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Most Recent Posts
- The Rice Lake “Serpent Mound” – Chronology, Sources, And Cases Of Mistaken Identity 2021-05-06
- εφήμερος – A Late-April Snowfall in Riverdale! 2021-04-21
- Georgian Bay’s North and East Coast – Paddlers’ Eye Candy 2021-02-23
- Temagami’s Lady Evelyn River From Top To Bottom: Route Options, Maps, Shuttles, Permits, And More 2021-02-21
- A Rainy Day in Toronto: Nov. 30, 2020. 2020-11-30
- Temagami’s Lady Evelyn River From Top to Bottom: Days 10 and 11 – Across Lady Evelyn Lake To Mowat Landing 2020-10-18
- Temagami’s Lady Evelyn River From Top To Bottom: Day 9 – From the South Channel to Lady Evelyn Lake’s West End 2020-10-11
- Temagami’s Lady Evelyn River From Top to Bottom: Day 8 – From Bridal Veil Falls To The Bottom of The South Channel 2020-10-09
- Temagami’s Lady Evelyn River From Top To Bottom: Day 7 – From Macpherson Lake Island Camp To Bridal Veil Falls 2020-10-07
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A view of the Cordillera Real from Isla del Sol on Lake Titicaca in Bolivia.The gps track of a 200-km trek down the length of Bolivia’s Cordillera Real (Royal Range). We came down the west side; the classic route on the east side of the range has seen a big increase in mining activity. https://wp.me/p25mXk-7MHLate evening at Yangon’s Shwe Dagon Pagoda- the crowds are gone and it is cool and quiet on a full- moon evening. https://wp.me/p25mXk-6qYRevered monk with nuns and lay followers at Yangon’s Shwe Dagon Pagoda on an auspicious full moon evening - it was magical! https://wp.me/p25mXk-6qYMonk meditating below statue of Siddhartha Gautama in the “touching the earth” mudra - the Shwe Dagon Pagoda in Myanmar. https://wp.me/p25mXk-6qYMonk in front of candle table at the Shwe Dagon in Rangoon, Burma - that is, Yangon. Myanmar. https://wp.me/p25mXk-6qYBurmese Nuns arriving on the terrace of Yangon’s Shwe Dagon Pagoda for dusk service. https://wp.me/p25mXk-6qYMonk studying the Buddha’s teachings at the Shwe Dagon Pagoda - https://wp.me/p25mXk-6puBurmese monk outside of Rangoon’s Shwe Dagon Pagoda. See here for more- https://wp.me/p25mXk-6pu“Everybody is looking for something!” Photographer and monk at the Shwe Dagon Pagoda in Yangon ... https://wp.me/p25mXk-6puThe floor plan of Myanmar’s most sacred space, the Shwe Dagon Pagoda in Yangon (formerly Rangoon). See here for more pix - https://wp.me/p25mXk-6puApproaching our Rodolphu campsite after a tough day on the Snowman trek in the Bhutanese Himalayas.Yaks coming our way. We were going to Lunana; they were heading to Garza...Bhutanese Himalayas October 2019A lake view from the trail to Rerethang after we crossed Tempe La, our last high pass.Donkeys from Thanza approaching Chozo to carry our gear down to Sephu on the Snowman Trek.A view of the Bhutanese-Tibet border on the way down to Tarina campsite in the Bhutanese Himalayas.A load-free yak caravan crossing the 5100-meter high Rinchen Zoe La ...heading from Thanza down to Sephu. See here for more pics - https://wp.me/p25mXk-8KTThe resident monk at the Dzong in Chozo in the Bhutanese Himalayas.The remnants of an old bridge used by loggers years ago. We dragged our canoe across and continued down the headwaters of the Lady Evelyn River in Ontario’s Temagami region - day 2 of our 11-day canoe trip in September of 2020. The ultimate in physical distancing! See here for more - https://wp.me/p25mXk-9JxLooking west across Sucker Gut Lake at Maple Mountain ridge and a just discernible fire tower. We were on our way to Mowat Landing. See this site for more info and maps - https://wp.me/p25mXk-9XVramblinboy
Moshi's Parkview Inn - after seven nights in a tent a very luxurious place to chill after our Kilimanjaro climb. The next day I would head to Arusha and arrange a last-minute two-day safari to Ngorongoro Crater and Tarangire National Park. Just like the hike up Kili, that too would prove to be an awesome experience!The end of the Kilimanjaro trek at Mweka Gate. Our Popote bus was waiting for us and it was a one hour ride back to Moshi and the hotel used by Popote for its guests. It is known as the Parkview Inn, a decent place in the $75. range. with a restaurant, a swimming pool, and a stored luggage room and 24-hour security and watchman at the entry gates of the inn. There are cheaper - and much more expensive - options available but I found the Parkview to be a great spot before and after our climb.It takes a village to move five mzungu (Swahili for white people) up the mountain. We took a group shot a High camp after our mid-afternoon arrival from Barafu. Three guides, 15 porters, and two cooks made sure we were taken care of and in shape to fulfil the mission! I booked my trip with a company in Moshi, the base camp town for Kilimanjaro. I did it all over the internet and by email - and I must say I found one great small and not really expensive company. See TripAdvisor for other trekkers' opinions. Maybe in 20222 when we are travelling again, you'll be able to check off Kilimanjaro from your "to do" list!We've begun our descent. I turn around and look back to Stella Point up on top of the ridge. Other members of our crew are coming down. The dust that we kick up as we descent is bad. I decide that I am going to make sure I am at the front of the one and not at the end so that I have cleaner air to breathe! In any case, the walking is very easy. 5 1/2 hrs. to get up and maybe 2 1/2 to get down!Our lead guide Dixon, a veteran of more than 150 ascents, and our crew coming down from Uhuru Peak in the background. It is about 6:45 a.m. By 9:30 I will be crawling into my tent for a brief siesta before we head down the mountain to our Day 7 campsite at High (Millenium) Camp at 3827 meters. That is a drop of over 2000 meters after having climbed about 1300 in the pre-dawn hours. Definitely the biggest energy expenditure day of the trek!The Snows of Kilimanjaro is now just the name of a book. Up on top, the glacier that once covered the entire summit and then some is all but gone. Instead of the streams I imagined would be pouring down the slopes as the ice melts, the ice just vaporizes. Poof - and it's gone!Trekkers approaching Uhuru Peak from Stella Point at dawn. We were the second group to get to the top and got to watch as other groups made their way toward us. Even as we were going down below the crater rim there were still a few trekkers and guides heading up!Our five=person crew at Uhuru Peak at about 6:30 a.m. Three of us from Canada and two from the U.S. We established very early on that US politics would not be discussed in the dining tent! The two old guys in the front - a guy from Cali and I - were both 68, with me being the older by 3 months. The two other Canadians were in their mid-40s and the other American was in her 20s. It was our local trekking agency in Moshi - highly recommended Popote - that put us all together for the climb.the only photo I took from our midnight departure from Barafu to our dawn celebration on Uhuru Peak. It was about 3:30 a.m. and we still had about two hours to go. The wind was blowing hard and it was maybe -10ºC. For 3 1/2 hours we had been walking in the dark with only our headlights making visible the person ahead of us.Kilimanjaro is actually a massive mountain with three extinct volcanoes on the top plateau. We had walked across the crater of the lowest one - Shira - on Days 2 and 3. This satellite image shows the other two - Mawenza, a less high but more technical climb done by very few and Uhuru Peak, at 5895 meters the highest single point on the Kili massif and in all of Africa. Uhuru Peak is on the rim of the ancient crater and is approached via Stella Point, the spot where the trail from Barafu meets the crater rim.Barafu Camp on the slopes of Kilimanjaro is the last stop before the climb to the top. Behind the sign are the ranger's cabin and the sign-in book. I did a quick scan of the names, countries of origin, and age of this day's Barafu campers. I had to smile when I noticed that at 68 I was the oldest guy in camp - and would, for a day - be the oldest guy up on Uhuru Peak. However, still to come was a six-hour ascent starting at midnight up the final section to the trail to the top.Day 6 and we are approaching our final campsite before the summit - Barafu Camp. It is up there on the ridge. We'd set up camp on the left side of the image and get ready for our midnight departure for the final ascent to the rim of the ancient crater. Barafu is at 4662, about the same altitude as Lava Tower, where we stopped for lunch a couple of days before. It is 1300 meters of altitude gain from Barafu to Uhuru Peak.Our Day 5 campsite on the slopes of Kilimanjaro. In the background is Mount Meru. I had climbed it the week before as an acclimatization exercise. While it is only 4600 meters it turned out to be more difficult than Kilimanjaro! Whenever I looked back at Meru as we made our way up the slopes of Kili, I felt like I was looking at an old friend!the porters keep on truckin' to the next campsite as we take some time to get a group shot at the top of the Barranco Wall. Camp 5 coming up - we are getting closer to the night of our Kilimanjaro ascent!the Barranco Wall and the other people in my group coming up a famous short stretch that includes the Kissing Rock, Kilimanjaro's equivalent of the Blarney Stone. There is Mary about to give it a hug!My four fellow trekkers and one of our guides as we begin our "climb" of the Barranco Wall, the closest thing to mountaineering on the hike to the top. No harnesses or ropes required - just some careful stepping as we make our way up the wall of the gorge to the plateau on top.Day 4 of the Lemosho Route is the one where it joins with another trail. From this point onward, the volume of trekkers increases dramatically. The campsite at Barranco would be proof of that, with dozens of trekking parties filling up all the available space. The Kilimanjaro is not a wilderness walk; it is more like a pilgrimage!Looking back at our lunch spot behind Lava Tower @4627 meters. We were now on our way to Barranco Camp at 3966m. Since we had started the day at about 3900, going up to the Tower made for an excellent acclimatization exercise. The climber's mantra is - Walk high, sleep low. Day 4 did that for our bodies adapting to the thinner air.A satellite view of the Leomosho Route that has you on Uhuru Peak at dawn of Day 7. The success rate is about 90%; the four-day ascent has a success rate of about 50%. the more time you spent getting to the top, the more likely you will. I did make use of Diamox to help my body acclimatize faster to the thinning oxygen. Up top you have to inhale twice the amount of air to get the same amount of oxygen as down below.Our Shira 1 camp on Day 2 of our Kilimanjaro hike. There were five of us - and twenty locals to make sure we got up the mountain! 3 guides, 14 porters, a couple of cooks...The base camp town of Moshi is one of the most well to do in Tanzania! One green tent is the dining tent, the other is the cook tent. The outhouse tent is the beige one.
Author Archives: true_north
The Rice Lake “Serpent Mound” – Chronology, Sources, And Cases Of Mistaken Identity
Related Post: The Peterborough Petroglyphs: Building Over An Ancient Algonkian Ritual Site. The Archaeologist David Boyle on Rice Lake in 1897 Hundreds of acres of its surface are covered with wild rice, and it has thus been always a favorite … Continue reading
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εφήμερος – A Late-April Snowfall in Riverdale!
The Greek word εφήμερος (ephēmeros) translates as “lasting a day”. It came to mind as I stood by the patio door and watched as our Icelandic sheepdog Viggo returned from his morning yard duty. Overnight a couple of centimeters (i.e. … Continue reading
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Georgian Bay’s North and East Coast – Paddlers’ Eye Candy
As longtime canoe trippers on the rivers and lakes of the Canadian Shield, it has only been in the past six years that the possibilities of paddling the northern and eastern shore of Georgian Bay drew the attention of my … Continue reading
Temagami’s Lady Evelyn River From Top To Bottom: Route Options, Maps, Shuttles, Permits, And More
Previous Post: Temagami & Lady Evelyn Canoe Trip: Introduction and a Bit of History Route Options: Both headwater branches of the Lady Evelyn can be accessed by vehicle. After a short ride west along Hwy 560 from Elk Lake towards … Continue reading
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Tagged Beauty Lake, Beauty Lake Road Access, Florence Lake fly-in, Florence Lake map, Gamble Lake, Katherine Lake, Lady Evelyn put-in, Lady Evelyn River Map, Lady Evelyn River shuttle, Lady evelyn topo map, Liskeard Logging Road, Smoothwater Lake map, Temagami Backcountry Fees Quadrupled, Temagami cellphone coverage, Temagami off the grid
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A Rainy Day in Toronto: Nov. 30, 2020.
See Viggo’s Den for more on our engaging Icelandic Sheepdog Viggo. The weather forecast for the next three days is not good. Rain, rain, and more rain – and maybe a bit of snow too! On the map, it looks … Continue reading
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Temagami’s Lady Evelyn River From Top to Bottom: Days 10 and 11 – Across Lady Evelyn Lake To Mowat Landing
Previous Post: Day 9 – From The South Channel To The North End of Lady Evelyn Lake Day 10 – From West To East Across Lady Evelyn Lake distance: 18.5 km with a pass by of Garden Island Lodge time: … Continue reading
Temagami’s Lady Evelyn River From Top To Bottom: Day 9 – From the South Channel to Lady Evelyn Lake’s West End
Previous Post: Day 8 – From Bridal Veil Falls To the Bottom of the South Channel Day 9 – From South Channel to West End of Lady Evelyn Lake distance: 20.5 km. time: 10:30 – 2:30 weather: very wet; passing … Continue reading
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Temagami’s Lady Evelyn River From Top to Bottom: Day 8 – From Bridal Veil Falls To The Bottom of The South Channel
Previous Post: Day 7 – From Macpherson Lake To the South Channel’s Bridal Veil Falls Day 8 – Lady Evelyn’s South Channel from Bridal Veil Falls To The Bottom distance: 9.7 km. time: 9:15 to 1:15 portages/rapids: finished the Bridal Veil portage … Continue reading
Temagami’s Lady Evelyn River From Top To Bottom: Day 7 – From Macpherson Lake Island Camp To Bridal Veil Falls
Previous Post: Day 6 – From Just Below The Forks To Macpherson Lake Day 7 – Down The South Channel To Bridal Veil Falls Distance: 10.7 km. Time: 9:30 to 3:50 Portages/Rapids: portaged all except the second set coming into … Continue reading
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Temagami’s Lady Evelyn River From Top to Bottom: Day 6 – From Below the Forks to Macpherson Lake
Previous Post: Day 5 – From Florence Lake To The Forks (And A Bit Beyond) Day 6 – To Macpherson Lake distance: 9.1 km time: 9:30 a.m to 3:50 p.m. portages/rapids: 6/6 – lined 3? Note: Rapid #s taken from … Continue reading
