the meal, our host introduced an ensemble of the lodge staff who treated the guests to several traditional South African songs and dances.  Enuel, who’s voice I’d describe as muppet-like, belted out his lyrics with crazy inspiration and jubilation.  A young boy rocked out on his kudu horn.  A few guests got up to join in the dancing.  It was an original and unforgettable conclusion to our nights at Boulders Lodge.

"There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the ways in which you yourself have altered." - Nelson Mandela

After a long double-overnight voyage from Chicago to Istanbul to Johannesburg (June 2-4), we caught our transfer from the Joburg airport to the Hilton and spent a day getting caught up on rest and adjusting to the new time zone.  Candice and I looked at each other and couldn't believe we were in Africa.  What seemed to be such a distant land was now under our feet.  The vacation that seemed so far off (conceived in 2006, booked in 2009) became our "now."

Throughout the first few transfers in the country, we were overwhelmed with the hospitality and warmth exuding from just about every South African we encountered.  They are incredibly proud and passionate to serve as World Cup hosts, and the country was frothing with excitement, ready to explode upon the tournament's start.  Cars traveling the motorway, many decorated with South African flags, randomly honked their horns in celebration, the drivers and passengers within thrusting their arms with fists clenched.  Vuvuzelas periodically blared from unassuming environs.  The people were absolutely pumped.

Selecting an easy, low risk first adventure, we cruised through the mall (yes, a mall) at Nelson Mandela Square and found the entire place tricked out in truckloads of world cup paraphernalia.  Every store had soccer balls, jerseys, scarves, etc decorating their display windows such that it required a double take to determine what each store was selling.  Merchandise prices were outrageously expensive so we settled for a Thai meal and a good night's sleep to complete our day.

The initial "highlight" of our trip came the morning after our arrival (June 5) when the Windows XP powered NedBank ATM machine spontaneously rebooted in the middle of a transaction and Candice's ATM card was swallowed in the process.  We immediately canceled the card with no additional harm done.  When she wants to, that woman can be prepared for anything.

On Friday morning we transferred to the charter air field at Johannesburg International (OR Tambo Airport) to begin the most exotic (read luxurious and expensive) segment of the journey: a three night safari at Singita Boulders Lodge in the Sabi Sands Game Reserve adjacent to the world famous Kruger National Park.  Here is a map to give you an idea of our destination:

Before takeoff, our pilots relieved any "small plane fears" we had by announcing they drank all the beer in the onboard cooler and thus, only water and sodas remained for the passengers and our 60 minute flight.  On arrival at the airstrip, we were greeted by our guide (ranger) JD, tracker Phanuel, and other staff/management before being escorted via open air Land Rover to the magnificent Singita Boulders Lodge.  Kobus, our host (the magic hospitality sprite), gave us the lay of the land, daily schedules, and some natural history before guiding us down the elevated wooden walkway to house #7: a 1300 sq foot "suite" with more amenities than I care to put in words.  These videos will do far greater justice:

After some lunch on the outdoor terrace and a brief rest, it was on to the first true landmark activity of our stay...the primary reason for just about every visit to this region of the world: the game drive.

Up next in the series is Part 2: A day in the life at Singita Boulders.

Having completed quite literally the trip of a lifetime, I now have the pleasure of mentally reliving, physically recapping, and digitally sharing our experiences with you here.  I fully intended to write and post things as we progressed through the trip, but I was so enthralled with our activities on a daily basis, I just conceded myself to the moments and left the writing for later. I know this approach might take a little zest out of the whole deal, but hey...remember, this is about me, not you :)

As I complete each new entry, I will post a link to it here.  Also, I know many of you are itching to see all our photos and I promise you, we're working on them.  There are about 2000 to review and we are in the process of selecting a palatable volume for casual consumption.  Candice will then apply her newly found Photoshop Lightroom expertise to the processing cycle and I will post links to the albums on Flickr as they become ready.  So let the memories begin:

• Afroblog Part 1: Arrival
• Afroblog Part 2: A Day In The Life At Singita Boulders
• Afroblog Part 3: (Big) Five Alive

Candice and I extended this past weekend with a couple vacation days to visit my Oma (informal German for Grandmother) out in Humboldt County, California. My parents visit her twice per year, once in March and once in October, and I try to coordinate an annual visit while they're out there. My Oma, still going strong at 95 years old, shares property with my uncle John out in Freshwater, CA, close to the twin-city metropolis of Eureka/Arcata about a five hour drive north of San Francisco. We were able to book flights the whole way through to Eureka/Arcata airport (ACV) thereby eliminating the need for a rental car and the beautifully intense northward drive. Though I have a sentimental attachment to that long trek from San Francisco, side-stepping the wine regions and through the redwoods, flying the whole way made for a less stressful journey.  As usual, I took a ton of pictures and you can find a selection thereof in the Flickr photo set here or the slide show here.

We caught the first United flight out of Chicago on Thursday morning and arrived at ACV shortly before 1pm Pacific. Clear skies and smooth flying the whole way.

I had to work remotely on Friday (thank god for Oma’s wifi), but I took a long break during the day to visit Eureka. We did the customary stroll through Old Town and down to the bay to check out the progress on the Boardwalk expansion project. Not much progress for such a beautiful little town. Makes me wonder how many delightful little places there are in this country and on this earth that can't get the economic traction required for substantial growth. Never dismayed, Eureka is also home to a couple outstanding used book stores which are dear to Candice's heart. She found four nice, old editions while the rest of us split to the antique stores and coffee shop. We took a quick spin through one of the rummage stores where my mom replenished Oma’s wine glass collection (3 glasses for $1.50).

From there we hit up the Eureka Co-op grocery store, food paradise to vegetarians and vegans, to pick up some fixings for the weekend’s dinners and lunches. Best. grocery. store. ever. Aisles and aisles of weirdness.  That night the omnivores had Dungeness crab and the veg-heads had homemade seitan. Around the table we talked, laughed, and listened to Oma recall stories of the old days in Germany. What a life she’s had.

Saturday after breakfast we took a hike up and around the hill behind my Uncle John’s house. Once you get through the brush, you come to an extremely hilly gravel road upon which we found a number of curious industrial vehicular relics. A photographers delight.

After the hike we explored “downtown” Arcata which involves the typical walk around the square, a coffee stop at Café Brio, and one of my favorite northern California pastimes: Degenerate Watching. If you haven’t spent time up in Humboldt County, you may not be aware that it’s 1) the marijuana capital of the US and correspondingly 2) home to an otherworldly number of degenerates. The degenerates are often bearded, usually dreadlocked, occasionally juggling, and always, always stoned. Watching them operate (or not) is pure joy.

Anyway, we sipped our lattes outside in the sun, visited a few stores to gift shop for those taking care of our animals at home, grabbed a couple t-shirt souvenirs, and were on our way.

Having already hit the twin-cities, we decided to catch some scenery on the Pacific coast north of Arcata on Sunday. First stop was Patrick’s Point State Park, a 600+ acre plot of land with beaches, camping, trails, a $7 entry fee, and plenty of coastal scenery. We made the short trek out to windy Wedding Rock, then the longer trek down to Agate Beach to scour for agates. On our way back south we hopped off 101 and made a customary stop at Trinidad to grab some snacks and check out the bay. We watched a few fisherman lined up down the pier and I noticed their bait (cooked, jumbo shrimp) was more pricey than my average meal. Despite the overcast conditions, the views were stunning as always…Candice wants a second home there and I think she’s already picked it out. Anyone have a Starbucks application handy? I’m going to need a second job.

Monday was our day of departure and I was sad to count the hours down until we had to leave. We returned to Eureka for breakfast and Candice found another four early editions in a different used book store in Old Town. We cruised through one final rummage store and just relaxed for the afternoon and evening.  One puddle-jump and a red-eye later and we found ourselves home before 6am Tuesday.

Humboldt County will always have a special place in my heart, and not just because my Oma calls it home. I first visited at age 14, the summer before starting High School during which I converted to pescatarianism (to the sheer delight of my parents). I’ve now been there upwards of 6 or 7 times and eagerly look forward to my next visit. I already miss the fresh air…