Carcoar twice, The Arctic, Cape Town
Carcoar twice, The Arctic, Cape Town
Priceless moments
- A weekend away in Alpine with beautiful people.
- Table tennis with Chris.
- Camping at Dunns Swamp with Elna and others.
- Canyoning with Srini and John and conquering my fears when we navigated a knife-edged cliff.
- Conquering my fear of heights again by leaping from a high cliff at Mermaid Falls.
- The Grand Canyon and Centennial Glen after the rain.
- Some great hikes with the boys including Bungonia National Park Red Track, Gardens of Stone, Wolgan Valley, Bonnum Pic trail and Corang Arch in the Buddawang.
- Practicing my new Canon R5 camera at Taronga Zoo and be amazed by its extraordinary eye detection.
- The experience of a lifetime in the The Arctic (Svalbard). Eye dropping scenery from zodiacs and shore landings. Close encounters with great white bears and amazing birds.
- My photos of The Arctic featured in the New York Post.
- Being inspired to get back into bird photography at Barton Park.
- My gratitude expressed to Michael for his generous gift that allowed me to get the Canon R5.
- Lunch with Michael and Sue's friends.
- Jo graduates as a Zoe Project birth companion.
- Hiking to Ystervark Grot at Silvermine with Russell and Brandon and squeezing ourselves through narrow cave passages to reach larger caverns.
- Squeezing through the Wolfberg Cracks in The Cedarberg with Russell to ascend the mountains to spend the night at the spectacular Wolfberg Arch.
- Birding photography at Rondevlei where, to my absolute delight, I got photos of mating malachite kingfisher.
- Thousands of flamingoes at Strandfontein Sewerage Works.
- Getting photos of sunbirds and sugarbirds at Kirstenbosch during two vists.
- Photos of a Paradise flychatcher on its nest in the Greenbelt.
- A stunning hike with Russell and Jo in the mountains in Hout Bay.
- Listening to the Ndlovu Choir and being moved to tears.
- Doing a video tribute for Jo's 50th birthday and for Elna's 50th birthday.
- Planning our Antarctica trip for March 2023 with Aurora.
- Sitting & Being at the park with Mack.
- Visiting Tina in in Carcoar in January and also spending Xmas with the family.
- A really fun New Year's party at my place, and going off to watch fireworks from a good spot, thanks to me pitching a tent there earlier in the day.
Not so great
- Mike has a heart attack. He recovered but it really took it out of him.
- My Wisdom Trove visitors keep going up, but then plummet in October after Google changes its algorithm.
Culinary delights
- Portuguese Charcoal chicken with Srini after hike
- Messina icecream
- Jo's coffee and rum & raisin icecream
- Thick chocolate milkshake in Cape Town
- Eat Greek prawn wrap after Coastal Track walk
- Cape Town meat & fish: Cattlebaron steak, Ocean Basket, Ribs at market
- Xmas feasts: Ruth: Duck, pork belly, chicken, amazing potato bake Xmas day at Shalow: Lemon curd trifle, turkey
Purchases
- Canon R5 with 100 - 500 lens.
- Air Fryer
- iPhone 14
- Air tags
Favourite movies
- Top Gun Maverick (2022) (*)
- King Richard (2022) (*)
- The Menu (2022) (*)
- Ennio, The Maestro (2022) (*)
- The Banshees of Inisherin (2022)
- CODA (2021)
- Thoroughbreds (2017)
- The Descent (2005)
- Palm Springs (2020)
- Fall (2010)
- The Platform (2019)
- Mr Nobody (2009)
- Easy A (2010)
- Booksmart (2019)
- The Perfection (2018)
- The Banshees Of Inisherin (2022)
- Triangle of Sadness (2022)
- Ozark
- Better Call Saul
2022 Index of Links
Cape Town (Oct) All posts
Arrival
Hikes & Walks
- Hout Bay hike (Jo and Russell)
- Silvermine hiking to Muizenberg peak (Jo)
- Llandudno rock hopping (Russell)
- Hike in the mist at Silvermine (Jo)
- Hike to Ystervark Grot at Silvermine (Russell)
- Wolfberg Cracks and Arch in The Cedarberg (Russell)
- Greenbelt walk (Jo and Sam)
- Walk at Groot Constantia (Jo)
- Constantia Nek to Kirstenbosch (Jo)
- Walk in The Hel (Russell)
- Walk Muzenberg to St James (Jo)
- Eagle's Nest (Russell)
- St James to Muizenberg to Kalk Bay (Jo)
Birding
Outings
Get togethers
Meals
Arctic trip (Jul) Overview All posts Video
Getting ready
- Researching content for our Arctic lessons
- Getting my photography juices flowing for the Arctic
- Arctic farewell picnic
Getting there
- Building team spirit in Singapore on the way to the Arctic
- Singapore to Oslo
- Arriving in Longyearbyen, gateway to the Arctic
In the Arctic
- Introducing the star of our Arctic expedition: The Greg Mortimer
- Exploring the Arctic by zodiac
- Exploring the Arctic through landings on shore
- Arctic scenery that took our breath away
- A wonder world of sea ice just 1100 km from the north pole
- Close encounters with great white bears
- Other animals we saw in the Arctic
- Birds we saw in the Arctic
- Creating video lessons on location in The Arctic
Getting home
Home
Journals
Weekend away
- Visit Tina in Carcoar for a family Xmas (Dec)
- Weekend away in Alpine (Mar)
- Camping at Dunns Swamp (Jan)
- Visit Tina in Carcoar (Jan)
Hiking (23 hikes)
- Silvermine hiking to Muizenberg peak (Oct)
- Llandudno rock hopping (Oct)
- Hike in the mist at Silvermine (Oct)
- Hike to Ystervark Grot at Silvermine (Oct)
- Wolfberg Cracks and Arch in The Cedarberg (Oct)
- Hout Bay hike (Jo and Russell)
- Another Colo River hike with Srini and Rajesh (Sep)
- Colo River hike with Srini and Rajesh (Sep)
- 2 hikes in The Arctic
- Nattai outlook hike (Jun)
- Gardens of Stone, Wolgan Valley (May)
- Nattai river hike (May)
- Corang Arch, Buddawang (May)
- Pierce's Pass (May)
- Bonnum Pic trail (Apr)
- Berowra to Hornsby (Mar)
- Royal National Park Garie Beach to Eagle Rock (Mar)
- The Grand Canyon and Centennial Glen after the rain (Mar)
- Uloola Track (Feb)
- Bungonia National Park Red Track (Feb)
- Mermaid Falls leaping (Feb)
- Canyoning with Srini and John (Jan)
Walking
- Stroll at Coogee with Shushann & Lydia (Dec)
- Walk to Balmoral with Sharon, Elwin, Stewart, Lydia, Shushann (Dec)
- Berry Island and Balls Head with Shushann (Nov)
- Greenbelt walk (Oct)
- Walk at Groot Constantia (Oct)
- Constantia Nek to Kirstenbosch (Oct)
- Walk in The Hel (Oct)
- Walk Muzenberg to St James (Oct)
- Eagle's Nest (Oct)
- St James to Muizenberg to Kalk Bay (Oct)
- Fishhoek and Simons Town for lunch (Oct)
- Newport to Whale Beach with Sharon, Shushann and Lydia (Apr)
- Walk with Srini along the coast near Cronulla (Apr)
- Le Perouse walk with Elna and the boys (Apr)
- Malabar Headland with Shushann (Jan)
Photography outings
- Sculptures by the Sea (Nov)
- Taronga zoo practicing for Arctic with new camera (Jun)
- Vivid (Jun)
- Redfern (Feb)
Birding outings
- Strandfontein Sewerage Works (Oct)
- Kirstenbosch (Oct)
- Rondevlei (Oct)
- Flychatcher in The Greenbelt (Oct)
- Kirstenbosch revisted (Oct)
- Mating malachite kingfishers at Rondevlei (Oct)
- Intaka Island (Oct)
- Barton Park (Sep)
- The Arctic (Jul)
Spiritual
- Sit & Be at the park with Mackie (Nov, Dec)
Shows
Friends
- A really fun New Year's party at my place (Dec)
- Being a kid again at the park (Dec)
- A swim at Bronte with Gavin & Tanya (Dec)
- Ball's Head with Xenia (Dec)
- Annual Xmas party at Gavin & Tanya (Dec)
- Visit Jilly in Bowral (Nov)
- Music festival at Marickville with Elna (Nov)
- Lunch with Michael and Sue's friends (Nov)
- The Flying Bear with Chris (Sep)
- Chris birthday at The Botanica (Sep)
- Manly with Elna (Aug)
- Elna's 50th birthday (Aug)
- Birthday tribute video for Elna (Aug)
- Top Gun Maverick (May)
- Bowral to visit Jilly (May)
- Anusha's birthday party (May)
- Yoga day with Elwin and Sharon (Apr)
- Bowral to visit Jilly (Apr)
- Catch up with Roger (Mar)
- Lunch with Chris at Thelma & Louise (Mar)
- Dinner at Gavin and Tanya (Mar)
- Table tennis with Chris (Feb)
- Krissula's birthday lunch (Jan)
Family
- Dinner at Woodside (Oct)
- Cattle Baron with family (Oct)
- Lunch in the garden with the family (Oct)
- Mack turns 18 (Nov)
- My 52nd birthday (Sep)
- Jo's 50th birthday including my tribute video (May)
- Jo graduates as a Zoe Project birth companion (May)
- Jo delivering babies (Mar)
- Mum's 75th birthday (Feb)
- Matt gets 5 A's for matric (Jan)
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