Christmas in Belize!

Another great Christmas adventure. This time (Christmas/New Year 2010/2011) we were in Belize, Central America for two and a half weeks. We spent the first 10 days on the island of Caye Caulker, where we rented a small house on the south shore. You'll see it in the first few frames of the video below. We had fun swimming, fishing, and hanging out on the dock in front of the house. Transportation around town was by bicycle, which worked out great.

Then we moved to Ambergris Caye, an island to the north, where we stayed with a family 12 miles north of the town of San Pedro. We stayed in a rustic wooden hut over the water - watch for several views of it about halfway through the video. The hut was primarily for sleeping, as it had no electricity (except a small, 12-volt light that charged with solar panels) or running water. We ate great family-style meals with our hosts, Greg and Rosemary Smith and their three kids (ages 4 to 12). Most days, Luke and Steve helped catch the fish that we ate for either lunch or dinner. Down the beach a couple of hundred yard was an upscale resort (Tranquility Bay), easily recognizable in the video by the brightly-colored cottages onshore, and a turquoise restaurant/bar over the water. Snorkeling on the reef was convenient and spectacular. Click the "Play" button to see some images from our trip. Make sure your speakers are turned up!

A Christmas Reunion in Mexico!

We're just back from a two-week adventure in Sayulita, Mexico, which is about 25 miles north of Puerta Vallarta. This was a Christmas/New Year reunion for our family, and we celebrated two birthdays: Hannah turned 13 on Dec 26, 2009 and Dad turned 80 on Jan 2, 1010.

It was wonderful sharing a large, beautiful house (Casa Terramar), which was divided into 3 separate apartments, so each family had, more or less, their own space. Mom and Dad, who came from Arizona, had the courtyard level, Mark and Caroline's family (from California) had the pool level, Steve and Melissa's family (from Alaska) had the main level, and Barb (from France) moved between the pool, courtyard and main/open-air top levels.

Weather was great and the activities were abundant and fun. Highlights included time at the pool at the house, getting beat up in the surf at the beach, boogie-boarding, surfing, fishing, and a chartered sailing-yacht trip to the Marietas Islands for snorkeling, exploring, and birding.

Make sure your speakers are turned up, then click the triangular play button below to watch our video...

August '09 Road Trip

August 16 to 20 we did a road trip from Juneau to Skagway (aboard the Alaska State Ferry Malaspina), then drove to Whitehorse and Haines Junction in Yukon Territory, Canada, then south to Haines, Alaska, where we caught the ferry back to Juneau.

It was fun exploring new country with M's cousin Ellen, who was visiting from Ohio. The video slide show gives some idea of what we did and saw. Highlights include a nice little cabin at Sundog Retreat outside of Whitehorse, the Beringia museum in Whitehorse, great dining at the Raven in Haines Junction, trout and grayling fishing at the Kathleen River south of Haines Junction, and a big brown bear along the Lutak River near Haines. Check it out...click on the little triangular "Play" button on the lower left of the photo, below.

Summer 2008 visit from Ohio

In August, 2008, we hosted Ellen and Martha. We caught the ferry to Tenakee Springs where we rented a house for a few days and enjoyed the little Southeast Alaska village, which has no cars. A nice little community of friendly people.

Then it was back to Juneau for fishing, shopping, etc. We put this little slide show together as a memento for Ellen and Martha.

Hawaii for Christmas!

Just returned from 3 weeks on the island of Kauai - our first time in Hawaii. What a beautiful island, and everyone we met was pleasant and helpful. We had a great time swimming, snorkeling, boogie-boarding, surfing, hiking, fishing, and exploring.

There was a bit of a storm going when we arrived on Dec 16, with cloud cover and wind, that lasted for a few days. Eventually the clouds broke up and we had partly cloudy skies for most of the rest of the trip. The water stayed fairly rough, with breezes and brief showers most days, but temperatures were awesome - 70's and 80's the entire time. Our last day, Jan 6, was clear, warm and gorgeous. Wish we were still there...

Enjoy the little slide show of our adventures. Click on the triangular "Play" button on the lower left corner of the picture below. Photographers include Steve, Melissa, Luke, Hannah, and friend John.